From Out-of-sync to In-sync

When we talk about being "out of sync" versus "in sync," we're referring to your knowledge of these four areas.

1. Conversation Etiquette

2. Prospect’s Problems

3. Industry News / Trends

4. Your Solution

Conversation Etiquette

The ability to converse is something we take for granted all the time. We can communicate with other sentient beings through common language and ideas, pretty cool! The issue with conversation is the assumptions we make. In any dialogue, both parties make assumptions about how they're being perceived and interpreted. When you pick the phone and cold call someone, the individual on the other end is constantly judging and weighing whether they should “give you the time of day” or not. To maintain proper conversation etiquette, you must understand what's going through your prospect's mind.

Here’s a list of statements that could be going on in the head of your prospect.

• This person is trying to sell me something, I want to hang up when I get a chance

• They’re pitching me, I’m ending this

• I don’t want to buy anything

• I don’t need this

• I’ll give the person the time of day because I don’t want to be mean, but there’s no way I’m booking

• Hmm, that’s interesting

• I’ll listen

Being in-sync means you understand what's going on in your prospect's head. When they respond, you must immediately grasp the hidden meaning behind their statement.

Understanding how to influence their inner dialogue is crucial. While it's easy for someone to shift from "I'll listen" to "They're pitching me, I'm ending this," the reverse is much more challenging. Here are some common ways to lose a prospect's interest.

Talking too much without your prospects inquiry

Without explicit permission to continue (like when a prospect asks a question), keep your dialogue to two concise sentences. If you open with a lengthy paragraph, your prospect will either hang up or hate their life.

Filler Words

Saying um after every other word will degrade trust.

Talking Speed

Talking too fast, too slow or too choppy can come off the wrong way.

Cut offs

Cutting your prospect off is rude and can decrease trust.

Logic

An illogical response to a question or statement can come across as disrespectful and force your prospect to make too many mental leaps to follow your reasoning.

Conversation etiquette is delicate, with rules that vary by person, industry, and even time of day. Since the intricacies of conversation are too complex to cover in a single blog post, I recommend watching YouTube videos of successful cold callers to learn from their techniques.

After you do that, spend some time in Suade’s roleplaying AI to practice.

Prospect’s Problems

If you can’t answer:

“What does my company do?”

You have big problem.

When cold calling, it’s important that you have a good understand the prospect and their company. You don’t have to understand the entire inner workings of their specific business, but you do have to be able to articulate the basics. Being in-sync means being in-sync with your prospects situation.

Try to understand their point of view, what keeps them up at night, and where they hope to be next quarter. The faster you can get on your prospect's level, the faster you'll be able to close a deal.

Industry News / Trends

Just as with connecting with strangers. If you’re able to understand their world and relate with whats happening in it you’ll be able to connect more quickly. Start researching the latest conferences, trends, technology, etc. within your target industry.

Your Solution

Can you answer these questions succinctly and persuasively right now?

“So what do you do?”

“How does your solution work?”

“How can your solution help me?”

If not, stop reading this article and script it out. Being able to articulate what you do in a way that inspires and interests people is key to booking more meetings. You must be in-sync with both your solution and your messaging.

In conclusion

Turning from out-of-sync to in-sync requires scripting, practice, and education. This job is not easy, you have to be educated and in touch or people will write you off as not worth it.

I believe in you.

Happy calling!