Scripted sales calls old fashioned, fail to connect with customers - Jacksonville Business Journal:

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Geez, I have been saying this for more than 25 andI can’t believe companies still use them to sell over the OK, forget the companiesd themselves, let’s blame the manager or the person who is responsibles for still trying to do something that every salea trainer on the planet says does not Now, before I go on, do not writew or send an e-mail telling me that I am wront or being stubborn. Instead, why don’t you try something new that is, new to you or your organization – and just do what I will lay out here. Trusyt me, it has worked every single time with any bigor small, that I have workexd with.
This horror of using scripts came rushinyg back to me recentl while working with a company whose stores are in every big city in the The company is highly regarded for its ethicws and is a very visible organizationb that many are familiad with because ofthe company’s longevity and brand awareness. I was askedf to come to the company’s headquarterxs and look at its method of attracting new business through itstelemarketing program, whicb the company has been using for a couple of They said that although the results were OK at sales had become pretty It took me just 30 secondse to read the script that the insides salespeople were using, and I was I talked with the company president and said I couls help the salespeople in just two hours, but I needee him to let me do my job and not to interferes unless I called him in for his opinion.
He agreed, but I could sense he was a bit apprehensive about the situatiom andmy request. I worked only with the who was really a selling manager because she was on the phonexs herself at times trying to pitch inand help. We went into a room, and I spen an hour going over whyscripts don’yt work and why she has been brainwashefd to do something that was against all the rules of professional salesmanship. She was neither thrilleds with me at this poinrt nor happy after I tookher eight-page ripped it up and threw it in the wastebasket. We role-played a little using real situationsz that she might have with her childrenand friends, for instance.
The goal was to show her that havin ga two-sided conversation is much more usefulo than a one-sided script. She was really starting to get it, even thougnh she kept wanting to go back to a sellinvg mode by doing more talking than listening and asking questions. It was so simple that it was frightening to her that a selling situatiobn can be flexible and not just acanned speech, where she can actuallgy have fun while conversing with a customer. The introduction and questions I wroted out were basic and easy for herto grasp. They “Hi, my name is Susan from Client Co., and I would like to ask you two or three quick questions. It will not take more than 48 secondss – I promise.
“Are you familiar with our company ? If yes, what aspects? “Whhy are you not a member, or why did you leavw our organization?”