Keeping It Real For Your Canvassers
In April and May’s issue of this newsletter I discussed the procedure and methodology behind the lead “Call-In” and the “Validation”. Each has it’s own advantages and disadvantages, though there are residual benefits of doing a validation and letting your canvassers listen in on the calls to the homeowners they’re getting as leads.
If you didn’t read last month’s article on the validation, you should, but to quickly bring you up to speed; the validation is the call made to a homeowner to validate that it’s a legitimate lead and eligible for issuing a demo.
You’re confirming:
- They are the actual homeowners
- There’s a valid opportunity to demo a product
- And there’ll be enough time for a complete demo
The validation is not a full appointment confirmation, though it’s an opportunity to look for red flags on the lead that could disqualify it from being a true potential sale opportunity. Letting your canvassers listen in on the validation will be a real education for them. They’ll see how and why leads can blow out. When they leave the front door with a lead they can think it’s a legitimate lead and that they’ve done their job fully, when it’s possible they’ve overlooked an important point, or the homeowner just wanted to get them off the front porch.
There are 3 major advantages for having your canvassers observe the validation of their leads:
- I mentioned earlier that canvassers are relatively competitive; if their lead production drops off they can start to squeeze leads in because they know the rules of a qualified lead. When they do start squeezing leads in that they really shouldn’t you won’t find out about its integrity until it goes out for demo. By then, canvassers can point the finger at the sales rep or the company that they didn’t do a good enough job to close the sale, when in reality they should be pointing the finger at themselves.
- Having canvassers take an observer role in the validation lets you address issues that may come up during the call with canvassers immediately… in real time. The best time to address issues is right away when they happen. Often a canvasser’s schedule may be such that they won’t be in for several days. You know yourself if you wait to handle these issues until the next time they’re in you’re likely going to forget about it, based on all the other things you have to take care of.
Besides, handling issues right away, especially with other canvassers present gives them the opportunity to see how to handle situations that arise. Plus, nobody wants to the one on the hot seat in front of his or her peer… that’s why I call it, “Keeping it real for your canvassers.”
- Lastly, the people doing the validation calls can help your canvassers in salvaging a lead. For example, if the homeowner says the scheduled appointment time isn’t convenient your canvasser can witness how the call is handled in order to reschedule and salvage the appointment. This can be especially helpful for new canvassers.
The bottom line is, don’t sugar coat things with your canvassers. You know employees will find the shortest, easiest path to get their job done. To be successful canvassing the canvasser has to own the leads all the way through the sales process, even though they don’t demo the leads. As the saying goes, “The chain is only as strong as it’s weakest link”, and your canvassers should not be the weak link in the process. In fact, they’re the front line… garbage leads acquired will only produce unsuccessful demos. Include your canvassers in validating the leads they capture and keep it real!
If you’d like to learn more about the numbers and call-in procedure you can call me for a brief, free phone consult. You can contact me directly at (216) 588-1337.