Dear Manager,
One of the single greatest factors in a salesperson’s ability to meet both personal and organizational objectives is the ability to consistently establish and maintain an effective schedule. There is truly an Art to scheduling. Management can often underestimate the need for training, individual analysis, and quantified performance in this area.

The highest impact on scheduling can be seen in weekly order production. How does one salesperson write only ten orders per week when another salesperson is never satisfied with less than twenty-five? Each may believe they have maximized their schedules, but have they? There are a series of practical concepts that, when embraced and developed, can bring substantial impact to sales.

NEVER LEAVE A MESSAGE
Have you ever had a discussion with a sales associate relating to a client’s potential and heard the associate say: “I’ve left three messages and they haven’t gotten back to me.” ? Of course they haven’t. Only on rare occasions is it as important to the potential (or current) customer to return the call, as it was to the salesperson to make the call. If your objective is to have a personal conversation with a client, you are least likely to succeed by leaving a message.

I guarantee that you will always be encouraged to leave a message. If you are persuaded to do so, your customer may or may not even get your message. If they do, they may or may not feel the need to respond. Chances are that even if they do respond you will be unavailable, or ill prepared, for the conversation you had envisioned. Compound these frustrations with the inner debate of how soon you should try again to leave a second or third message.

Begin by taking full responsibility for initiating your priority conversations. Since your intent is not to “hound” your customer, think twice before leaving your name and a message. Instead, you might say, “I’m going to be difficult to catch, what is Bob’s schedule?” or “When is the best time to catch him, I will try again.” This will serve your needs well. Should it take six more calls to reach the customer, you now have the option to do so. Without a name, your client cannot feel badgered by your calls, and you will be able to control your objective. As the old adage goes, “timing is everything in sales”, so make your own timing!

Of course, if you are returning a call from a client, you have been asked to call. If your customer is not available, you would be wise to leave your name. And, since they have asked you to call, you are free to try, try again!

THE BIG SIDE STEP
Now that you have achieved your initial objective of a personal conversation, you must deal with the excuses and delay tactics of your clients. I found early in my career that it seemed easier to schedule appointments on the road than those only a half mile from my office. My conclusion was that there was a sense of urgency to see me and fit into my schedule to avoid missing me all together. I began to reference to my local customers, “I’m scheduled to be in your area next week and don’t want to miss getting together with you.” This approach instills that sense of urgency, establishes the importance of your own schedule, and some uncertainty as to your ability to jump to their needs with little or no pre-planning.

For those customers who continue to stall your appointments, take every opportunity to use their statements and conversations to your current and future advantage. If they suggest, “Let’s get together next month”, immediately suggest, “That sounds great! My schedule for next month is filling up, so we should go ahead and schedule your appointment today.” Should you be asked to call back the following month, the best approach is, “In our last conversation you wished to get together this month. Will Wednesday work for you?” All too often, a salesperson’s conversation may be closer to, “I’m following up my last call. Did you still want to get together?”

Sales associates often feel obligated to meet only the needs of their customers’ schedules. This was also true for me for a number of years. I soon realized that if I was prepared for my conversations, I could convince my customers to fit into my schedule 75% of the time! By doing so, my personal productivity could be increased by nearly 30%. Instead of spending valuable hours in the car, I was now spending many more hours with my clients. Don’t be afraid to position and create an equal sense of value of your time in the eyes of your customers. If you have not done so, then why should they. . .

. . .TIGHTEN IT UP
There are salespeople who are very satisfied with a schedule that may include one or two appointments a day. Often, these are also the salespeople who can rationalize how incredibly busy their schedule has become. With limited preparation and planning, all of us can make one more call a day. Can you imagine the impact for an individual and an organization if this could be accomplished on a monthly basis? Sales objectives would no longer be required.

The first step in challenging this objective is developing a greater sense of urgency to the limited presentation hours in our day. If an appointment normally requires three hours, can it be accomplished effectively in two? While this may not always be the case, I would suggest that with purpose, more often than not it can be accomplished. Once this is accepted, it is now time to begin scheduling appointments based on this assumption. Generally, the salesperson comes better prepared to their appointments, knows the priorities of the meeting, and is much more focused on achieving these objectives in a timely manner. With this thought in mind, there are many instances where a two hour appointment with purpose can out perform a three hour appointment with limited direction.

Don’t be afraid to share with your 9:00 appointment that you also have an 11:00 appointment on that day. Once again, this instills a sense of importance and priority for your time and your schedule. Once this has been established, I have often been amazed by the sense of respect and the encouragement from my customers towards meeting my needs. It can be perceived that only the very best and “in demand” sales professional can be working on a tight schedule.

WE WILL NEED TO RESCHEDULE TODAY!
Creating the need to schedule your next appointment should be at the very top of a salesperson’s appointment objectives. This should be done with very subtle and direct references to product categories that will need to be reordered soon, upcoming promotions, or seasonal merchandise that needs to be ordered. These observations should be referenced throughout the agenda of your current appointment.

You may even wish to withhold presentation of a secondary product category in your current meeting in anticipation of a more focused objective and greater
reward for your next meeting. By the end of your appointment, it should be abundantly clear for the need to reschedule. NEVER leave an appointment prior to scheduling your next appointment. Now that I have suggested never, what if 70% of your schedule was finalized weeks and months in advance!

DIALING FOR DOLLARS!
As salespeople, we have all devoted days on the phone to filling our schedule. We’re trying to catch that elusive “fish” (I mean buyer) in the proper frame of mind, to schedule some time. In most cases, fishing is a hobby not a career. By incorporating some of these very practical skills into your own approach, the need for phone time can be realistically cut in half. And, truth be told, even the most seasoned, professional fisherman would rather catch than fish!

Personal Regards,
Keenan

INTERPERSONAL© is published by INTERPERSONALBIZ.COM, Keenan Longcor, Editor, ©2008. Duplication of this publication is permitted for both personal and business use. Excerpts may only be quoted with acknowledgment of INTERPERSONAL and/or INTERPERSONALBIZ.ORG as the source. For re-publication rights, please contact the editor at KEENAN@INTERPERSONALBIZ.COM