OneMob Head of Sales, Randy Yabes, has been in the B2B sales game for 15 years. Here’s how video messaging helps him perfect his outreach and ultimately close more deals.
The B2B landscape is continually changing. Since the 2000s, we’ve seen the birth of social media, smart phones and SaaS. We’ve also seen the decline or end of the flip phones, rolodexes, fax machines and mostly everything dealing with paper. In order to succeed, you have to adapt. Call it survival of the fittest. Today, sales orgs are inundated with new tools for sales enablement on the daily. Seasoned reps stick to the tried and true since they know what works. But there are some unique ways out there to stand out from the noise. These ideas aren’t only applicable to progressive millennials, and shouldn’t be ignored. Every rep has their preferred methodology, and my new outreach method is video. Here are 5 ways that implementing video in my sales methodology has helped me adapt, break in, form lasting relationships and ultimately close deals.
1) Gives Cold Calling a Break
Cold calling is monotonous and energy draining. It’s awkward, impersonal and often inconvenient for the person on the other end of the line. Reaching out via video is a successfully proven alternative. In this on demand age, sellers need to understand that buyers want to buy on their own time, so why not present information in a way that they can receive whenever they want? Video allows you not only to pitch your product, but really yourself- as a professional, an adviser and as a personality.
2) Shows More Empathy
The tone in your speech affects people’s perception, instantly. Many times, sellers forget what the experience is like for the buyer. Reps are so concerned with delivering the pitch so perfectly that they forget to ask enough questions and really learn about the buyer and their needs. During the middle of a sales cycle, I use video to re-state the purpose of our partnership. Summarizing gets all parties on the same page. Can I do this via email? Probably. But there is no “empathy” font. There is no “insert joke” button (and no, emojis don’t count). Video allows me to deliver a message in a way that says I am here to help, but in a more personal way than text. Stop treating deals like transactions and more like relationships. Showing empathy affords you trust and credibility, which is key to maintaining relationships and ultimately closing more deals.
3) Affords Honest and Direct Feedback
Once I’ve established credibility with my contacts, communication becomes much more direct and efficient. You’re guaranteed to get more direct feedback from someone that knows and likes you – even if it is a “no”. I just want to avoid the two statuses that all salespersons dread – “maybe” and “gone dark”. It’s easier to blow off a response or beat around the bush with someone you don’t know on the other end of the line. Video provides that familiarity. Receiving direct feedback and quicker answers unsure that both of our our times aren’t being wasted.
4) Improves My Pitch
Every salesperson has their signature style and approach. After years of practice, it’s comfortable to get stuck in the same, “proven” routine. But remember, we have to adapt. Since the ways in which we buy, sell and communicate are continually advancing, can you truly step back and see if you are caught up with the times? Training to enhance your routine is best done through video. It’s a crystal clear mirror to see how you look and sound. Golfers record their swing to analyze that hitch. Singers record their voices to hear those flat notes. Why don’t sellers record their potentially stagnant presentations? Seeing my pitch forces me to listen to how I present, poking holes in my normal speech and highlighting possible bad habits and making improvements. It also gives me the opportunity to try something new, such as a new line or sign-off.
5) Keeps Me Optimistic
Selling is one of the toughest jobs because your success is instantly measurable, and success is dependent on buyers making decisions that are in your favor. It’s daunting. It’s tough. But remember this; you are the tip of the sword. You are the first impression that your company makes in a partnership. What inspires me about using a video is this statistic alone: that the average person receives 121 emails a day, a number that is still on the rise. Sending a video itself is already entirely fresh approach to initiating those new conversations and fostering communication. I’m confident and optimistic knowing that I’m delivering something unique from other sales reps because I’m reaching out in a way that’s sincere, unexpected and engaging. The positive feedback that I get from prospects affirms this.
About the Author: Since the early 2000s Randy Yabes has been tasked with building pipelines, growing sales teams and developing structures for companies like Staples, IDG, Extole, Experian Information Solutions, and now OneMob. Connect with him on LinkedIn to see how he’s adapted in the SaaS sales world at startup’s and the Fortune 500’s.
