Latest / Women in The Coaching Arena / 178 | The Discovery Call That Doesn't Feel Like Selling

Transcript

178 | The Discovery Call That Doesn't Feel Like Selling · Women in The Coaching Arena

• 0:00
  If you get nervous before discovery calls or if you avoid them altogether because they feel too salesy, then this episode is for you.
• 0:08
  The coaches who actually convert on discovery calls, they are not always the best salespeople.
• 0:14
  They are actually the best listeners, and if you're a coach, then that is exactly what you are trained to do, so you're already in the right place for this.
• 0:24
  Welcome back to Women in the Coaching Arena.
• 0:26
  I am Jo Lott, and discovery call is not a sales pitch.
• 0:30
  It is a coaching conversation.
• 0:32
  Your job isn't to convince anyone of anything.
• 0:36
  Your job is to help them to express the gap between where they are now and where they want to be.
• 0:42
  So stop thinking of it as selling and start thinking of it as serving.
• 0:48
  You are there to find out if you can help this person.
• 0:52
  If you can, then just tell them how.
• 0:55
  If you can't, you can tell them that, too, and maybe you can refer them on to someone who can help.
• 1:01
  That is integrity, and funnily enough, integrity is what makes people want to work with you Before we get into the structure, let's talk about what happens before the call, because this part matters more than most people think.
• 1:15
  So before every call, say to yourself, "I'm here to see if I can help this person.
• 1:21
  Whether or not they go on to work with me, I am still worthy."
• 1:25
  You're not going into it thinking, "This person needs to pay my mortgage."
• 1:29
  Just take the pressure off, because suddenly it will become about you if you get too in your head about it, rather than about them.
• 1:37
  If you get a lot of time-wasters before the discovery call, something you can consider is sending a short form beforehand.
• 1:44
  Some questions like, what's your biggest challenge right now?
• 1:47
  Where do you want to get to?
• 1:49
  What's in the way?
• 1:50
  These are gold, because when you get on that call, you already have something to work with, and you can skip the awkward small talk and go straight into what matters.
• 1:59
  It also shows them that you care enough to prepare, which already puts you ahead of most coaches they might be talking to.
• 2:06
  So I published my prices on my website, and this helped hugely, because I was starting to get people that were booking who had no idea of the sort of average price that a coach might charge.
• 2:20
  So they maybe come to that call thinking it's going to be 50 pounds, when actually coaching is a longer-term thing and a much higher price than they were expecting.
• 2:30
  So there are two schools of thought on this.
• 2:32
  Some people agree that you should publish your price.
• 2:34
  Some people agree that you shouldn't.
• 2:36
  I'm definitely in the publish your price camp.
• 2:40
  Third, let's talk about your energy now, and this might sound a bit woo, but honestly, the state you are in before the call will make a massive difference.
• 2:49
  If you are stressed thinking that they're never going to buy or checking your emails right up to the last second, that energy will come into your call.
• 2:58
  Bearing in mind that sales is a transference of confidence, so you need to essentially talk yourself into why this is a good idea before you can genuinely help them believe that it is a great idea to sign up
• 3:13
  for you.
• 3:13
  If you are at all nervous, don't panic.
• 3:16
  I was always doubting myself in those early days on calls, and I still managed to build a successful business.
• 3:23
  So again, go easy on yourself, but do take time to convince yourself of all of the amazing things they're gonna get out of working with you.
• 3:31
  So deep breath, and remember why you do this work.
• 3:34
  Here's our five-part call structure.
• 3:37
  First part is connection, maybe three or so minutes here.
• 3:41
  Just be human.
• 3:43
  Ask how their day's going.
• 3:44
  Ask where they live, how the weather is.
• 3:46
  Usual small talk.
• 3:48
  And honestly, that can make the rest of the call really work well.
• 3:53
  Then this part is very important, I repeat again, very important.
• 3:59
  Take charge of that call.
• 4:01
  You're going to tell them what's gonna happen on that call, which is essentially, "Hi Julie, great to talk to you.
• 4:08
  What usually works well on these calls is to hear where you are now, hear where you want to get to, hear what's in the way, and then if I think I can help you, I will tell you that,
• 4:18
  and we can talk about that if you'd like to at the end.
• 4:22
  If I don't think I can help you, I will see who else I may know who may be able to help.
• 4:27
  Is that okay with you?"
• 4:29
  Make sure you do this step, otherwise it will drift into the part that I talked earlier of them telling you their problems and you trying to solve their problems, because you are probably a helpful person and wanna get
• 4:42
  straight to work.
• 4:44
  Okay, so that's our initial part, three or four minutes at the beginning.
• 4:48
  Now we're going to say Tell me what's going on for you now.
• 4:51
  They should be speaking probably 80% of this call.
• 4:55
  And really do let them talk, let them ramble if they need to, because honestly, most of the time no one has ever asked them these questions and actually listened to them without trying to immediately fix it.
• 5:09
  Then we're gonna move on to the desired outcome.
• 5:12
  So once they've told you a bit about where they are now, ask them where they want to be.
• 5:17
  For example, "If we were talking in six months' time and everything had worked out brilliantly, what would that look like?"
• 5:24
  Get specific.
• 5:25
  Don't let them get away with, "I just want more clients, I just wanna feel better."
• 5:29
  Don't let them get away with that generic stuff.
• 5:31
  Push gently to use your coaching skills.
• 5:34
  Again, how many clients, or what type of leadership skills?
• 5:39
  What would that actually look like in real life?
• 5:41
  Two things happen when they articulate the dream.
• 5:44
  They get excited.
• 5:45
  They actually connect with why they started and why they booked this call, and they can start to see the gap between where they are now and where they want to be.
• 5:54
  Do ensure you're brave here, and get to the core motivator, their emotional driver.
• 6:01
  We buy on emotion, so they really need to feel how good this is gonna feel when they actually get to their outcome.
• 6:09
  So now we're moving on to our next stage, where we're gonna reflect back everything that they have told you.
• 6:14
  Again, another skill I learned in my coach training is reflecting back.
• 6:18
  So you may say something like, "Okay, what I'm hearing is that you hate your job, you feel completely overwhelmed, and you have no idea how you're ever gonna get out of this mess.
• 6:29
  And what you really want is to drop your kids at school and feel better and more healthy and get that next promotion," whatever it is that they just told you.
• 6:40
  That's why you're listening well at that point.
• 6:42
  And often in reflecting back, they actually feel seen, and they get more clarity than they've ever had themselves in their own jumbled thoughts.
• 6:53
  Now we are getting towards the end of the call, where we will do our invitation if they seem like the right fit.
• 7:01
  Something like, "I think I can help with this.
• 7:03
  Would you like to hear more about how we could work together?"
• 7:07
  Most people will politely say yes, and then you give the briefest overview.
• 7:14
  Not every single step you will ever take, not every bonus, just the essence.
• 7:19
  Three stages can work really well here, so, you know, first we will get clarity, next we will refine, and finally we will excel.
• 7:29
  I mean, a little bit more complex than that, but just as an idea, it can really help you have some clarity to express it well.
• 7:37
  If they generally feel okay with that, and so you're checking in the whole time, "How does that sound?"
• 7:43
  Before you get to the logistics, so we're not going in with six coaching sessions, we're first talking about the overall things that they want to work on.
• 7:51
  Again, if you've listened well and you've really got where they're at, you'll be able to express the sorts of things that they may want to work on in those sessions.
• 8:00
  So do that part before you start moving to the logistics.
• 8:04
  Finally, you may want to go to the logistics if they want to hear more.
• 8:09
  And again, don't go too far into it, but, like, generally something like, "We'll work together over three to six months.
• 8:17
  You'll have my support between sessions.
• 8:19
  We'll really partner together to help you to reach your goal.
• 8:23
  How does that sound?"
• 8:24
  Then, here's the part that most people avoid.
• 8:27
  You now need to say something like, "Would you like to hear the investment?"
• 8:32
  So don't wait till you send them an email later to talk about money, because then it will never convert for you.
• 8:39
  Obviously, usually they will say yes, because we're polite people, and then you say how much it is to work with you, and you just be quiet afterwards.
• 8:50
  Don't fill the silence by saying, "Oh, I know that's a bit expensive and I can do payment plans and I can do this, this, this."
• 8:56
  Just say something like, "It's 1,000 pounds for the program.
• 9:01
  How does that sound for you?"
• 9:02
  And then just stop.
• 9:04
  If they want a payment plan, then you can talk about that later.
• 9:07
  So silence is your friend here.
• 9:10
  Be brave and do go for it.
• 9:13
  Okay, let's move on to some mistakes I see most coaches making, and they are all fixable.
• 9:19
  Number one, I've touched on already, which is solving their problem on the call.
• 9:24
  This used to be my biggest mistake, but actually, like I mentioned, I now see it's actually a disservice to them to try and give them a quick fix, because anybody who's normal in life will know that there are
• 9:36
  very few quick fixes out there.
• 9:38
  Number two, not making the invitation.
• 9:41
  So this is another mistake.
• 9:43
  Everything's going brilliantly, then you say, "Okay, I'll email you some more details."
• 9:47
  Don't do that because what will happen is it will sit in their email forever.
• 9:51
  You'll be left in the position where you're constantly chasing them, and they never open their email to look at your proposal.
• 9:58
  Number three is over-explaining your program.
• 10:01
  Many people go far too into the logistics, and generally, people buy on emotion, and they just want to know that you can help them.
• 10:10
  Mistake four is not following up and giving up too quickly.
• 10:15
  People are busy, so if that person doesn't go ahead on the call and you follow up once, don't think you can never follow up again.
• 10:23
  Following up isn't pestering, it's actually showing that you care.
• 10:27
  So let's handle what happens when someone says, "I need to think about it."
• 10:32
  That is the moment every coach dreads because you've done the whole call, it's gone brilliantly, they're nodding along, and then, "I need to think about it."
• 10:41
  Don't panic, it is completely normal, and here's what I want you to say, "Of course.
• 10:47
  No worries at all.
• 10:48
  Can I ask what specifically you need to think about?"
• 10:53
  Genuine curiosity.
• 10:54
  Is it the price?
• 10:56
  Is it the program?
• 10:57
  Try and help them to not just zone out, but to actually be curious as to what is exactly in the way of them moving forward.
• 11:08
  I need to think about it usually means one of three things.
• 11:12
  One, they're worried about the money, or it was more than they were expecting.
• 11:16
  Two, they need to talk to their partner.
• 11:18
  Or three, which is probably the most likely one, they're actually scared of investing in themselves, scared that it won't work, scared that they'll never do the work, all of the things that end up stopping us making change in
• 11:32
  our lives.
• 11:33
  If it's the money, then talk about payment plans.
• 11:36
  If they need to talk to someone, then give them space and follow up.
• 11:40
  Try and get a call in there and then of like, "Okay, when are you gonna be able to do that, and when might you be in a position to make a decision on this?"
• 11:50
  Do try and get a date, otherwise it will be another thing that's put off forever.
• 11:54
  And like I mentioned, that fear of investing in themselves is often the exact thing that they need coaching on.
• 12:01
  So I need to think about it isn't a no, it is an invitation for you to understand exactly what is going on.
• 12:09
  So that's it, our five steps, and you already know how to do all of them because you have coaching skills.
• 12:15
  So first one is connection, next is the current situation, finally desired outcome, then we reflect back the gap, and then we make our invitation.
• 12:27
  This is not a sales script.
• 12:29
  It's just showing up as a coach in a conversation and trusting that your coaching is good enough for people to want more, because it is.
• 12:39
  And remember, you're coaching on their overarching problem, rather than trying to go too into their exact issue there and then.
• 12:47
  If you want step-by-step instructions and how to practice this, we do this inside the Business of Coaching with way more detail on sales.
• 12:56
  We even role-play discovery calls on our group calls sometimes so you will get comfortable before the real calls.
• 13:03
  Because like I mentioned to you earlier, that practice really can change everything.
• 13:09
  You will find the link to the Business of Coaching in the description, and I hope today was helpful.
• 13:14
  Go out there and smash your discovery calls in a good way.
• 13:18
  And like I always say, trust yourself, believe in yourself, and be the wise gardener who keeps on watering the seeds