Listen to the podcast: Soundcloud Watch the video. I stumbled on a new opening pitch that is working very, very well and I am excited to share it with you today! First, let me give you a little background on how and why I created this pitch. You need to understand the program to understand […]
I stumbled on a new opening pitch that is working very, very well and I am excited to share it with you today! First, let me give you a little background on how and why I created this pitch. You need to understand the program to understand the pitch and then we will apply this pitch to merchant services.
Some of you may know that my business does web development work. Not only did we create instantquotetool.com but we also do larger development projects for businesses looking to create beautiful websites with advanced functionality. These websites traditionally cost anywhere from $7,000 to $20,000 and so we have been working on a program to target smaller businesses.
This pitch is a result of one new pilot program we are running called imaginarysalon.com where we are trying something unique. I call it crowd development. This means that instead of charging 1 salon $20,000 for an amazing website that does online appointment scheduling, text alerts, email marketing, admin dashboard to manage schedules, etc. We are charging 20 salon owners $1,000 and giving them all a custom mobile first design, but they all get the same functionality so we only have to build it once. Additionally, they will be able to collaborate together to decide on what features they want.
Here is the pitch I am using on the phone: Hi, my name is James Shepherd with imaginarysalon.com. I am working with about 20 other salon owners on a project and I was wondering if you might have 2 minutes for me to tell you what we are working and see if you would want to join us?
So far, about 80% of the people I have talked to have either answered “Yes” to this question or intentionally scheduled time to talk. This is about as much as you can hope for out of an opening line! My answer to this question is something I will discuss in more detail on the live event but the important thing is that 80% of the prospects are allowing me to share my value proposition with them willingly and this is over the phone! Here is why it is working so well and how you can apply it to merchant services.
#1 – The group approach. The power of group dynamics is crucial to this pitch. When you tell a business owner that you are working with 5, 10 or 20 other business owners just like them on something, it gives you legitimacy and peaks their interest level.
Find a way to pitch a group. Maybe you offer special rates for pizza shops, but only if 10 of them sign up for the program to get the group rate. Maybe you work with your local Chamber of Commerce and offer their members something specific. As long as you have a group dynamic and you use that in your opening line, you will grab their attention.
#2 – Don’t tell them what you do. Ask them for permission to tell them what you do after their interest in peaked.
***Tip: Make sure you don’t use a company name that spells out what you are doing like, “Hi, my name is James Shepherd with XYZ Merchant Services…” Instead, try using just “XYZ” and leave off the merchant services. You want them curious at this point.
When you ask for their interest, use a specific and small amount of time. “Do you have 2 minutes” and then make sure you have a very good pitch that is less than that amount of time.
#3 –Sometimes they will say “No” but they are still curious, like this:
Prospect: “No, I am really busy right now, what is the project that you are doing?”
You should treat this just like a “Yes” and continue with your pitch.
Take some time and think about how you can use the group dynamic to improve your pitch and make sure you join me Thursday night at 7pm ESTto learn more about our reseller program for salon clients and how you can make an extra $50,000 this year in commission.
Service. As much as I love to pitch service, the problem with pitching this form of value is trust. No one comes in to sell something by saying, “Our...
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