I am the sole training officer for a firm of solicitors and have been asked to develop some training sessions in closing for our Debt Recovery department. We have agreed that as the majority of the work now carried out by the department is on the phone, the staff need training on how to make the most of the calls and closing techniques. The majority of the staff have no sales experience and this may all seem a bit strange and guru like for them. Any suggestions on approach and resources, is taking a sales training view the best way forward.
Paul Brown
5 Responses
Sales Training
Hi Paul
I definately agree that sales training is the way forward for this but also attention to Customer service is just as important . Regardless of the type of call , rapport and relationship building I would say are essential and even more so with this type of call .
The best type of close is presumptive – Not if you want to pay but when.
I would be happy to helkp with this if you are interested
Dave
Analyse first
I agree with Dave. I would usually start with a skills analysis of the delegates. There could be other issues that need to be looked at. Closing is the icing on the cake – you must get everything else right first. Remember, not everyone likes to sell but they do like to help people and solve problems.
Yes and No
Sales training has more in common with customer service training than anybody usually seems to realise. The requirement here is to analyse the call pattern to the point of close. Are the questioning techniques in use leading to the correct point where a close is possible? When you get to this point is the payment the only essential or is repeat business still a concern? and so on.
While I agree the assumptive close is often the right solution to a situation it is not the only solution and different people react to different closes in different ways. The pattern of the call should determine the correct close.
E-mail me if you want any advice on the way this could be handled. And good luck.
A quick fix won’t work
I agree in principle that good debt collection techniques and skills are similar to sales skills but the application is very different! Training in collection skills has to use relevant examples and establish exactly what can be said rather than what is required as an outcome.Then it is just the start as a complete programme of training, coaching and support is req to maintain effective performance. Happy to recommend some solutions
Similarities to sales training
Having worked with Debt Recovery teams in the past I would agree that many of the skills they need are similar to those developed in sales training. I would recommend a tailored programme which would include a structure for the conversation, building rapport and empathy and assertiveness.
Happy to discuss further.