How to avoid a customer

How to avoid a customer

We usually suggest ways to approach a client, however today I thought I would propose something totally different; 18 reasons to help you avoid calling potential clients. So here it goes:

1. You do not have the time
2. It’s not the right time to call
3. Instead of you looking for customers, the company should advertise to create awareness in the market
4. You are new in sales, you don’t really know what to tell a customer
5. You are a veteran salesman, calling potential customers  is only for the newcomers
6. You would just be wasting your time, the competition has much better products
7. It would be futile calling customers, your prices are not competitive
8. Calling is for salesmen, you are a Marketer
9. You don’t sell, you handle Key Accounts, you are an Account Manager
10. Let the company finally decide on its priorities, is it report writing or is chasing clients
11. The prospective customer’s company is not well-known, so it probably won’t be worth the while.
12. You are a Sales Executive not a door-to-door salesman
13. You cannot be bothered to pick up the phone today
14. You are shy
15. You have a degree, the company cannot expect you to make phone calls, like some of the other employees do
16. You will call as soon as you return from the summer holidays (or the Christmas holidays, or the Easter holidays)
17. You are just a salesman you cannot simply call the General Manager of a company and ask for an appointment
18. It’s just a waste of time, the market is doing really badly, these days.

Though the above may seem funny, they are usual excuses, either spoken or unspoken ones, that stop those responsible for business development, from seeing new customers, and  working on their existing customer base, thus halting  sales growth.
Whichever of the above excuses you may use, think about the cost in lost opportunities for your company. Calculate what it costs you in lost commissions, using this simple formula:

a) How many times a month do you avoid contacting customers using one of the above excuses (be honest now, nobody is watching you)
b) Multiply the above by twelve, and then by the number of years you are in sales.
c) Multiply the result of b) by the average value of a sale and then by the  number of possible repeat sales to a new client. Finally multiply by your commission percentage.

It’s a significant sum, isn’t it? Is it the value of the new car you want? Perhaps it’s even the value of something even more expensive that you want, a new flat, a holiday home?
Or it’s enough to cover a week-long unforgettable holiday with your family at an exotic destination.

Many sales professionals (and yes that includes Account Managers, Sales Executives, Marketing Executives, Business Directors etc. Do not get hung up by titles, instead think about the results the company expects of you) go through periods where they avoid approaching potential customers. This absence of proactive sales, leads to lost opportunities. Lost, but lost to whom? Lost to themselves only, as the well-known saying goes, “ A sale is never lost, it just goes to a competitor”
If your main responsibility is in sales, or even if it’s just part of your job, then make sure to visit two, or five or ten new potential clients this week. If you find that difficult then, talk to someone in management. It’s their duty to help you, and above all it’s in their interest. Because every potential customer that is not speaking with you, is speaking with your competition. This is a lost opportunity for your company, for you and for your family who relies on you.

Dinos Papakyprianou
Programme Director