How to Create Your Support Content for your Outbound Program

This is a part of a series that was cre­at­ed to help you get the prac­tice of out­bound prospect­ing built into your com­pany.  This series will walk through the process, nec­es­sary roles, in addi­tion to guides for each role to help your com­pany get started quickly.  In the next few posts, I’ll be releasing the contents of a quick start guide for the outbound prospecting manager to use to attain success during this process.

There are two types of content you will need to provide to your business development reps:

• Content to use internally to help better sell (e.g., training docs, scripts, e-mail templates)
• Content to use externally that will be shared with prospects to better explain the product and help them better identify with the solution

A. INTERNAL CONTENT

• Highly effective conversation, voicemail, and e-mail scripts/templates
• Qualification questions to dig deeply into the conversation and gather the best details possible for the account executives/sales reps
• FAQs and how to respond to difficult questions
• Outlines for handling objections
• Product training documents
• CRM training guides

Sample Call Script

Hi ________________,

This is (rep’s name) from (company). I understand you are the person responsible for (contact’s title). I also understand that your company is/does (brief description).

The purpose of my call is to see if I can have two or three minutes of your time to briefly tell you what it is my company has to offer and see if you have any interest in our solution.

(Introduce your company, and what you do in less than 3 sentences).

Would you be the best person to speak with about this type of initiative?

If they say they are not the person:

Ask who is, and get their name, title, and contact information and see if you can get them to transfer you to the person.

 

If they are not willing to give you the contact information, ask:

If I send you an e-mail will you forward the information on to the correct person? How should I follow up with him/her?

 

If they say they don’t have time to speak, say:

So I don’t waste our time, are you the person who is responsible for this? Is there someone else I should be speaking with? When would be a better time to speak?

 

If they say yes, they are the person:

Get to the pain (issues and current set up)

Help me understand your current priorities today.

Tell me about your current pain points.

• How are you currently dealing with your issue?
  • What is working?
  • What is not working or missing from your current process/service?
• Do you have any specific initiatives?
  • What are the needs and/or requirements?
  • What is your time frame?
    • If they say, “I don’t know” – follow-up with:
      “Is this something you want resolved within the next 30 days? 60 days?”
    • If they say next year or next quarter, clarify whether it is fiscal or calendar and when their quarter ends or begins
  • Are you considering any other solutions?
    • If yes, which ones?
  • Is this a budgeted initiative?
    • If appropriate, how much have you budgeted?
  • Are you the owner of the project? If not, then who owns the project? Are you the ultimate decision maker for this project?
  • Who else is involved in this process?
  • How is the decision process handled?
• What is your title?
• What are your responsibilities?
• Where does this fit into your priority list?

If we had a solution that could address some of these pain points, what would stop you from considering a further conversation? What is your availability?

Sample Voicemails

1st Voicemail (no longer than 30-40 seconds):

Hi XXX. This is (name) calling from (company). My number is XXX.

I was hoping to speak with you briefly about how you are (some aspect of the prospect’s business that your software could help improve).

My company offers a….

When you have a minute, please give me a call back. Again, I can be reached at (number).

Thank you for your time, and I look forward to speaking with you soon.

 

2nd Voicemail:

Hi XXX. This is (name) calling from (company). My number is XXX.

I wanted to follow-up with you in regard to a message I left you a few days ago. Just a quick reminder, my company offers….

I am just trying to figure out if there is a need at XXX and if (company) might be a fit.

Just wanted a minute or two of your time. I will follow-up via e-mail as well. Please feel free to respond that way if it is easier for you.

Again, my name is (name) and I can be reached at (number).

Sample E-Mails

1. Hello (name),

I understand you are the (title) at (company). I wanted to see if I could have 2 to 3 minutes of your time to briefly tell you what (company) does and see if you have any interest in our solution.

Briefly explain what your company offers. What customers (big names in the prospect’s industry, preferably) are currently using your product. How your product can help, and why it makes such an impact (bulleted format is effective).

What date and time next week February 15 – 19 would you be available to chat? If you’re not interested or if I should contact someone else, please reply to this e-mail and let me know.

Regards,

(Name)

2. Hi (name),

I hope that your week is going well. I recently sent you an e-mail and followed up via phone but did not hear back.

If possible, it would be great to schedule a 2 to 3 minute call for us to briefly discuss how (1 to 2 sentences about your company’s offering and how it can make a difference for the prospect’s business).

Please let me know what time would be best to reach you. Thank you for your time and I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Have a great weekend!

Sincerely,

(Name)

B. EXTERNAL CONTENT

Here is the necessary external content (sync up with your marketing team to gather/improve these materials):

• A modern, crisp website that explains your products, services, company history/management teams, and value proposition
• Case studies and/or customer testimonials
• Content microsites and/or content portal
• A brochure or white paper geared specifically toward the prospect’s specific segment

All of these pieces of content must convey:

• Your company’s familiarity with the prospect’s segment/needs
• The value of your product and services
• The legitimacy of your solutions

People will rarely be engaged through verbal communication alone. Your business development reps need supporting materials to send after (and sometimes during, if the prospect is at a computer) the first conversation!

Next week I’ll be giving some guidance on how to get off on the right foot, by sharing the best practices for training your representatives.