You will be able to write a reason for calling that names something specific to the buyer.
Most cold callers open with the same few reasons for calling: "We're a leading provider of...", "I wanted to introduce our services." or "I'm calling to share an exciting opportunity." Each of these tells the buyer about the caller. None of them gives the buyer a reason to keep listening, so the call usually ends there.
In the four-part cold call opener from Lesson 3.1, The four-part cold call opener, the reason for the call is the third part, and it is one sentence long. That sentence decides whether the call turns into a conversation, so it's worth getting right.
A weak reason describes your company, your product or your intentions. Typical examples are "We're one of Singapore's fastest-growing bookkeeping firms.", "I'd like to introduce our new financial planning service." and "We help businesses with their accounting needs."
To the buyer, these are noise. They can't check a claim like "leading" or "growing", and they never asked to be introduced to anything. Weak reasons also sound the same as the last five calls the buyer declined, so within a few seconds the buyer puts you in the same group as those callers.
You can test a reason by reading it and asking whose name could go at the front of it. If it would still work on a hundred other sellers' scripts, it is about you. If it only works for this buyer, or for buyers in exactly their position, it is about them.
The strongest reasons open with something you noticed about the buyer. Usually this is a trigger, one of the events covered in Lesson 1.3, Trigger events tell you when to reach out. For example: "I saw you're hiring two outlet managers, which usually means a new branch is coming." "I noticed you've just moved into the new office at one-north." "Siti mentioned you've just come back from maternity leave."
A trigger tells the buyer three things. You did your homework. You are calling them specifically rather than working down a list. And the call is probably about something already on their mind. All of this makes a cold call feel closer to a timely one.
After the trigger, link it in a few words to the problem you solve, and then stop. Don't describe your product. The product comes later, and only if the buyer wants to hear about it.
Mei's clients are founders. She noticed that a buyer is hiring two outlet managers. Her reason names that trigger, then says that founders she works with often find the books harder to keep up with once a new outlet opens. That is the whole sentence: the trigger, then the problem, with nothing about what she sells.
You won't always have a trigger. Some lists are built from your profile of the ideal buyer rather than from fresh events, and some buyers keep a low profile online.
In that case, name the problem that people like the buyer usually have, then ask whether it applies to them. This works because it is honest and easy to answer. You aren't claiming to know anything about them. You are describing a pattern and inviting them to say whether they fit it. If they do, they often tell you more than your research would have found. If they don't, you find out in ten seconds and can move on politely.
Darren is calling a young parent and knows only their life stage. His reason says that most parents he speaks to with a child under two tell him they haven't had time to look at their cover since the baby came. He then asks whether that is true for this parent, or whether they have already sorted it.
Take these common problems from your personas in Lesson 1.2, and especially from the words line, which records how the buyer describes their problems in their own words. A problem described in the buyer's words lands much better than the same problem described in yours.
Nervous callers often resort to stacking: listing several reasons in the hope that one of them lands. A typical stack is "We help with bookkeeping, payroll, GST, cash flow forecasting and investor reports.".
On the phone, the buyer only really hears the first item, because spoken lists are hard to follow. By the third item they have stopped listening and are planning how to end the call. A long list also suggests that you don't know their problem, and showing that you understand their problem was the point of the reason.
Pick the single reason most likely to matter to this buyer this month, and say it in one sentence followed by the question that ends the opener. If the reason misses, their answer to that question will show it, and you can ask about something else. A single sentence and a question give the buyer something to respond to, so the call stays a conversation. A list keeps you pitching.
Start by collecting the reasons you currently use. These can be written down, or just the words you tend to say on calls. Then work through them one at a time:
Find and delete every sentence that describes your company. Ask what you know about the buyer, or could find out in a few minutes: a trigger, a recent change, or a problem common to their persona. Rebuild the reason around that, as one sentence. Check the length. A rewritten reason is usually shorter than the original, and that is a good sign.
In the activity below you will rewrite three of your own reasons this way, cutting every sentence about your company.
Take three call reasons you use now and rewrite each one to name a trigger or a specific problem. Delete every sentence that describes your company.
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