Why SMB Owners Aren't Answering Your Calls and Ways to Get Through
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Why SMB Owners Aren't Answering Your Calls and Ways to Get Through

Calls. Voicemails. Emails. Faxes. Texts. Snail Mail. Pigeon Carrier. Smoke Signals. Singing telegrams. No matter the choice of communication these days, one thing is for certain. Small business owners aren't answering their phones. In the Bigfoot-esque event that someone does answer your call on first attempt, you better have a voice like Frank Sinatra to keep them engaged or a dial tone will haunt you in your dreams. I don't blame them for not answering. We (every aggressive salesman looking to survive without a big marketing budget) are annoying. 

Working in the alternative lending space for many years has been a roller coaster ride. One that has gotten stuck mid loop, has been slow and then a complete free fall without warning, and sometimes one where I'm completely drenched at the end of the day (my apologies if these metaphors make no sense whatsoever). My head's been cut off, people have screamed, it's been fun and scary, and I keep getting back on line for another ride.

When I started at Bizfi nearly ten years ago as an underwriter (when it was still Merchant Cash & Capital), clients were enthusiastic to speak to me and our sales agents. They felt like we were helping them. If you knew what you were doing, you could keep them engaged long enough to earn their trust. A few years later, after joining the direct sales team, I was calling from one of maybe ten major ISO offices that were operating at that time. Clients knew I would be calling and if they didn't, they were somewhat interested in what I had to say regarding financing for their business. It allowed a good salesperson to be great. Sadly now, we hope we are the benefactor of just good timing. Instead of the client thinking we are helping them out, they make us feel privileged to be talking to them!

These days, just getting anyone on the phone is a chore a lot of us often pay other companies to handle for us! While I was managing a team of some of the best sales people in the industry, I started to see an interesting trend. Over the last year or so, I saw dials go up, talk time go down, and more agent notes on our pipeline relating to clients being "non-responsive," or "went dark," and even "number disconnected." My all time least favorite note? "Mailbox Full." What is going on? 

Recent negative reporting on robocalls doesn't help, but the average business owner is simply just getting way too many calls and refusing to pick up. Forget just alternative lending for a second. They're most likely getting calls from anyone providing a product or service causing them to wonder why they even opened a business in the first place. Couple that with 15 to 20 calls a day from live voices and complete robots at times, with some of them masking their numbers and "tricking" them to pick up their phones... and we have an overwhelming population of angry business owners. How are we supposed to THEN try and sell them on expensive capital? It's like trying to get some action with the wife while she's in a bad mood; it's just not happening.

When a business owner needs financing, in the rare event they haven't done research and they apply online, the wrath of phone calls within the first 24 hours is an immediate turnoff. Some agents have even told me they have more success waiting a few days or even up to a week until the merchant has gone completely mad and then they come in with the same boat/sympathy approach. This is bananas! 

Frankly, it's not the agent's fault. They are told that more dials equals more dollars. They are incentivized and sometimes receive bonuses if they have the most dials on their team. They are also hungry as hell. It's become harder and harder to sell alternative financing, so instead of innovating, it's easier to just make more calls.

I feel a big turning point is coming regarding "dialing for dollars." The better mood a client is in when we pitch, the higher the outcome of a sale. What can we do to maximize our reach and get through to potential clients before they turn sour? Here are some strategies that I have found useful on all company levels that can help.

  • Agents: Acquiring new business is tough. Be selective. Spend your time developing strategies to target quality clients that can provide you with repeat business. This could mean researching best times to reach your client, developing email campaigns that stand out from competition, or creating a bond with the business owner's receptionist or assistant (as we all know calls are being screened these days). This doesn't cost a dime either. Additionally, understand your lead sources and who you may be competing against. The more information you have on where the lead came from, who else is calling it, and how you should approach it, will allow you to have an intelligent conversation with your client and elevate your chances of getting the business. Wear the shoes of your client. When would YOU want to be called or emailed? For me, its a text or email at about 10:00 at night when I'm finally done with nightly chores and putting the kids to sleep. Be respectful and ask your merchant if texting them is ok. If you have to wait until 1 a.m. to send a text for that big deal on the other side of the country, it will be worth it. Also, simply scheduling calls form the get-go and following through on those calls shows professionalism and wins every time. Explain to your client why they get so many calls, what they can do to limit them, and let them know they aren't alone...it will create trust and providing knowledge is the best sales tool you can use to win. You can also go old school and actually talk face to face with business owners; it may be refreshing for them to actually do business as it was done from the beginning of time.
  • Managers: Don't focus on how many dials your team is making, but rather focus on the quality of phone calls and actual talk time. If you are able to listen in on calls, point out good sales techniques and applaud great moments in conversations your agents have. It will naturally form good habits that will resurface in the form of revenue. Devise email campaigns that come from YOU to show your potential clients that there is a strong team behind the calls. You can also think about offering flex hours so you have team members who can reach other time zones effectively. Spend the time early on with newer agents to develop their product knowledge. If they know the products well and can think like an underwriter, you won't need to hold their hand as much. This will free you up to focus more of your time on finding innovative ways to market to your client base. A marketing expert may not know sales and a great salesperson may not understand marketing. Marry the two and you'll see magic.
  • Companies: It's obvious you are spending a ton of time trying to navigate a new and changing landscape of alternative/online lending. Those who leave innovation at the bottom of the priority list will undoubtedly be left in the dust. It's important to understand your data, even at the call level. Track your floor's outbound talk time, your response rates, your open rates on emails, and where your success is coming from so you can invest better margin dollars. This type of innovation is immeasurable. Also, if you aren't a marketing genius yourself, hire one. Chances are you aren't up to date on the latest technology or innovations as people who eat, sleep, and breath marketing techniques are. They understand what works and how to implement it. I'm not talking about a marketing department that designs fake checks and outsources your data to a foreign call center. We can all do that and they are effective in their own forms. I'm talking about someone that knows how to track your clients' interests through internet usage so you can talk to them like a human. Someone who can make your company stand out through sophisticated design or has connections to the phone service providers... a complete digital genius. Someone who can play puppeteer to your pool of clients and pull the strings as needed. If you want to get to the next level, think like a big player and disrupt the space.

We can't assume things will get better before they get worse. The "cold call" will become a thing of the past and only those smart enough to adapt will rise above the rest. It's important to establish a solid communication system early so your clients come to you and you aren't always chasing after them. Whether at work or home, communication is key to success and happiness. If you can manage it wisely, you will be rewarded fruitfully.

David Portyansky

Head of ISO Partnerships

6y

On point

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Michael Dwyer

Global Head of Channel Sales & Partnerships

6y

Very relevant post, thanks for sharing. Can't stress how inefficient the old sentiment of dialing for dollars is in this digital world. For us at Fora, it's about meeting that prospect in their preferred marketing channel at their preferred time, then making that connection memorable.

Curtis DeCora

Award-Winning Marketing Strategist at Superior Marketing

6y

John, I started selling merchant services and alternative funding roughly 3 years ago. I was advised to buy a list, and pound it day in and day out, as that was the industry's best and most effective practice. I found it highly impractical to obtain such information over the phone required for underwriting, and still do. The moment I put the phone down and pounded the pavement, I sold MCAs, and flipped merchant's to my processing platform. The articles is well written and the points are... well... on point. You stated, "Wear the shoes of your client" and I wholeheartedly believe in that statement. I wouldn't want someone calling me asking for PII, rather someone to meet me in person - and that's what I did. It made a world of difference and I have a nice portfolio of loyal clients. Best of luck!

Çhad Otar

Forbes Financial Council & Direct Funder Lending Valley, Inc.

6y

Thank you for an amazing piece!

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