What’s On Your “To Don’t” List?

This week I read a post on SellingPower.com about the importance of a “to don’t” list. That got me to thinking about creating a list of “to don’ts” that inside sales professionals should use.  Here’s my list:

Don’t Do This . . .	Instead Do This . . .
Wing it.	Prepare for your call and use logical branch scripting to guide you through the conversation.
Lead in with a list of features and awards your company has won.	Ask the customer about his or her current challenges, opportunities, etc., and segue into a customer-centric conversation about your product service.
Waste time chasing any and every lead.	Use lead scoring to ensure the next-best lead is followed up with first.
Leave “not ready to buy” leads to languish in a database.	Create email nurturing and follow up reminders that help you stay in the loop with your prospect for when he or she is ready to buy.
Stumble over yourself leaving voice mail messages.	Use message drop technology to help you leave the perfect voice mail each time while you quickly move on to the next great opportunity.
Risk quality assurance by not listening in on new hire’s phone calls.	Leverage solutions that provide call recording and listening tools that help you check quality and provide on-the-spot coaching.
Ignore social media as a means of prospecting.	Integrate social selling into your current prospecting practices and leverage the data and interactions to warm up cold calls.
Give up after just a few calls.	Use a queue-based lead management solution that will help increase your follow up and close more sales.
Talk too much.	Ask questions and listen intently. Mr. Inside Sales, Mike Brooks, suggests using your mute button to help you resist the temptation to interrupt.

What else would you add to the “to don’t” list?

If you find yourself dealing with any of these “to don’ts,” start your VanillaSoft free trial. Our solution helps improve efficiencies and drive productivity.