I recently read of an Award winning salesman who in 1951 was known as ‘The King of Cold Calls’. The article analysed his approach and the key to his success was that to him cold calling was actually fun.
So, why don’t we all see it that way ? The answer is what is known as Call Reluctance. Research indicates that this is an emotional hesitation experienced by people when selling – an anxiety that stops them taking action.
And, you may have noticed, that this is the one thing that is not dealt with in sales training courses !
This phenomenon was researched in the 1980’s by George Dudley and Shannon Goodson and they have described 12 sub-types of sales call reluctance, which they consider the ‘social disease of the sales profession’. They are now recognised as authorities in this field and have published their findings and practical advice in a book ‘The Psychology of Sales Call Reluctance’.
For example, a couple of the ‘sub-types’ of Call Reluctance are (from their book)
Characterised by energy being over-invested in analysing at the expense of prospecting.
Intricate type of call reluctance characterised by energy being lost due to unexpressed and unresolved guilt and shame associated with being in sales.
Role Rejection is often associated with technical people as it’s common to despise sales people and Over Preparation with people who over-analyse and underact.
The tell-tale signs of some of the other types of Sales Call Reluctance are
- Over-analyses, under-acts
- Obsessed with image
- Fears group presentations
- Intimidated by up-market clientele
- putting off initiating phone calls to new clients
- excusing your lack of calling on the basis of needing more
- information on the client
- sales training
- time to prepare yourself
- time away from paper work
- time free from other commitments
In any business venture, you are essentially selling your skill or knowledge, your service or your reputation. Yes, this even applies when you are selling a product – the customer is trusting your design and/or manufacture, your backup service, etc. Essentially, you must feel comfortable with selling yourself.
One of the consequences of not feeling comfortable with selling yourself takes the form of procrastinating when it comes to contacting potential and existing clients of your business.
The research by Dudley and Goodson has found that this is bound up with many emotional factors, including, self-concept and self-defeating behaviours, mood, etc. – all embodied in the 12 sub-types described in their book. They offer practical exercises and techniques to help people recognise and overcome their self-defeating behaviour. And, these techniques are not just theories, but have been field tested in their work.
There is obviously not space here to go into the full details of their approach for each sub-type of Sales Call Reluctance. What Dudley and Goodson suggest for each sub-type is not a 5-minute magic cure, as is often suggested in some sales books. Their approach to solving these problems requires some persistence, but does produce results as is evidenced from their field work.
And, finally note that whilst the book is written by two psychologists, it is very readable for business people and is down-to earth in its approach.
There is probably no other more important area to give attention to than this – if your ‘Grand Plan’ is to succeed.
Suggested Reading:
The Psychology of Sales Call Reluctance – by George Dudley and Shannon Goodson.
ISBN 0935907076
Publisher: Behavioral Science Research (4th. edition, June 1999).
David Berghouse author of BizNet: a Workbook coveringthe Internet and eCommerce for home based and small businesses … putting the puzzle together
http://www.microbiz.com.au
david.berghouse@microbiz.com.au
