7 Steps To Setting An Appointment

The #1 Sales Success Metric … The number of Appointments

If you set enough appointments with prospects sales numbers will be achieved. Now what happens during those meetings is really critical too. The critical skill is being able to take a conversation and turn into an appointment.

7 Key Steps to Setting Appointments

1. Don’t set an appointment with anyone

It must be the right person
Must be a key decision-maker

2. Make sure they have a need

They must have the pain that you resolve

3. You have to a Doctor

Don’t want to sound like a salesperson that will say anything to make a sale.

This is where active listening skills come in. Salespeople often hear one challenge then launch into how they have the best solution on the planet to resolve that challenge. But that may not be the full picture, and you run a high risk of turning them off.
Get the conversation going and take the time to find out as much as you can before you ever offer that we may have the solution

4. Understand the upside

The key to getting an appointment is they have to feel there will be value in the meeting

They’ve got a million things going, and the last thing they need is to spend 45 minutes with a salesperson who is likely to waste their time. They need to be able to say, “yeah, that makes sense; let’s get together.”

Example: If the prospect says My service team is just not firing on all cylinders.
You ask Well XYZ what would it mean to your dealership if they were firing on all cylinders?

They say well it would probably mean we could do another $500 in customer-paid service, and my CSI Scores would improve.
See what happened? They just did the math and the ROI for you. Now you can say, “Well, XYZ, if I could show you how we could be the solution your team firing on all cylinders, would that be of interest to you?”It doesn’t mean that Update is the complete solution. It just means that Update is a potential solution, and they would be remiss in not finding out more. If they could find a way to get in $500k more in customer paid and improve CSI scores, that is the upside value.

Now when our rep goes in, you have got their attention. They are really interested in what we have to show them as a potential solution

5. “Can I make a recommendation?”

These simple words are so powerful when it comes to setting a meeting. Use them! Saying that is critical to transitioning from the conversation to making the appointment.

You’ve gone through the conversation. You’ve discovered some pain points or challenges, and you have articulated the upside. Then you say, “XYZ, can I make a recommendation?” they will naturally say yes! Secondly, it is setting you up as an expert. They will view the appointment with more interest and enthusiasm.
You’ve established yourself as an expert. They have said yes to hearing more about a solution. Now you are making a recommendation. Next, you will say, “Why don’t we schedule an appointment.”

This makes for a much better appointment than saying something like. “We have our reps in your area Wednesday and Thursday, would you have time to speak with them?”

6. Establish a clear next step

Never allow a selling situation to end with an unclear outcome. Example: Why don’t you call back in a month” instead of saying “okay, I’ll reach back out in a month, thanks” Say instead, “Okay, I’ll be happy to reach back out to you in a month. What is the best day of the week to talk? Wednesday? Okay, what time of day works best? 10:00? Okay, I will call you Wednesday, Nov 19, at 10:00. I will send you a calendar invite to remind you because I know you have a million things going on.

Or you can say “Sure I’ll be happy to call you back in a month. Do you have your calendar handy so we can avoid that whole back and forth rodeo?”

7. Have a contingency for when they push back. And they will!

They will say, “Why don’t you call me back in 6 months. The weak response is okay. I’ll reach back out in July. Is Sometimes on a Tuesday, okay?

Say something like this. Hey XYZ, I appreciate that you are not ready to talk right now. I hear it all the time. But I’ve been doing this a long time and usually when people tell me that they just want an excellent way of saying no I’m not interested in ever getting together. Is that what you see happening here?

That takes guts, but here is what is going to happen. They are going to say one of two things. Yeah, I’m not interested …This doesn’t make sense at this time. You can just put that lead to bed. A no is often as good as a yes. We now know not to waste our time there.
Or they may say no no no I’m just swamped and can’t take on anything else at this time. I do want to learn more; it’s just crazy right now.
Then you say, “Okay, that sounds reasonable. Let’s do this. Why don’t we get something on the calendar so that this doesn’t just fall off the radar? July seems like a long time from now. Lots of distractions will come along. Most people will respond positively to this.
It takes guts, but once you start taking this approach, you will be so much more successful in getting appointments. Plus, if someone is wishy-washy with you over the phone, that is a sign of low interest. You don’t have much to lose.

Either they want nothing to do with you or they do want something to do with you just not right now.