Contact Basics

Contacts: The Foundation of Sales

Starting with Contacts

• Everything begins with a contact to initiate a sales process.
• Leverage existing contacts: friends, family, colleagues, and existing customers.
  • Selling to existing contacts is generally easier.

Expanding Your Reach: Sales Channels

• Numerous methods exist for establishing new contacts, continually evolving with technology.
• Sales channels include:
  • Street sales
  • Door knocking
  • Sending letters
  • Phone calls
  • SMS
  • Conferences
  • Emailing
  • Social media
  • Internet
• Each sales channel has its own technology and methods.

Focus Channels

• The most commonly used and illustrative channels:
  • Street sales
  • SMS
  • Phone calls
  • Emailing
  • Social media
  • Physical meetings (especially in B2B)

Street Sales

• The key is knowing your audience and being relevant in a short time.
  • How to make people stop and listen on the street.
  • How to convey a relevant message in under 30 seconds
• Example: Selling Dell computers at an airport.
  • Old approach: "Hey, it's a phone call for you." (effective when mobile phones were new)
  • Adaptation is essential as times change. What works today might not have worked yesterday.

Door Knocking

• Success depends on understanding the audience.
• Example: A young boy selling flowers door-to-door.
  • Approach: "Hi, my name is ". I'm selling flowers for my school journey. Would you like to buy some?"
  • Friendly and relatable approach.

Letters and Emails

• The relevance of traditional letters in the digital age.
  • While many believe physical letters are outdated, some demographics (e.g., young women) may rarely receive them.
• Email marketing challenges:
  • High email volume and low attention spans.

SMS

• Sending SMS requires a careful approach.
  • Unsolicited SMS can be perceived as intrusive.
• Importance of research:
  • How to obtain phone numbers ethically.
  • Understanding the audience.

Conferences

• Common for establishing initial B2B contacts.
• Strategies:
  • Mingling
  • Presentations
  • Networking during breaks
• The art of mingling (elevator pitch).
  • Conveying interest in 30 seconds
  • Exchanging business cards
• Knowing the audience is crucial.
• Handshaking.
  • A weak handshake can be a deal-breaker.

Core Principles

• Key questions:
  • Who am I contacting?
  • What do I know about them?
  • Do they care about my product/service?
  • Why should they care?
• Know your audience!