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A great number of salesmen sell products that require a demonstration. The product must be displayed at the pros- pect's place of business, at the salesman's place of business, or at some other place. These salesmen can save a lot of time, save a lot of energy, and make more money, if they spend a part of their selling time each day in making definite appointments with the prospective customer. They can make the telephone act as their junior salesman. One hour each day, or even one half hour each day spent using the tele- phone will greatly improve the salesman's efficiency, enlarge his opportunities, materially increase his sales, and add sub- stantially to his income. In order to do this successfully, here are a few steps that might help you. Organize your thoughts. Work up a little plan of action. Decide what you are going to say to the prospect. Organize your lists of prospects. Call the prospect on the telephone and tell him in plain, concise words what you want to do for him. Make a definite appointment with him. 126 HOW TO MAKE APPOINTMENTS 5. When you see him, remind him of the telephone con- versation, amplify what you told him, prove the merits of your product, make him feel that his business will never be the same without your product, get the order > and leave. In order to demonstrate this procedure to you, and to show you how it operates in practice, I am going to assume the role of a salesman representing the Monitor Machine Company of Chicago, manufacturers of textile specialties. I have been sent to Philadelphia, to call on the hosiery trade. Bear in mind that I have never been to Philadelphia and that the Monitor Company has never sold a single specialty there. In fact, they are not known there, except through trade papers. Here I am in Philadelphia, a stranger with a strange product, representing a strange company. How am I going to operate? I turn to the classified section of the city tele- phone directory, and there I find an up-to-date list of prospects over 100 strong. What an opportunity! What a feast! Understand, however, that I know nothing whatever about these hosiery concerns, but I believe that they could make better hosiery by using my company's specialty. I start with Adams Hosiery Company. In the first place, I know that the Adams Hosiery Company as such does not buy specialties. I do know that some particular person in Adams Hosiery Company buys textile specialties. My first move is to call them and ask the operator for the name of the buyer of "spindle threaders." She tells me: Mr. Buck. "Is that Mr. Harry Buck?" I ask, and she says, "No, it is Mr. Wil- liam Buck." Then I politely but positively ask her to connect me with Mr. William Buck. Mr. Buck gets on the telephone and I gently but firmly tell him who I am, the company I represent, what we can do, and the service we can give to the Adams Hosiery Company. My story clicks with Mr. Buck. He wants a demonstration. A definite appointment is made. Mr. Buck sees the product, likes it, and Adams Hosiery Company is no longer a prospect, but a customer. HOW TO MAKE APPOINTMENTS 127 |
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