Chicken & Stuffing Sandwiches

Chicken & Stuffing Sandwiches

Can you remember when you were a child and your Mum asked you to do something, or to stop doing something? She would start off all nice and sweetly, and then end up yelling her head off. When your Mum came to the ‘yelling the head off stage’, did you finally start to listen, then stop, before doing the exact same thing 5 minutes later? ...Yep? Me too...

For some Telemarketers and Telemarketing Companies, (but obviously NOT The Swan Company), this is the exact same state of affairs. For example, Mr Jones is sitting in his office, Its 12:20, his secretary has gone on her lunch break and he is tucking into his homemade chicken and stuffing sandwich. He receives a telephone call, it’s a cold caller. 

Now Mr Jones is quite a friendly, happy sort of chap. So he thinks to himself, “I’ll give this guy a break and listen to what he says, but first I want to eat my sandwich”. So he picks up the phone...
The telemarketer babbles through the script that is in front of him, when he comes up for air Mr Jones interrupts him... “Can you please call me back in half an hour, I will listen to what you say but at the moment I would like to eat my chicken and stuffing sandwich...”

Now there are two very clear options open to the telemarketer:

1.Call back in half an hour, speak to Mr Jones, the person that you want to speak to, and get developing the good relationship with him that could lead to an appointment...

Or...

2.Continue ploughing on with the script, hoping that Mr Jones is still listening and does not hang the phone up on you. 

I know the option that I would pick, and I am sure that all of you reading this know what option you would pick as well. Of course the ‘churn & burn’ telemarketer has picked the 2nd option. And what has that telemarketer achieved? No interest, no appointment, and one very irritated Mr Jones, who is also hungry because his chicken and stuffing sandwich has gone all soggy! But the chain doesn’t end there, he’s angry at his secretary for taking her lunch at that specific time, he’s moody around his colleagues. His boss thinks that he may have a personality disorder...(well, maybe not that extreme)... and all because a telemarketer didn’t listen to the initial response that came from the client’s lips.

I know I am writing this blog in my usual irreverent manner, but there is a very serious point behind it all, that comes from my own experience. Last week I called a contact for a client. Now, I had information and notes written by a previous caller saying that this specific contact is interested, friendly, relaxed and is happy to talk. I called him in high spirits ‘ Hello Mr Blah.... I believe you spoke to my colleague (Blah Blah), interested in (Blah Blah)’ ... I thought that I had been friendly, chatty and professional and was expecting the same response. I didn’t get it. He was very rude, angry, insulting and aggressive... (once I had hung up I actually burst into tears). I took the whole telephone call personally and was very upset by the whole affair. 

But then I was told to think about it, and to really think.... Who else had called that person today? What had somebody else said or done to make him react so badly to my telephone call, when the initial call had seemed so promising? Had I just called at the wrong time? Who was it who hadn’t listened to their Mum the first time? Who hadn’t let Mr Jones eat his chicken and stuffing sandwich?