The Power of the Opening Statement

When working with leads, the first 10 seconds will determine the fate of your results. Don’t give the prospect a chance to put up a wall before you have the opportunity to build rapport. The key to doing this is the opening statement. The opening statement should be non-confrontational, engaging and easy for you to move on to the next point.

Too many times, the opening statement can create conflict leading the prospect to say, “No, no, no.” Think about when you enter a store. When the sales clerk asks, “Can I help you?”, most people respond by saying, “No, I’m just looking.” But if the salesperson tries a different opening, such as “Those pants are our best seller,” it can result in a positive response from the customer.

The same applies to approaching your leads. You need to develop a good statement for creating dialogue and establishing rapport. For example, try this statement: “Hi, my name is Ron. I am just getting back to you about a survey you filled out about starting a home-based business. This is just a courtesy call to answer any questions you may have. Is this a good time to chat?”

The key to this opener is its non-aggressive approach. The statement is not a difficult question, and it’s not prompting the prospect to buy anything. An opener like this one will take the prospect past that initial phase, leading them to take part in a three-way call, a conference call or an interview. Using this friendly opening statement will result in the majority of your prospects willing to hear what you have to say. Once you have a willing ear, you’re halfway there to turning that prospect into a recruit.

“Hello, can I speak to _______________, Hi ________I’m calling because you expressed an interest on the internet about working from home, this is a courtesy call, I just wanted to know if you’re still interested.”

Tell me would you take 10 minutes to hear a national conference call that explains how our opportunity is working for people are the country.

Power Words:

– Courtesy Call

– No Obligation

– Free Information

“I understand that (insert question from survey)…”

Here, you want the prospects to tell you more about themselves. Use their responses from the questionnaire to make powerful points about your business. But remember, they don’t want to hear a sales pitch. The key is to become their friend by establishing trust. It’s important to first get to know the prospect and his/her special needs. Then you can explain your product. If you make these two elements fit together, your prospect will quickly turn into a recruit.

Some prospects will be easier to talk to than others. The longer you talk, the more interested in your opportunity that prospect will become. To help you prolong the conversation, try these extenders:

  • “I understand that…”
  • “Tell me more about…”
  • “What does that mean to you?”
  • “What does that provide?”

Paradigm shift:

When talking with prospects, remember that the opportunity is not the company and its compensation model. The opportunity is providing this individual with a viable home-based business. Your company is simply the vehicle by which this person can obtain their goal. For example, when you go to a restaurant, you don’t get the meal before you look at the menu. In the same way, your prospect needs to form a taste for the business, before the entire company structure is placed before him/her.