“We already have an accounting firm.”
“We have a vendor for that.”
“We’re doing that in-house, so we’re covered.”
If you make cold calls, you hear these responses all the time from prospects.
These statements aren’t objections.
Everyone you reach out to is getting the job done.
They have an accountant.
They have a vendor.
They’re getting the job done using internal resources.
They’re making progress without you.
Inertia is powerful.
To overcome the status quo, you need to shine a light on the cost of doing nothing.
By way of example, imagine you’re an accounting firm that specializes in Employee Retention Credits (ERC) for employers who have been financially impacted by COVID.
What does doing nothing cost?
Since accountants are generalists, they aren’t up to date on ERC, so employers are potentially losing refundable tax credits of $10,000 per employee.
Here’s what that might sound like on a cold call:
Permission
SDR: “Hi John, we’ve never spoken before, and I know you weren’t expecting my call, but I was hoping to speak with you briefly. Do you have 2 minutes?”
Prospect “Sure.”
SDR: “Thanks. Just to make sure I’m in the right place, do you handle Employee Retention Tax Credits at ACME?”
Prospect: “Yes.”
SDR: “If you don’t mind me asking, have you gone through a few rounds of PPP?”
Prospect: “We have.”
Poke the Bear
SDR: “We’re seeing that a lot of employers with less than 30 people who have gone through one or two rounds of PPP are potentially missing on ERC credits typically missed by general accounting firms, so I was hoping I could ask you a couple of quick questions to see if this might be relevant. Would that be okay?”
Prospect: “Sure.”
Conversation started.
Why does this work?
I proactively brought up the “objection” by saying “typically missed by accounting firms.” As Chris Voss says, bringing up the negative defuses negatives every time.
The phrase “Employers with less than 30 people” is specific, so prospects subconsciously this, ‘This sounds relevant.”
People are more motivated to avoid losses (missing ERC tax credits or 10k per employee). It’s called loss aversion.
Ditch the pitch.
Poke the bear.