Forum Moderators: LifeinAsia
I'm just putting together an introductory email to a prospective client I want to build an e-commerce site for. I suppose its not *strictly* affiliate since I'd be handling all the set up of a full e-commerce capability including cc payments, with the client handling shipping. At least thats how I envision it working.
I just wondered if any of the more experienced webmasters here would have any advice on how best to pitch the idea?
Originally I was going to make a mock-up site to impress them with, but I'm thinking that I don't want to spend a lot of hours on it only to find that they're not interested anyway. I thought an introductory email would be the best way to go.
Any ideas/advice?
How many offers do you get a week that you either bin, or don't get round to replying to?
Refuse to talk to anyone but the man!
Don't pitch the secretary, the 'web guy' or anyone other than the CEO
Nick
BUT follow it up with a phone call - that way it looks like you're not mass emailing them and you're not some telesales guy.
Call first, then email a well thought out summary document.
Calling is more personal than email, and email "unsolicited" is "intrusive".
He/She may be busy so the call should be short... but you have caught their attention and will look for the email vice trashing it.
Ask for a response in the email. Allow them to provide an appropriate date and time to discuss further (best - "in person") or at least a follow-up phone call.
Phone first, email after as fathom says.
Nick
Just a few more pointers from someone that sold for 10yrs:
I mangaged sales teams for years and can tell you that the number one cause of failure was pitching the wrong person.
The number two cause is thinking that the cost is actually important. It's not. If you agree on everything else cost is never an issue. A deal can always be done ;)
Nick
I used to work on a sales desk selling Satellite broadband, its abit hard trying to sell to the tea lady which I got through to an alarming amount of times :)
Whenever you see a long conversation going on you know they're talking to the janitor...
Junior execs loooove to be pitched, makes them feel important. Smart sales folks don't even say hi to these time wasters ;)
Nick
I was a purchasing manager for (too many) years. I trained all the switch board operators to block cold-call enquiries. Anyone asking for "the Purchasing Manager' was brushed away.
The ones who got past the switch usually did two calls - the first just to ask for the name of the Purchasing Manager (CEO, whatever), the second, a few hours/days later to ask for me by name, usually with a back up line that implied they already knew me.
Of course, once I cottoned-on, these were blocked at the switch as well - but I'll bet it still works for most companies - just don't use it on me:)
The trick is to get your attention in a professional manner within the first 10secs of you picking up.
Bet the ones you actually talked to (rather than brushed off) were pretty professional right?
Most decision makers I've pitched have actually been quite happy to talk to me once we'd established that I wasn't some muppet reading from a script ;)
Remeber, the CEO/whatever is just as busy as you so get to the point and don't flaff around!
Nick
First contact the company and get a name
Then follow up with a good introduction letter.
Last phone the guy up 3 days after you sent the letter as it will be either still on his desk or just put in the bin
Last don't get to fed up with put downs
Bet the ones you actually talked to (rather than brushed off) were pretty professional right?
Yep - bang on - any hint of a script, or obvious 'manipulation' and they were canned.
The ones that got listened to, were the ones that 'got the message over' quickly and professionally without any fluff.
Don't pitch anyone but the decision-maker, but be honest about who you are and why you're calling, and nice and friendly to everyone, especially secretaries. I've had secretaries not only tell me the name of the right person to talk to, but what time of day they'd most likely be easiest to reach, and if they were out of town, what day they'd be back.
With a very large company you have to be very sneaky, in order to get around people like 4eyes. Deliberately get connected to the wrong department, one that's highly unlikely to ever get sales calls. They're easier to fool because people like 4eyes don't think anyone will ever call them to pump them for information. ;)
Onya
Woz
One trick that makes me smile is when the secretary/guard dog/switchboard says "we operate on a no name policy so I cannot tell you who is in charge of the 'department'" is to ring back a little later and ask for that department. When they put you through you can uite often get a a voicemail "Hello Joe Schmo cant take your call at the moment".
Next call back and ask for Joe Schmo. Badda Bing you know exactly who you need to talk to.
She has been doing it for 12 years and knows loads of tricks like this and no doubt she would explain it better. Obviously the better the secretary the wiser to these sorts of tricks.
Cheers
Getting connected to the wrong department is top class. Can't get through the gatekeeper? Go around the gatekeeper!
Oh, is that not Mr. CEO? Damn! What is the right number? ;)
And Secretaries, yes. People forget that although they hold no buying power they hold all the power if they take a dislike to you.
Just don't be 'chatty', once you've built up to much rapport it's difficult to refuse or avoid questions about your pitch.
In some larger Co.s the secretaries are well paid, well trained and if you're not professional, well mean!
Nick
Cold calling in person can "shake more trees" than the telephone, more things seem to "just happen" when you are in the building, you can also gather enough intelligence to make a cohesive follow up..."I noticed that your company..."
Agree with Nick_W...talk only to the decision maker.
>>And if you can't get past the secretary/receptionist, call again before 9am and after 6pm.<<
Saturday morning can work well too.;)
The clever angle that they used was to give the telesales company a copy of a letter explaining their services, pointing out which parts the sales people should be pushing they explained that they had sent about ten thousand out .
a list was ten thousand companies, at the time i thought that was a quite a large postage bill.
anyway the telesales girl rang explained about the letter i had received about a week ago pointing out
the sales benefits and did her job brilliantly got the sales guy an appointment.
when the sales guy finished his bit i ask how much the mail list had cost when he said the postage was nothing i was shocked, he went on to explain that the telemarketing company are the only company ever the see the letter, 99.9% of the companies they rang could remember whether or not they had seen, in fact i was pretty sure i had seen it. but we get so much junk in the post most goes straight in the bin.
people a willing to talk to you if they think its a follow up call.
DaveN
Still, I've done it. It works ;)
Nick
That sounds like a trick we had to use when I was telemarketing,
often used to get people saying that they never asked for the call and how did I get thier number.
I used say have you filled in survey in a magazine or entered any competitions in the last year?
Well you probbably forgot to tick one of the boxes, in reality the phone numbers were sold to us by another company.
As the Shamen once said "naughty, naughty, very very naughty"
Although I'm much better with written stuff than phones I'll bite the bullet and call first.
Marcia, in this case its one company and pretty much a one man band (an artist with a website but no online ordering), although it looks like he's got someone else to handle the business end of things - I'm guessing thats my contact.
Despite the fact that most posts here are geared towards getting a foot in the door with bigger companies, the majority of the advice translates just as well to my situation.
Thanks again. I've got my fingers crossed big time on this one.
Sure, no problem. Seeing as he'll come back to you for approval I'll just run you through the basics so we all know ehat we're talking about.....FULL PITCH
Then go pitch the other guy if it's still neccessary but ask for the deal with the artist first. You may be surprised ;)
Nick
As the Shamen once said "naughty, naughty, very very naughty"
Bit of a target audience there Knighty :)
Most people wont have a clue I suspect.
In saying that knighty and I live in the same city(small town);).
DaveN
I am much nicer now that I have to do the sales calls myself:)
