“Call Me After the Holidays”

As the cold weather approaches, so does the infamous objection that anyone making prospecting calls dreads to hear: “Call me after the Holidays”.

With Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, New Years and other holidays on the horizon, the excuse that prospects won’t have time to talk until after the New Year is going to pop up often. Many prospects will get lost in the thought of good food and spending time with friends and family. While your mind may drift off into similar thoughts of your own, you can use this time to increase your sales pipeline into the New Year!

Here are some tips that will help prevent your pipeline from freezing during the winter holiday season.

Pay attention to the calendar.

Thanksgiving is late in November this year and when we get back to work the following Monday, it will already be December! This gives us a mostly uninterrupted November to get some hard work in and maybe even an extra sale or two. From there we will have three full weeks in December before the next wave of holidays, and during this time people will be consumed with year-end work and non-work related tasks. This means that you will be hearing the ‘call me after the holidays’ objection quite often. It’s important not to get discouraged when you hear this! If you can’t get on their schedule, use this time to set up a warm call for January. This is a crucial time of year and you won’t be the only one calling after the holidays. Build rapport now and write good notes, so your call in January picks up right where it left off.

Improved moods during the holiday season.

While some people may be stressed during this busy time, others may get caught in the holiday spirit and may be a bit more jovial and generous than usual. Make sure you pay attention to any non-verbal cues you can get from a prospect and know when it’s the right time to strike. Listening to someone’s tone of voice can help you get an idea of what may be going on the other line during this distracting time of year. Perhaps the next step is not setting an appointment. Perhaps sending an email with information, a connection on LinkedIn, or an article that may interest them would be better timed for this period.

Connect with clients.

Use this time to reach out to those you are already doing business with. Something as simple as sending out a holiday card (in November) to let your clients know that you care about the relationship you have with them can go a long way. Perhaps this is a good time to reach out to past clients. Stand out by making yourself known for going the extra mile. Maintain your relationships with outreach, either verbal or written, beyond the initial sales process or upon renewals to show that they’re more than just a number.  Be present and easy to reach to create a long-lasting relationship.

Prepare for the New Year!

Instead of agreeing to reach out again after the holidays, try to set a tentative appointment during the time you plan to call back. Planning too far ahead has the potential to set you up for another objection: being pushed off again. With everyone coming back to work and trying to reorganize things after the long break, the prospect may be overwhelmed. Give them the extra week after the holiday to get the meeting into the calendar, for a greater likelihood of it sticking. If you’re able to get on the calendar, you are setting yourself up for a great start to the New Year!

So why are you still here reading this? Go ahead, who can you call right now? Or, call MarketReach to help divide and conquer!