The five key steps to preparing for a Call Block.

Preparing for a Call Block is not as simple as it seems, but it still is a simple process.

When we’re ready to start calling for appointments, all we need to know is who we’re going to call, right?

Wrong. To efficiently complete what we call a ‘Call Block’, one must take a few steps to be able to flow through the calls without interruption.

Here’s what we need to do:

1. Yes, one does need to know who will be called in this session.
2. Have the dates and times you’ll be asking for appointments available.
3. Have your ‘Best Practices’ for each pursuit plan out and ready for reference.
4. Have a blank piece of paper available for taking notes.
5. Practice your opening and the counters to the key negative responses you hear out loud.

Let’s take these one at a time in more detail.

1. The list for this Call Block.
   1. You should know approximately how many dials you can make in any given period of time. Ergo, you should have that many names ready to go for the length of the Call Block you’ve planned.
   2. You should have name of the person you’re going to call, their phone number and email address before you start calling for appointments. If you don’t have all that information, schedule a separate time outside of selling hours to do the research. Don’t waste good selling time doing research unless you must call the target organization to get the information.

One last thought here. If you must make calls to get the detailed information on each target, do it in a separate Call Block designed just to do that. Don’t alternate between appointment setting calls and fact finding calls.

2. Dates and times for the appointments.
   1. We recommend you always ask for a specific date and time for an appointment. Here is are links to three different blogs detailing why this is important.
      1. Asking for a specific date and time.
      2. Just say no! (When the target counters with a time that is not convenient for you.)
      3. Three reasons for asking for a specific date and time.

3. Have your Playbook out on your desk or monitor if you’re using our new Word format. Playbooks, among other things include your scripting for the conversations you’ll have, voicemails you’ll be leaving if you don’t get the person on the phone and counters to the most common negative responses and direct questions you get on calls. Until you’ve been using them long enough for them to be second nature, they should be on your desk/monitor so you can refer to them if necessary.
4. Have a blank piece of paper and a pen out before you begin. During a Call Block, you’ll hear names, cell phone numbers, email addresses, etc. that are useful when either speaking to someone or listening to outgoing voicemail messages. Always be ready to write that stuff down and then transfer it into your calling software after the call is complete.
5. Practice before you pick up the phone and make your first dial. I practice my opening and the most common negative responses out loud before I make my first dial—everyday, and I’ve been doing this for years. I almost always stumble the first time through. Better to stumble through it with only your dog or cat listening instead of on a live target!

If you use the enabling technology we recommend from Contact Science, you can do all of these things once a week (except for practicing) so even if you only have 10 or 15 minutes you can get in a short Call Block with three to five calls including leaving voicemails and sending emails!

If you’d like more information on the topic of why no team of sales professionals has ever failed to at least double the number of Initial Appointments they were setting after going through one of our programs, give us a call or drop us a line. We love talking appointment making!

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Caponi Performance Group and Contact Science jointly market the telephone prospecting and cold calling solution called Coldcalling101™.  It is the only comprehensive solution to solving the biggest barrier to success in most selling organizations—the inability to secure enough Initial Appointments to begin the selling process. We accomplish that through simultaneously addressing both the efficiency and effectiveness of the process.  We can be reached at 817 224-9900 or at bcaponi@caponipg.com.  You can also find answers to many of your challenges in our books: Contrary to Popular Belief, Cold Calling DOES Work! Volume I: Effectiveness, The Art of Appointment Making and  Volume II: Efficiency, the Science of Appointment Making.

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