Stupid Sales Scripts!

The day I interviewed for my new job, the interviewer (who is now my District Manager) gave me the sales presentation. He had it down pat. No missteps or mistakes. It rolled off his tongue like water off a ducks back.

When he was finished he asked me, “Do you think you could learn this presentation?” “Of course I can.” (What was I supposed to say, I really needed this job). Then he showed me the compensation plan and how the sales commission was just the start. With this bonus and that bonus, I could be making six figures in no time flat. My eyes must have looked like saucers to him. “All I have to do is sell this many a week and I can make how much?” Hell ya I can do this…

I was all fired up, but really wanting to get another job that I interviewed for, I left the room feeling like I was going to conquer the world. What was I going to do with all this money? Since my fiancé was working full-time making a great salary, most of this money was going to go towards paying off the bills, adding to savings and then, PLAY MONEY!

I waited a week on pins and needles to hear from the other job when the phone rang. As I answered it, I was thinking to myself, let is be an offer. It was an offer but not from the job I really wanted but from this sales job. My District Manager said that he was going to send over a script for me to memorize….WHAT?

Memorize a script? I knew what a script was for an actor but for a salesman? Was I going to really be a salesman or just play one during the week? So, I get emailed a script that was only two pages long. I though, no problem, I will just learn this and then when I get out in the field I will just do it my way.

I got the script about two weeks before I started the job and spent hours and hours going over every word until I had the thing completely memorized, including the sub-notes colored in blue.

Day one of training we go over the script and I did well (except for the sub-notes which I wasn’t supposed to read). We continued to practice and it seemed like every hour something was added.

Over and over we go until the script was now over five pages long. I kept thinking to myself of how I was going to ditch the script when I get to in the field and do it my way. I have been selling for about 10 years and the company for about six times as long. What do they know anyway?

Having the original script down pat and the new script attachments memorized well, I was ready to tackle the real world. The real world would have been easier if the business owner knew his portion of the script. He didn’t ask me the right questions at the right time, as outlined in the script and at he end of the presentation, I was always supposed to have a signed contract…hmm.

Monday morning comes along and I am supposed to meet my field trainer, who is flying in from out-of-town. He shows up five hours late so I decide to “hit the road running” by myself. I practiced this script dozens of times, maybe even a hundred and I know how to sell. Let’s put on the ol’ Robert charm.

My first business that I come to is a tire store and I actually get to speak with the owner. Here I go, I was thinking, now I can do it my way. As I began to give the presentation, somehow what I meant to say and what actually came out of my mouth didn’t seem to be in sync. By the end of the presentation, I don’t know who was more confused, the business owner or me. Neither one of could figure out what I was really selling. I wasn’t sure if I was selling him something or if I was going to buy a new set of tires.

During the next few hours on my own, I stopped at about 12 businesses and somehow, by the grace of God or just dumb luck, I made a sale. I don’t know if she really knew what I was saying because she was an immigrant and didn’t speak English very well but all I know is that she signed a contract and I got the check.

My trainer finally shows up and we go through all the formalities and then hit the road. He lets me give the first presentation just to see if I practiced the sales presentation. When I was finished, my trainer apologized to the store owner and let him know what we really were selling and then he said, “Let’s go to lunch so we can talk about your presentation.”

LESSON NUMBER 1- STICK TO THE SCRIPT

The script is there not to teach you how to be a robot but to keep you focused on the key selling points in the presentation. If you stick to the presentation, no matter what, you will sound like you know what you’re doing and the client will actually understand you. The last thing you want to do is confuse the client.

So to sum up my first day on the job, STICK TO THE SCRIPT, STUPID!

(Oh, by the way…on my second day of training, my fiancé lost her “good paying job” so my hopes and dreams of fast cars and international travel turned to just paying the mortgage and putting food on the table.)