Call Reluctance - Just Plain Fear!

[rgrace]

When I was a member of the local rescue quad, I was certified in heavy duty rescue which means I got to go up and down cliffs, building, etc. That first step over the edge never got easier but once I was over the side and knew that the ropes would hold me, it was a piece of cake.

Good analogy, I am a rock climber as well. Climbing is no problem, until I get to the top and rappel back down. Letting go of the rock is the hardest thing in the world to do.

It is odd that picking up the phone, instills the same type of fear in a person as stepping off of a cliff.

 

[superfly33]

I am glad to see that I am not the only one that suffers from this. I have problems getting started. Picking up the phone for that first call is the hardest thing to do.

This lessens a little with each call, and then after the first appointment it gets a lot easier. But then the next day it is the same battle all over again.

My question is does this initial call reluctance ever go away? Or is it something you just have to learn to deal with?

It's different for everybody. For me, the Call Reluctance does go away because as you learn to deal with different types of personalities you gain confidence in yourself. That confidence will help you fight that Call Reluctance.

For example last month, I haven't made a single Cold Call because of some home improvement projects. When I did get back on the phone, I notice myself stalling for time and making excuses. If I don't call on a consistent basis, I do experience Call Reluctance. Just force yourself to do it, things will get better.

BTW I think we coined a new term. Call Reluctance.

 

[Franz Kafka]

BTW I think we coined a new term. Call Reluctance.

Hardly. I think the term was first used by purple traders of Pheonicia about 7,000 years ago.

"when thou makest to thy kinfolks, bretheren and friends thy call of offer, heed not the voice inside thee that suggesteth the lowly manner in which thou mayest be perceived by them and thereby succumb to call reluctance" circa 5,000 B.C.


J/K .. but I wouldn't be surprised if it was true .. LOL

 

[Frank Stastny]

Knowledge builds confidence, confidence spawns desire, the desire to help my prospects by sharing my knowledge.

I don't "sell insurance", I would probably be a miserable failure if that is all I tried to do. I educate my prospects. Does that make me a "Medicare Supplement Professor"? I might put that on my business card.

I can't say that I look forward to making that first phone call in the morning but I no longer "dust my office" to try to delay it either.

I genuinely enjoy helping people. I know I can help the majority of seniors who live in rural Missouri. My dilemma, early on in my career, was how to convey that to them.

Once I figured that out then both calling and selling became a lot easier. If one knows how to give good phone, that will erase a lot of the reluctance/fear.

The agents who use "seal talk", are unsure about what they are saying, afraid of objections and do not know how to control the phone call and turn it into a conversation, they are the ones who have the most difficulty using the phone. Using the phone is a learned, well practiced art.

When I go on an appointment the policy is pretty much sold. The appointment is to make them feel warm and fuzzy and to begin building a relationship with them.