The other day I received a prospecting email that really impressed me.
The seller, Josh Mellott from Manticore Technology, was putting me through a well-executed prospecting process – combining voice and email touches.
I, like most prospects, was ignoring him. Until he sent me this note:
(Click to view larger)I appreciated his diligence and wanted to let him know I wasn’t a prospect for him. I responded:
(Click to view larger)It was what Josh did next that really impressed me
Before I share his response, I have a question for you. Faced with this email, how would your reps have responded?
In my experience, responses fall into one of three categories:
- The D.B. Cooper – gone without a trace
Reps will disengage, mark for nurture and are never heard from again.
Sales Effectiveness: 0/3
Buyer Annoyance: 0/3
Net return: 0 - The Bulldozer – entirely ignore the objection
So happy to have an actual email reply, the rep will rush to close on a meeting. Any trace of the objection will be buried under client quotes, benefit statements, ROI metrics and anything else that happens to be at hand.
Sales Effectiveness: 1/3
Buyer Annoyance: 2/3
Net return: -1 - The Reframer – the fine art of objection response
Rather than ignoring the objection, or burying it under a mountain of other data, the reframe is about acknowledging, redirecting & teaching the prospect to see something in a new light.
Sales Effectiveness: 2/3
Buyer Annoyance: 1/3
Net return: 1
I hope I haven’t tipped my hand too much as to which category I prefer.
And now, Josh’s response
(Click to view larger)That’s it.
In fewer than 40 words, Josh acknowledged my objection, redirected my line of thinking and showed me a perspective I’d hadn’t even considered.
This is what a Reframer does. And this is powerful selling.