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Intro: I’m Paul Higgins, an ex-corporate executive turned business owner who, for five years, struggled to grow a cloud Consulting business whilst battling a chronic disease. With the help of mentors and experts, I got the business model right, built a sales and marketing engine, and developed a high-performing team that ended in a successful exit. I received a kidney transplant from a mate, and now on my second life, I dedicate my time to helping other Cloud Consultants go quickly with less effort to enjoy life. Detecting an accent, I'm an Aussie working globally from Melbourne, Australia. I interview successful Cloud Consultants sharing their scaling story to give you inspiration and practical tips. I have dedicated experts for Cloud Consultants on the show to save you time and money by working with the right people. If you want to scale quickly with less effort to enjoy life, you're in the right place. Let's get started.

(0:55): Imagine this. You have contacted a potential client and asked them to have a call with you. They've booked it and might have done their homework by looking at your LinkedIn profile and website. Let's face it, not all do. You may have some questions for them to answer in your scheduling tool,  which is great, but you stumble at the opening when you get to the call and waste valuable time. And to be honest, it never really recovers.  

(1:20): Hello, this is Paul Higgins. Welcome to the Cloud Consultants Show. I will give you a way to provide confidence in your calls by using video, whether it's your first time tuning in or you're a regular, you'll find insights claim from my experience scaling and selling a tech and selling businesses, mentoring hundreds of others. Subscribe now so you don't miss an episode. Now let's dive into the problem at hand. 

(1:43): You stumble at the start of the call and the potential client feels awkward. And they say first impressions do count. And I completely agree. Are you thinking of an example right now where, you know,  you haven't done a lot of sales training, no sales is something you know you have to do as an owner, but it always feels that little bit awkward. Well, a video sent before the sales call will help you to build trust, reduce the awkwardness and let them know what they can expect during the call and the next steps. I'll give you a playbook with all the information you need at the end. So listen to the context and enjoy your walk, drive, cycle, or whatever you're doing at the moment whilst listening. And I would recommend the video be sent at least two to three business days prior to the call.

 And what I'm going to do now is break the video into six simple components. And in the playbook that you'll get at the end, it's got a nice script and an example for you to go and do it. 

(2:46): OK, so the first one is introduction. Begin the video by stating your first name and explaining how you met and the value of them for attending. So, for example, hi, Eve, I reached out to you on LinkedIn. I'm looking forward to our call on insert the date given as our first call. I would like to summarize how the call will go and what you will gain from attending. I read your LinkedIn profile on website and you've probably done the same for me. This is where you will give something personal about yourself. Right. So I'm just stop the script for a minute. This is where you give something personal about yourself because they're buying you. Right. Yes, the technology is important, but ultimately they're buying you, your IP, and your consulting. And what you want to do is help them to achieve their outcomes. So, for example, in the script, in the playbook, you'll get, you know, I do X for Y because you can achieve Z. So then state that normally gets into the road of doing this. Right. So, for example, I'm a golfing tragic. I sell relationships for tech consultants who want to build personal wealth and freedom. So whatever your version of I do X for Y because they want to achieve Z, they typically face these challenges when doing it. A is poor positioning, B transactional selling and C pricing by the hour. So that is a nice little introduction. So in the script, in the playbook, it's very easy for you to follow, to put in your format 

(4:19): So that next is a context, then explain you will be seeking their context. Right. Because everyone is different. So, for example, I will ask you about your ambitions and what you see is getting in the way of achieving them. It is completely different and that is OK. So if it's completely different, your context, that's OK. Right. Then the third component is help, then explain if you can help them with another call or if not, that is OK. Right.  So, example, if it is something I can help you solve, I will give you a relevant example and we can then discuss the context of your own business. Right. So that's the third section, which is help. The fourth section is next steps. Now, remembering this is all in the playbook, so you don't need to write it or try to remember it. It's in the playbook that you can get at the end.  So the fourth is the next steps. Tell them what the most likely next steps will be. So, for example, if you want to further conversation, I will send you a summary of the call and a scheduling link. Then number five is a duration.  Explain the length of the call and how you will record it. So, for example, the call will take no more than 30 minutes. And I normally use Fathom video as a sense of a format for recording it.

(5:41): Then the last one is number six, which is closing. So the key thing here is just close naturally. Right. I know the first couple is going to feel really awkward because you're in a script, but over time, just have some bullet points or the script. But then ultimately, what you want to do is just move the bullet points and you're going through it. Right. And you got to remember that not many people do this. So you're going to really stand out by doing this. So number six, closing the example is I'm excited to learn more about your ambitions and how I can help them become a reality. See you soon. First name. Right. So there's a bonus tip. We recommend a great tool to help do this.  t brings a gift or a GIF, however you pronounce it, into the email platform that you're using and it can have you smiling and waving to start up, which is great. Right. Because they'll know you from looking at your material and it's there for a common face. And what we'll do is put in the playbook a link to a platform called SendSpark and we'll give you six months free by just going to paulhigginsmentoring.com/SendSpark, but that link is going to be in the playbook. 

(6:51): OK, so let's recap the six elements. And remember, this is, you know, about two minutes long. Right. So you could even condense some of this, but it gives you a nice little structure. And there is an example in the playbook for you to watch. So the first is the intro.  Second is the context. Third is how you're going to help them. Then the next steps, if it goes well, how lo et started right now with your video pre-sales call playbook, giving you the confidence in those sales calls. Right. But it also makes your, it makes you be different because no one else is really doing this and you'll stand out amongst those others that they're talking to. So here are the three key actions from this short little podcast today. One is download the video pre-sales call playbook. Second is create one your own. And then the third is embed it in the process, test it, try it. Right. But bottom line is first impressions really count. So, OK, time for action. Get the video pre-sales call playbook, including the six month free from sendspark, just go over to PaulHigginsMentoring.com/precall. And there's no hyphen.  It's just P R E C A L L. And once again, it's going to be in the show notes. So ready, set, go. See you next time on the cloud consultant show for more quick and simple ways to grow your cloud consulting business and live more of the life you want now.

Outro: Learning is just one piece of the puzzle. it is now time for action. Head to Today's show page at paulhigginsmentoring.com/podcast, get the links, and put it into action. Head to your favorite podcast platform, subscribe, rate, and review the show. Suggest topics for me to cover at [email protected], and don't wait one more minute to gain access to content, especially for you, a cloud consultant at paulhigginsmentoring.com/newsletter. This could be the difference between wasting time figuring it out yourself or scaling quickly with less effort to enjoy life.