Setting the Agenda for any conversation is a must, especially if you are seeking something from the other party, like a job!
What is an Agenda? A road map for the conversation (regardless of the length of the conversation). Who sets the Agenda? You. State your goals. State the key points you want to make and what you want to accomplish for the conversation.
Example:
"Hi Bill (Sales/Training Director or practice owner) my name is Tom Northey, thank you for taking my call. I'm calling you today to make an introduction. I want to introduce myself, get an understanding of what type of talent you're looking for at XYZ manufacturer (or clinic, etc.) and share with you a few of my notable achievements as an audiologist. Tell me about the type of audiologist that is going to help grow your organization?"
Notice how the Agenda has been incorporated into a succinct series of statements ended with a good "open-ended" question. By setting an Agenda you control/direct the conversation. The perception that you present is one of confidence, control and competence. Presenting key open-ended questions that DO NOT begin with can, is, do, are (which prompt a yes or no dead-end response) is essential to getting the "person of influence" to disclose key information in which you (through effective listening) can match your experience to. This component is referred to as Discovery. It is a critical strategy for any sales situation and the ability to sell yourself is the most essential "sale" you can ever make. By asking key open-ended questions (how, tell me about, explain to me, what initiatives have you been charged with accomplishing, what type of personnel are essential for you today) you discover what the person of influence needs or wants. In the discovery process you learn about what not to do/say, what skills he or she is looking for, what plans are in the works, and then identify and tag specific experience or skill sets that solve your party's problem(s).
More on open-ended questions:
Open-ended questions require detail and conscious thought to fully answer. In many cases converting a closed question to an open-ended questions is as simple as adding Who, What, Where, When, Why, or How to the beginning. Most importantly, open-ended questions launch a dialogue between you and the decision maker/manager which magically transforms you from a desperate job-seeker trying to get employed to a professional colleague who can help that manager solve a problem.
Next time we will go more into the Discovery process and "discover" what you want to learn from the hiring manager.
Best Regards,
Tom
0 comments:
Post a Comment