Business Networking – Follow Up to Why Won’t Anyone Return My Phone Calls?
I’ve found that when I leave a message explaining why I called, hardly anyone returns my calls. But when I leave a message that says, “Hey,……just called because I have a quick question for you. Please get back to me as soon as you can.” I get a better response. Don’t tell them why you’re calling but make the message seem as if you’re going to give them something or ask a question. Or say that you have something they might find interesting. This generates good customer relations and prospect relations.
You get the idea.
Keep it vague and arouse their curiosity. More importantly, don’t spill your guts and have them jump to the conclusion that you want something from them – that’s like trying to potty train a baby. The baby sees that you want something, but they don’t know exactly what it is, and they begin to realize it seems valuable to you (otherwise, why are you trying so hard to get it?). The next logical thought is, if it’s valuable to you, it must be valuable to them too, and so why should they let you have it? So…now begins the battle of wills. Does the baby poop, or does he just look at you like, “Gee, I no speaka de English?”
Been there, done that? Yep.
O.K. so what’s the moral of this article? It’s to treat your clients, customers and prospects like babies and don’t tell them you want them to poop – just tell them that you have an idea that will help them feel better. Smiling and nodding may help, but does the baby fall for it? NO! And besides, don’t forget that HELLO…YOU’RE ON THE TELEPHONE! They can’t see you anyway. Did you ever wonder where the expression anal retentive came from? This is a parallel idea, folks. They don’t want you to take away their valuables. And whatever their business is, time, money and effort are valuables. That’s why they’re reluctant to return your calls. Remember this – you can sometimes fool the baby, but it’s hard to fool an experienced grownup. This is one of the keys to having a successful business.
To your business success!
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