Friday, June 8, 2012

Calls: Just Do It

  
  We've all heard those phrases before, you know the ones, 'eat the frog', 'bite the bullet', 'just do it'...Those phrases that are supposed to motivate you to get things done. There are countless books out there on procrastination and being more productive. The self-help section of any bookstore will have books that contain motivating stories, ideas, and quotes to get the reader to accomplish those hard-to-do tasks, and ultimately lead you to success. If you wander over to the business section of that same bookstore you'll find books on cold calling and facing rejection. These books will also provide stories, motivational ideas, and quotes to help you pick up the phone or make the sale.
    It's no coincidence that there are so many of these types of books written. It's because motivation is a difficult thing to truly obtain, and the motivation to make the sale is even more elusive.  Okay, so what am I getting at here? You've been told dozens of times (or so I hope) that bookings are the lifeline of your business, so why is it so hard to pick up the phone? We need the motivation. We need to 'eat that frog'. We need to just do it.
   Easier said than done, right? Making booking calls is probably the most terrifying task in a direct seller's business day. I can't tell you how many times I have avoided that call or just sent an email instead. It's hard to call someone out of the blue to ask them for what you perceive as a favor. It's hard because of that incredible fear of rejection. You're afraid of that 'no', you're afraid that they'll even hang up on you. You're afraid.
   If you're serious about your business, you have to overcome this fear. That's why I want to devote a series of Friday blog posts just to the subject of booking calls. We have to get over this fear and we have to use the phone. I'm not talking text messages or Facebook on your iPhone. I mean call people. We need to be calling our prospects. We need to be calling our team members and we need to be calling our hostesses. I am the first person to admit that I haven't done that in the past 5 months or so. I felt like I didn't need to because I was just booking from my shows. Let's just say I am paying for that false comfort now.
Do you realize it's so much easier for a person to reject you via email, Facebook message, or text? They can just not answer, they can say they never got it, or they tell you they're too busy, a task much easier to do when they're not hearing your voice. The reason we continue to "book" this way is because it feels easier to us. When they say 'no' or ignore your message you don't feel crushed. It's because there doesn't seem to be a real person there. You don't see their face or hear their voice. So let's go back to the 'good ole days' of business. Let's be women of integrity and make those calls! Don't worry we'll do it together...

No comments: