Live Training with Rob O'Rourke:
The Sales Conversation Masterclass

Intro to Rob

• Grew up in Ireland, studied construction engineering
• Traveled to Canada to work on oil rigs, then went to oil engineering
• Moved to Colombia and started working on his own business
• Got into web design, started out on the big freelance platforms
• Honed in on skills and was able to dramatically increase his prices because he was able to improve his sales skills

• Why have a sales call framework? You want to have a goal in mind with your conversation, this will help you achieve your goals

Preparations (pre call)

• Research the niche - want to have background knowledge to be able to listen and ask questions better
• Research the business - who are they within their niche? Who are their clients, competitors, etc.?
• Best prepare yourself - good energy, right state of mind, suitable environment, prepared notes and questions

Set the Frame

• Start the call - get them talking, ask them small talk questions
• Set the “Frame” - the context of the situation is important, to sell you must lead. Who asks the questions is leading the conversation

Problems

• Understand the context
• How is the business doing?
• What have they been working on?
• What are their plans?
• Where is the main focus for this business right now?

Look for problems

• Look for relevant areas/problems
• Ask for more details
• Problems, challenges, resistance…
• Focus on the most serious and urgent problems

Dig deep into the core issues

• Don’t jump ahead and skip this step - make sure you understand what is the exact issue
• How does it impact the business
• What else does it stop them from doing?
• What is ALL the damage being done?

Look at the cost of a problem

• Link the damage with a number
• Doesn’t have to be exact
• Just has to hurt!
• If the client feels it is real - then it is!

Results

• Look at what they want instead
• What is the dream outcome
• A problem is only the negative side
• What do they want instead and why?
• How exactly does it look for them?
• Why do they want it?
• What is it worth to them
• What does it mean for the business?
• How much difference would it make?
• What is the value of this? (money and emotions)

The Deal

Introducing the budget

• Start with a recap of the main points
• Frame it as a resource for more options
• Ask what number they have in mind
• Suggest a number if they have none

Pricing the deal

• If no ideas -> educate them on the big picture
• If low -> revisit the main points
• If okay -> agree and try to adjust upwards
• If good -> perfect, but lock it in more

Push back (if needed)

• The time to sell is now
• Say what needs to be said- draw upon the evidence to see how the proper budget will get them the proper results they are after
• Abundance mindset 
• Better to do this now than later

Test the sale

• Do they agree?
• Any questions or concerns?
• Shake out doubts - have them confirm the problems, goals and budget you’ve discussed in this call
• Always best to do this in real time, not after the sales conversation

Where to go next

• Set expectations
• Have a clear outline of next steps, what they can expect
• Likely will be a plan and proposal
• Let them know when exactly to expect it

End the conversation

• Thank them for sharing
• Let them know you will do your best
• End on a high note
• End the call

Do what you promised

• Take some time to recap everything
• Create a plan and proposal

Follow up

• Give them some time
• No response -> check back in
• If any issues adjust and work it
• Create a standard follow up routine and stick to it to avoid getting emotional about single sales

Questions

• How can you feel more confident in your sales calls?

• A few days before the call, research the business and the niche so you are better prepared coming into the call. Have a good energy coming into the call, know your best times to have these calls that works for you and your rhythms. Create a routine to elevate your energy. Get the client talking as soon as possible. This takes a lot of the pressure off quickly. Ask questions and let them talk. Experience and practice will also make this easier.

• Is this call structure the same way you would approach White Label clients?

• Yes, the sales approach works to selling anything. Always starts with researching the business, understanding their needs, ensuring they need what you have to offer. That way you can mold what you offer to what they need. With B2B, it is also important to just create a connection first. This can make it easier to create long term connections.

• How do we explain to prospective clients how we found them (if they have a bad website) and why we are approaching them so that we can have this sales conversation?

• We have to get on the radar of business owners as someone who can help with web design. The best way to do this is take results that you’ve created and put them out into the world (through social media, email marketing, website, etc.) and show them to prospective clients who would like the same type of results. Lead with the results.

• How do you actually back up the claims that you can solve the issues that you find?

• A general good way to do this is get access to client’s analytics to be able to track these types of results. Though at the end of the day, there are some things out of our control, so best not to “guarantee” results. Show past client result examples and say you can try to do the same for them. 

• Sometimes I run out of questions to ask before I truly understand the problem. Do you have any suggestions to tackle this?

• Practice these sales skills and techniques in your everyday life. Try and ask more questions with people in your life, your family, etc. to get deeper into topics and understand those peoples’ lives and practice this skill. Can also repeat the last thing the client said in a question form, and they will usually expand on their point and dig deeper.