Smart Calling: Eliminate the Fear, Failure, and Rejection from Cold Calling

Praise for Smart Calling, 2nd Edition " Smart Calling should be on the desk of all sales managers so that they can empower their salespeople with a highly professional approach for engaging prospects and turning them into customers. When it comes to creating a salesforce that can prospect, Art Sobczak delivers the best results." —Gerhard Gschwandtner , CEO, SellingPower.com and Selling Power magazine "If you make cold calls, and want to make them smarter, better, more fun, and actually convert them to sales, this is the book! Buy it to increase your call-to-sale ratio, and your sale-to-bank account ratio." —Jeffrey Gitomer , author of Little Red Book of Selling "You get only one chance to make the right impression in sales. If a top prospect gets a hundred calls a week, you want to be the one he remembers and buys from. Art's proven methods create a unique brand for you and position your offering as the best option. Art's advice isn't just smart, it's priceless." —Bob Silvy , Vice President, Corporate Marketing, American City Business Journals " Smart Calling effectively enables inside sales reps and organizations to accomplish a top priority: acquiring new customers. Art's pragmatic and actionable techniques will increase productivity, success, and professional satisfaction." —Bill McAlister , Senior Vice President, Inside Sales, McAfee "Finally, a sales book that makes sense! As a master sales trainer, Art nailed—no, obliterated—the number one fear of selling in this great book: cold calling! Let him teach you to stop cold calling and start Smart Calling!" —Larry Winget , television personality and New York Times bestselling author "A must-read, must-own book for anyone who wants to increase their sales right away with less effort and more fun. I'm so sure this book is a winner for anyone who needs to call prospects that I'll personally assure you that your results will increase noticeably after reading it, or I'll send you your money back." —Mike Faith , CEO and President, Headsets.com, Inc. "If you need to make a first call to anyone, for whatever reason, this book is for you. More than common sense, it's a real world, no-fluff, simple approach that anyone can use to be successful." —Darci Maenpa , President, American Teleservices Association West Coast Chapter; Director of Member Support, Toastmasters International

INTRODUCTION 1 SECTION ONE The Smart Calling Concept 5 CHAPTER 1 Cold Calling Is Dumb, but Prospecting Is Necessary: Smart Calling Is the Answer 7 SECTION TWO Pre–Call Planning 19 CHAPTER 2 Creating Your Possible Value Proposition 21 CHAPTER 3 Intelligence Gathering: Making Your Calls Smart 37 CHAPTER 4 Using Social Engineering to Gather Intelligence 57 CHAPTER 5 Setting Smart Call Objectives and Never Being Rejected Again 65 CHAPTER 6 More Smart Ideas for Prior to Your Call 73 SECTION THREE Creating and Placing the Smart Call 85 CHAPTER 7 How to Be Smart with Voice Mail 87 CHAPTER 8 Working with Screeners, Gatekeepers, and Assistants? 99 CHAPTER 9 Opening Statements: What to Avoid to Minimize Resistance 109 CHAPTER 10 Creating Interest with Your Smart Call Opening Statement 123 CHAPTER 11 Handling Early Resistance on Your Smart Calls 133 CHAPTER 12 Using Smart Questions 143 CHAPTER 13 The More Important Side of the Question: Listening 159 CHAPTER 14 Recommending the Next Step 165 CHAPTER 15 Getting Commitment for the Next Action 175 CHAPTER 16 Wrapping Up Calls and Setting Up the Next Action 185 SECTION FOUR Putting It All Together 195 CHAPTER 17 How to Sound Smart: Effective Telephone Communication 197 CHAPTER 18 Getting and Staying Motivated 203 CHAPTER 19 More Smart Calling Success Tips 215 CHAPTER 20 A Smart Call Case Study and Makeovers 221 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 233 INDEX 235

Art Sobczak is President of Business By Phone Inc., specializing in helping salespeople maximize their positive results when using the phone as part of their sales process. As an internationally known speaker and trainer, he has delivered over 1,500 training programs and workshops over the past thirty years to companies large and small, associations, and at his two-day public seminars. He has been a member of the National Speakers Association for over twenty years and is a regular presenter at their national conferences and regional workshops.