Dick Morgan CMC, FIMC

There is a big difference between visiting a prospect and making an effective sales call. Decision makers often report that a large percentage of sales calls accomplish nothing and simply waste their time. This perception explains why so many buyers and businesses limit routine sales visits to specific hours on certain days. They handle the really valuable activities with people important to the goals of their business during the rest of the week!

Many sales visits center upon long discussions of family health, success of the local ball club, fish stories, gossip about other companies, the weather and other non-business topics. It is almost as frustrating as if a policemen were to stop the person on the way to an important meeting, spend thirty minutes telling you about his son's soccer team, then walk away without explaining why he stopped you in the first place! You didn't enjoy the interruption, and you were greatly relieved to see him leave.

A salesperson may counter by pointing out that they use the personal chatter to 'build rapport' with the other person, or that they know the other person expects to shoot the breeze. Such rapport building comments or questions should be intertwined naturally with the handling of business over time, preferably when the client initiates a personal interchange. Rapport building is often more effective during a coffee break or lunch away from the place of business. Keep the fish stories in their proper supporting role and you will generate more satisfying and productive sales contacts.

When you make a sales call, be sure it has a good, specific purpose. "I just stopped by because I was in your area," is not a good reason and wastes the other person's time. Here's a tip: make appointments in advance, you will be better able to give each call a purpose. You may drive fewer miles and make fewer calls, but you will find each call to be far more productive for both you and your client or prospect.

For call purpose ideas, center on two thoughts. First, what idea or information can I bring my client or prospect the he/she can really use? Second, what other information do I need to learn from this prospect before I can generate another way to help that individual or company reach an objective using my products and services? Both thoughts require you to be a great listener, before and during the current sales call.

Example: My practice when a field sales representative was to determine the answers to those two questions before setting an appointment or making the call. I tried to accomplish both things during each sales interview. Customers and prospects appreciated my habit of bringing them some new information, such as a technical paper on a specific topic that I knew would apply to their operation. Quite often, my technical paper would lead into a discussion that helped me gain the additional data I needed to prepare the proposal I was planning. Because my visits always meant an exchange of ideas and information aimed at helping my client or prospect, I met with very little resistance when setting up appointments. By the way, setting an appointment tends to lend more importance to your call.

Final thought: If you are sitting in your vehicle in front of a client or prospect's business and you still cannot come up with a valid reason for making the call, you will be better served by heading to your next call where you do have a clear objective in mind.