<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:<HR>Originally posted by Dream Weaver:
<B>Sorry to post this in general, but I need the replies and it is mildly Scoob related as it means I can now continue saving for my first Scoob

Anyway, finally managed to get a job after being out of work for nearly three months - hooray

It is not ideal, not what I want, and £10k less than I was on (basic salary), but has good commission possibilities -

The job's in telesales, selling websites to businesses for a local internet company.

The negative is that I have always steared clear of telesales, especially cold-calling, but the positives are it gets me back earning, it is an industry I enjoy and know, and the commission structure allows a realistic OTE of "double" what I was earning before.

Now the advice:

I have never done telesales before, or cold-calling so please could you give me some advice on how best to approach it, tactics, strategies etc?

Cheers
DW (Glad to be back)

Maybe now I can buy the "LSD DW" (L5 DDW) number plate I have seen Probably not though (Police interest etc)[/quote]

My simple advice would be go to a booskshop business section and get as many books as possible by salespeople and learn their tricks. 90% of sales is confidence and self-belief, and the other 10% is presentation. You can give 2 people the same product and the same script - then one will make 20 sales in one day while the other makes 3 sales in 2 months.

If you are really serious about it, I'd recommend applying to one of those "back of the local paper" ads and doing some door-to-door selling at weekends. Sure, it is underpaid, annoying as hell, and exploitative. But there is no better way to learn the harsh realities of what sells and what doesn't.

I am the complete opposite of a natural salesman - but I did one of these door to door things to try to make some cash when I was about 19/20. I was hopeless at first, but after learning from and speaking to the people who were good, I learnt more about selling in 3 months than most people will in their entire lives. I would thoroughly recommend doing some door to door stuff, especially with something you think is COMPLETELY unsellable - if you can sell a worthless overpriced piece of junk, then you will simply clean up with a remotely decent product. To give some perspective, I was selling £900 vacuum cleaners. If I - a naturally reserved person - can sell one of those, then you can sure as hell sell anything remotely normal! You learn so much about simple techniques that work - and subsequently the skills I learned have helped me in catching much bigger fish. When you find yourself "selling" to some bigshot MD with basic techniques and he just laps it up, all that crap you did years ago becomes worthwhile. Besides, you may get to bonk some randy housewives while you're at it