Will Morris
My Dublin visit to the HubSpot head offices was over. My brain felt comfortably loaded with the wealth of knowledge and training that I had undertaken.
Dan Tire, ‘The Boom Man’ as he is so affectionately known, had excelled himself. It had been a pleasure to be in the company of the individuals I admire most within the sales world.
As I sat in the window seat of Ryanair’s Boeing 737-800 aircraft, I wondered if this was how Bruce Lee felt when he first met IP Man.
It was fun. We worked hard.
But I knew the hard work had only just begun.
“Tell Me More…”
A voice startled me as I was slowly drifting off, politely offering me a cup of coffee. The young flight attendant, with a smile from a toothpaste ad, went on to ask if I’d had a nice day.
Like a switch in my brain, I thought to myself,
‘Perfect timing. I’m going to test my new skills…’
I sat up straight and realised my ‘Chi’. “It’s been fantastic, thanks. How has your day been?”
“Not good,” was the sad response I received.
“Tell me more…” I replied.
The flight attendant went on to tell me about a minor car accident she’d had that day, and how her husband had to rescue her out of a hedge, making her late for work.
By using those three important words, I learnt about her pain points and was even able to offer some old-man advice, too.
The exchange probably lasted all of thirty seconds, but it felt good to provide a listening ear.
Dan was right. A few chin strokes and ‘tell me more’ statements got the young woman to open up to me in a way that she may not have done had it not been for me sitting back and listening.
Always Do Your Research
After my chat with the flight attendant, I sat bolt upright in my seat; not because I’d had a sudden spark of inspiration, but because that’s just how Ryanair seats are made.
Anyway, I decided to sift through the in-flight magazines to pass the time. How many people read those things?
Whist flicking through, I stumbled upon an article about how a pilot helped to give birth to twins on one of his flights. Not only did the article break my boredom, but it was an interesting read. He sounded like a true hero!
The plane landed…
I was met with the usual hustle and bustle as everyone retrieved their luggage, but something startled me in the near distance.
There, stood with a number of other pilots and flight attendants in their neatly pressed suits, was the pilot I’d just read about!
I couldn’t help myself. I just had to shake his hand and introduce myself. The guy’s story was still fresh in my mind and I just had to hear more and express my admiration for such an act of heroism.
The pilot humbly pulled me aside and went on to explain that he only did what any man would have done in that situation, despite being in charge of an 80,000 kg aircraft at 10,000 feet in the air.
I realised that the reason why the pilot was so keen to engage in conversation with me was that I had read something about him prior to our introduction.
This was what Dan meant by ‘never cold call; always do research on your prospect first to generate warmth’.
Creating A Proposition Statement Of Interest And Value
I’d finally felt the ‘fresh’ air of Birmingham International as I stepped outside the airport. All I needed was a taxi to conclude my journey.
Walking to the bay, I noticed a dishevelled chap sat on the floor-cradling a beaten guitar.
“Got any change?” he shouted.
“Excuse me?” I replied.
“Got any change?” he repeated, slightly louder.
Despite his less than favourable delivery, I knelt down and dropped in a few coins.
We started talking about his guitar and the enjoyment he gets from playing it. I always admired musicians; it was something I never seemed to have the patience to learn myself.
He was a nice fella and I thought I would give him some friendly advice in his approach. I suggested he open with,
“Good Evening, I understand you’ve probably had a tiring day, but would you mind if I sang you a song of your choice to keep you company while you wait for a taxi?”
Mr Homeless Musician was bemused but said he would give it a try. Badgering homeless people begging for money is a tiring exercise but hopefully, his new approach will help him to come across like a more respectable musician. I wished him luck and went to get my taxi.
That was what HubSpot meant about creating a proposition statement of interest and value to the prospect.
I felt good about myself. I know he will be more successful in his approach now.
He may even earn enough money to buy some deodorant. Here’s to hoping…
The Importance Of Video Calling
The taxi pulled up and I embarked upon the final leg of my journey.
Taking my phone off flight mode, I noticed 6 missed calls from the wife. I was so enthralled with the homeless guitarist, I must have forgotten about the family I had-eagerly awaiting my arrival.
Putting a homeless person before her, I could already see how the conversation was going to go. My Chi was low and was too tired to think of a better reason, so I thought a video call on WhatsApp would be worth trying.
Let’s see if this video malarkey actually works as well as Dan had explained…
She was not only surprised by my call but looked really happy to see me; no mention of the missed calls at all.
This was fantastic! We had a great chat all the way home. I realised that video calling was not only more personal, but you could also engage much easier.
Video calling really does have its appeals. They’re more personal, provide higher engagement and are more responsive.
Conclusion
My time in Dublin was both educational and fascinating in equal measures.
Active Listening, researching prospects, video calling and how to create warm calls through research were all topics I could use in my work life and my home life to achieve greater things.
I sat the rest of the way in the taxi feeling content and happy about what I had learnt.
About Insynth
As the only HubSpot certified agency to major on construction marketing, we bring together construction marketing strategy, digital strategy, website design, SEO, content marketing, email marketing, sales automation, marketing automation and HubSpot CRM implementation to produce successful campaigns and great results for our clients.