Ditching the pitch. · The Phonejacker® Academy

Ditching the pitch.

Since I started prospecting in the world of recruitment I've ditched it.

Of course, I'm talking about the 30 second pitch here.

And I have to say, I prefer it.

It's not the first time I have opened my calls by leading with a question. I did use it in a scenario where the product I was pitching was niche and listing off 3 problems just didn't make sense. I wanted to get straight to the point.

What I didn't do back then was think about how leading with a question could be applied to a product/service that solves multiple problems. It is more challenging to navigate a call this way.

More challenging but not impossible.

There are also some benefits to leading with a question:

1️⃣ - Less people reject the call upfront.

2️⃣ - I get to a conversation much quicker.

3️⃣ - I can disqualify quicker.

Pitches can work, of course they can. I've spent years using them but they were never perfect, nothing is.

Here are three problems I've noticed:

1️⃣ - Asking for 30 seconds might not seem a big ask but in the context of an unsolicited call, it is.

Prospects just want you to get to the point. Who are you and why are you calling? And this is the reason why you hear "Well what's the call about first?"

You end up having to go in with a question any way.

2️⃣ - Pitches contain a lot of words.

They can be hard to follow and when they don't recognise what you're talking about they will likely switch off.

It's easier to craft a well thought out question than it is to craft a 30 second pitch.

3️⃣ - The purpose of a pitch is to open up a conversation and direct the conversation down the right path. Does this prospect recognise any problems that you can help fix?

If you can do that be leading with a well crafted opening question, why not do that?

- - -

If you're not going to ask for 30 seconds, you're opener will need to change.

Here are two I've been using.

"I'll be upfront this is a sales call, up to you, you can hang up now or I had a few questions for you?"

"I'll be upfront this is a sales call, I had a question for you, after that you can decide whether we carry on talking or not, sound fair?"

You're possibly reading this and thinking, what question do I ask?