How do you prefer to sell: through email & the web, by phone, or face-to-face? How do your prospects like to buy? What happens when these preferences conflict? Famed management guru and my professor, Peter F. Drucker, was fond of pointing out that there are at least three kinds of customers: (1) Readers
(2) Listeners, and
(3) Writers.
To his list, we can also probably add
(4) Talkers and
(5) Viewers.
These are the main modalities through which people like to get their information. The general idea is we should respect customer preferences, communicating through media that are appropriate to each individual. But is this the way we should sell? Should we defer to apparent customer preferences, or assert our own? For instance, lets say you receive an inquiry through your web sites email, requesting additional information about your products or services. Its easy to reply by scribbling something, or by attaching documents, and then by clicking the mouse. This, it would seem, is what the inquirer is requesting, right? But lets say, at the end of the email, the person has signed it with his name and phone number. Should we take that as an invitation, or at least permission to respond by phone? While Im a writer, and Im comfortable crafting responsive emails, I prefer to sell prospects in real-time, face to face, or by phone. I believe calling an inquirer quickly, not only shows Im interested in earning his business. It gives me a chance to learn more about his project, his needs, budget, and I get to assess his sense of urgency and seriousness from his voice. I can find out about his authority to buy, where he is in the process of evaluating sources of supply, and if hes operating under a deadline. Also, how did he hear about mefrom a referral, a search engine, one of my books? I just cant surmise this detail from an initial email, so there are solid selling reasons to get back with him by phone. But there are risks, as well. He may think its too aggressive, or premature, preferring to keep potential sources at arms length, for the time being. He may be a reader, preferring to sift through documentation, comparing sources, and planning his second dispatch. But if I call, I can always follow that chat with literature, if thats his wish. I prefer to play to my strengths, rather than deferring to a prospects. So, Ill make an effort to discover a persons phone number, even if they havent provided one in their email inquiry. When I call, I say that I wanted to make sure I sent the right information, and to do that its best to get acquainted a little with their specific needs. What if they reply, All I wanted was some basic information. This suggests they arent serious prospects, or that theyre simply going through the motions of shopping so they can seem that theyve objectively settled on using someone else, a source they already decided to work with. Or, they could be calling as shills for my competitors, to learn more about what Im up to, for intelligence. In any case, I can disqualify them from receiving further attention or more detailed information. Ultimately, the question is who will control the buying process: him or me? Im comfortable taking control, as a principle of economy, not power, or personality. The goal here is not developing an ideal relationship, its doing profitable business. That doesnt always happen in an egalitarian context, or necessarily by putting the customer, first! |
