This is exactly how I get disengaged prospects to open up

Today, I'll explain how I handle disengaged prospects on the discovery call.

Author

Dan Cons
March 10, 2024

Today, I'll explain how I handle disengaged prospects on the discovery call.

If you’ve worked in sales, you’ll know the situation. The prospect rocks up to the call, but they don’t want to talk. 

If you can’t turn these seemingly uninterested prospects into engaged and interested ones, you’ll lose a lot of deals here. 

Unfortunately, many people struggle to turn this around because they’re either coming across as overly salesy or scared of being too pushy.

But fear not! I'll show you how to overcome this one like a pro so your prospects open up to you.

Here's how I do it using a three-step framework I got from Jeb Blount:

Step 1: Ledge 

When you notice that a prospect is not giving you what you want, managing your emotions and maintaining your poise is essential. 

Give yourself a moment to regain your composure by saying something like this:

"Can I be completely transparent with you for a moment?"

Most prospects will agree to this which will pave the way for a decent conversation.

Step 2: Value 

Next, tell the prospect why you need the information from them. You could say something like this: 

"Based on the info you provided on your form, it seems like there are some challenges in your business that you want help fixing. To see if/how we might be able to help you, I really need to get a full understanding of what’s going on."

When they feel like it’s in their best interest to open up, they will. 

Step 3: Ask

Finally, ask the prospect for their cooperation and to share more information with you. 

You could say: 

“With that in mind, are you open to sharing a bit more about what's going on? These super short answers are making it very hard for me to get a good understanding of your situation.

Also, if you're no longer interested in our help, we can go our separate ways no problem. Just let me know what works best for you.”

Letting the prospect know that you are willing to walk away from this conversation if things don't change is also a super effective way to get them to start talking.

To wrap up…

Follow these steps, and you can handle most disengaged prospects on discovery calls easily which will increase your chances of winning new business.

Remember, it's about staying calm, explaining why you need information, and asking nicely for their help. With practice, you'll get better at dealing with this tricky situation. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out by replying to this email.