Call Reluctance, and How to Beat it When Prospecting

Prospecting and lead generation are essential to the success of any sales endeavor. Unfortunately, many people dislike the process and often procrastinate or don’t engage in it at all. In order to make sales it is essential to continually fill the pipeline with new opportunities. It is essential that prospecting becomes both a priority and a habit. It can be the difference between success and failure for you and your company.

We all have faced call reluctance at one time or another when selling. We know we need to prospect and make calls daily if we are going to generate new business – but we teach ourselves to avoid it. Following that plan of action only makes the challenge larger and harder. How do you break this pattern and overcome call reluctance?

To be successful we must have a clear sense of what we can provide to the prospect. Until we have a clear understanding of our value, we will never achieve comfort in prospecting. To overcome this fear, evaluate what you offer the prospect. Take a personal inventory of your skills and abilities.

-List the things you can do for your prospect. Remember these are things he cannot do for himself.

-Be authentic and list the qualities that make you the person they should work with – think about a customer you helped and the impact it made on them.

-List the specific benefits of your services.

-Review these lists before you start calling.

-Choose a time for prospecting. Many experts suggest this be early in the day, but it really doesn’t matter if it is a time, you can stay committed to regularly.

-Prepare what you will say ahead of time, but be flexible, don’t simply read a script.

-Remain professional throughout the process, do not allow a negative attitude toward prospecting to affect your ability.

Call reluctance is real for every salesperson. There is no one who doesn’t suffer from some form of call reluctance. Start applying these suggestions today and overcome call reluctance - this is the best commitment you can make and keep for yourself. Do what you know you should and be a success!