Time, it is money, as the old saying goes. That said, do you and your team make the most efficient use of your prospecting resources?
We are big supporters of the two-by-two rule in my business. In two words, the two-by-two rule means finding two pieces of information about a business to take advantage of a sales call in two minutes or less. This is an effective way to prepare for an effective call.
Let's explore why we must consider this rule and how to use it.
Why?
Walking in a completely cold cold call is not the best experience for both parties. Before making a call, having some key information at your disposal makes you look more professional. Adhering to the two-by-two rule also maximizes your ability to call more leads. Spending too much time (even 10 or 15 minutes) before a call just to eventually reach a voicemail or discover that your contact has been transferred to another department or business is counterproductive. Time is the perfect equalizer in business and in life, so we want to make sure we use our time as efficiently as possible.
Keeping this in mind, you will want to limit the time you spend looking (two minutes) to just have enough information (two pieces) to start a good conversation. Although you may feel compelled to review all you can to find out more about a company or its work, resist spending excessive hours watching videos, product demonstrations, or reading white papers by the customer. Ideally, find a treat that is beyond the surface level information on their website. Do they produce a lot of content? Great! But they probably hear it all the time. Find a particular topic or aspect of how they approach content that is unique, different, or impressive, and refer to it specifically instead.
How?
So how do we do that? There are some sources that you can easily consult. First, check your CRM system. We use Salesforce, but wherever you capture your own customer information, you need to start where you want to start. Past interactions with this contact, the company or other contacts in the same company may be the best way to get an idea of the type of projects they are working on and the type of projects they are working on. information you want to search for. Sometimes this is the only place where you have to search for your two pieces of information.
Your next source is their company's website and their company description. Maybe they are part of a bigger conglomerate with which your company is already doing business? many advertising agencies are set up like that. Or maybe they've recently won a prize, which is a great opportunity to congratulate them or ask them if they have received any publicity. You can also check their active job offers to find out where the company is investing time and energy. If they have just hired a video producer or someone from content marketing, this could be a key piece of information to be aware of. Maybe they are developing their HR team or they have someone in e-learning. These are all excellent pieces of information to know when on a call.
Sometimes, in our desire to be meticulous or well prepared, there is a tendency to go too far into the rabbit hole and end up spending the line of a time investment at a loss of time. Drawing a two-minute line and two information with the two-by-two rule is a great way to have productive conversations while enjoying your work day.
Author : David Ciccarelli is the co-founder and CEO of ]] Voices.com The online marketplace that connects business people to professional voiceover talents. The unique blend of his experience in audio engineering and his business acumen and product development have given him the creative freedom to pursue his passion for innovation.