Ever wonder why prospects don’t return voicemail? Many salespeople do.
It seems like one of the most discussed topics in the online sales networks these days is how can sales people get more prospects to return their voicemail messages. My answer to you is simple. Regardless of the actual message itself, you first have to stop making the mistakes that make it impossible for the prospects to return your calls even when they want to!
The Biggest Reason Why Prospects Don’t Return Voicemail
The biggest mistake sales people make when leaving a voicemail message is they talk too fast. Many salespeople ramble on for more than a minute in a disjointed uninteresting message. Then they fire out their phone number as quickly as humanly possible at the end. The prospect finds it impossible to make out the call back number. They can do nothing else but to delete the message and hope the sales person speaks more slowly when they call back the next time.
This common voicemail mistake is evidenced in an online post where one prospect commented that, although he was actively in the market to buy the product that the sales rep was selling, he finally had to give up after he tried to make out the phone number five times.
How To Get More Prospects to Return Your Voicemail
To prevent this, write down your phone number at the same time you say it in your message. This will ensure you are speaking slowly enough so that your voice mail recipient will be able to write it down too.
Taking this a step further, make sure you always leave you phone number in your voicemail message, regardless of how well you know the person at the other end. The recipient may have pulled messages from a different phone outside of the office, or your number may be buried in a file on their desk, well out of reach. If you don't leave your number, they literally may not be able to call you back.
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Not only should you always leave your number, but you should always leave your number twice. The reason is that, even in this day and age, cell phones are not 100% reliable. Sometimes all your recipient can hear is, '613-???-?295″ so they have no way of calling you back even if they wanted to. Leaving your number twice virtually eliminates this problem.
You can also leave your website address in your voicemail as well. Some people use a feature called “voicemail to text”. This feature transcribes your voicemail and then sends it via SMS or emails to the recipient. By leaving your website address in your message, even if the recipient doesn’t call you back, they may click on your website instead. Again speak slowly so that the website address gets transcribed as a live link.
Sample Voicemail Script
A sample voicemail script could be: 'Hi [Prospect Name], this is [Your Name] from [Your Company], calling about [briefly mention the reason for your call, e.g., improving your website traffic, streamlining your sales process]. We've helped companies like yours achieve [mention a specific, impressive result]. I've got some ideas that could be a great fit for you. You can learn more about what we do at [Your Website Address] or, if you'd prefer, give me a call back at [Your Phone Number] when you have a moment. Thanks for your time.'
For more ideas, check out these voicemail scripts.
More Voicemail Tips to Get More Call Backs
Let’s face it. Voicemail is a fact of life in sales, but most salespeople don't know how to properly use it. Here are 5 tips to improve both your outgoing and incoming voicemail messages.
For some ideas on what you can actually say when leaving a message, check out these 10 voicemail scripts on Sales Hacker. And yes, they all have you say your phone number twice.
Your Voicemail Message: Practice Makes Perfect
If you are not sure how your messages sound, practice! Leave a co-worker a voicemail message just as you would for a client, and then ask them for feedback. Did you speak slowly enough? Could they write down your number?
Remember, if you want to improve your call back ratio, you first need to ensure that you are making it possible for the prospect to return your call in the first place.
For more proven sales tools to help you and your team reach your sales potential, check out my book, Action Plan for Sales Success. It includes the proven techniques used by today's top producing sales professionals that can impact your sales results immediately.
Aim Higher!
Susan A. Enns, B2B Sales Coach and Author
Schedule a free sales coaching strategy session with Susan here.
“… what I can tell anyone, is simply this – If you want to learn and understand sales, talk to Susan.”
Do you have a question about sales? You’re not alone. Most salespeople have questions like this on how they can sell more. For the right answers, check out my book, Ask the Sales Coach-Practical Answers to the Questions Sales People Ask Most.
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