Preparing for a sales meeting is important. You want to be ready, organized, and thorough. You want to ask the correct questions. You want to make specific points, illustrate certain concepts, and uncover particular information. So, you plan your call. You rehearse the questions you plan to ask. And, you rehearse your answers to the questions the prospect is likely to ask.
You rehearse, and then you rehearse some more. You think, “I’ll ask this and she’ll say that. Then, she’ll ask this, and I’ll say that. But, she might ask that instead. Then, I should say this.” You run the scenarios over and over in your mind preparing for every possible event. Eventually, you’re prepared.
But, are you?
You have your script indelibly etched in your brain. Of course, you’re ready. But, there’s a snag: the prospect has her script as well. And, the likelihood that you and she will be reading from the same script is small.
Preparing for a sales call should be like preparing a first draft of a story. Get your ideas on paper. Identify key elements. And, get a sense of direction and flow. A first draft, however, doesn’t have to be perfect—detailing every conceivable plot twist and turn. And neither should your preparation. Focus on and prepare for what you want to accomplish. Spend little time on the eventualities: most of them will never occur.
