How to Personalize Your Sales Call in 30 Seconds

When was the last time you noticed a pair of Skullcandy headphones? The wildly successful company has a very narrow target audience: ages 12 to 26. Yet, Forbes lauded the company for “knowing and understanding” their customers, which was identified as one of their “keys to success.”

When making sales calls, it becomes all too easy to give every customer the exact same treatment. But making it through the call doesn’t equal making the sale. Effective calls maximize what is known to some as the “CX factor.” Customer Experience, or CX, is driven by personalization. The CX factor is proven to increase sales and keep customers coming back.

Fortunately, there’s no need to ask your customer any probing personal questions. Actually, there are plenty of opportunities to personalize sales calls based off of customer information that is already available to you.

Here are a few ways you can use that information to your advantage.

Check out the Activity History

When was the last time this customer was contacted? Are there any notes? Is there any follow up information you can provide? Simply mentioning what you may have discussed in previous calls not only gives you an opportunity to deviate from a usual script, but also demonstrates a conscious effort to maintain personal connection with that customer.

From the Activity History. you can also see other communications like e-mails and meetings, which will help you better understand your customer’s existing relationship with your company. It involves not only the when of customer contact, but also the how and why.

Activity history also helps you avoid multiple same-day calls and repeating unnecessary information, so you have more time to engage your customer.

Names are Important

Think of any “personalized” product, and chances are, it has a name on it. Or perhaps you have heard the expression “that has your name written all over it!” Studies indicate that using a customer’s name during a call is very powerful, and is one simple but effective way to personalize any call.

In addition to the name, take note of the details that appear near the customer’s name, such as their position within the company and the name of that company. If they have a special title like Doctor or Reverend, it doesn’t hurt to throw that in either. They worked hard for those titles!

Ultimately, using the customer’s name and the company name shows that you haven’t forgotten who you’re speaking to after a long day of calls, and it is a simple way to add a personal touch.

Don’t be afraid to ask questions

Even if you don’t have much prior knowledge of or experience with a customer, a few quick questions can give you a lot of leverage. Even the simplest of questions like “How are you this morning?” can lead to conversations that are personal and informative.

Once you get into conversation, it’s also okay to ask questions directly related to the problems your product was created to solve. What services are they currently using? Are those services integrated and streamlined? For example, is their current dialer integrated with their CRM? Do they find it user-friendly?

Short, simple questions can help you further understand your customer’s needs, and how your product can help fulfill those needs.

Location, Location, Location

Look at the location data for your customer, and don’t be afraid to use this to customize the conversation if possible. Just like a name holds personal value, we all hold a little pride regarding the places we call home. A little small talk can go a long way in making sales a little more personal.

If you’re familiar with the customer’s area, that gives you another opportunity to identify with them and build valuable rapport. Everyday topics like weather, sports, and local news give you a gateway to a pleasant conversation, rather than repeating a sales pitch. You may even have another client in the area you could connect them with, which could lead to more opportunities in the future.

Aspects such as internet speeds, seasonal income, and phone traffic, among other things, can vary by city and have the potential to impact a business. Location-related conversation shows consideration for the customer and their regional concerns, and also paves the way for addressing how your product may benefit their company specifically.

Utilize the Social Data

Don’t overlook any social feed integrated into the customer profile. Anything, from Twitter to Instagram, could prove valuable. This is an easy way to access what the customer is saying about their own product or company. Seeing how they choose to market their product tells you what they value, and also gives insight into their potential needs.

How are consumers engaging with them? How is the customer attempting to relate to the consumer? Are they successful? What are people saying about their product?

Maybe you notice their follower numbers could use a boost, their posts aren’t being engaged with, and they could be reaching a much larger audience with your help. Perhaps you see a lot of people trying to get customer support through networks like Twitter or Facebook after phone calls have proved ineffective. Maybe you notice from Instagram teasers that the company is on the verge of launching a big, targeted marketing campaign for which they could potentially use your help.

These nuances of their marketing strategy gleaned from social media accounts can actually prove to be helpful to your marketing strategy as you try to engage the customer on a personal level.

Overall, making sales calls more personal doesn’t have to go like this:

Instead, use the data you already have, so that it can go more like this:

DialSource Denali combines the power of a carrier-grade telephony stack with Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics to automate your call process, improve the customer experience and increase your sales productivity. All while tailored to your current CRM process.