Most of us define our Value Proposition as something we can do for the person we’re calling. You’d think that would be the best and most logical way to approach it, but there is a better way.

Our surveys indicate that less than 5% of our universe of suspects is actually in the market for what we’re selling when we call. (Most of our clients tell us it is less, by the way.) So why do you think telling someone that you can save them money or that your widgets can increase productivity will make them want to talk to you? The answer is simple: that’s the way we’ve been taught.

In our workshops I see scripts all the time that generally describe the value of the caller’s offer as something they can do for the person they are calling. This doesn’t resonate with the suspect often enough because of two things. First is the aforementioned reality that they really don’t think they have a problem, and since they’re busy, they don’t want to take the time to look at a better widget. Second is that many times we callers will also be making a presumptuous statement about how we can help them do what they are doing better without knowing the first thing about how the suspect is doing it today.

Think about that for a second. How in the world do I know I can help you set first appointments more effectively and efficiently when I first cold call you? You may be better at it than I am. Better yet, you may not have to do it at all, so you don’t even do what I sell. That presumption is what turns people off to us cold calling sales people. It is actually insulting.

Here’s a better way to take your same basic value proposition and reword it to take advantage of human nature. Talk about what you’ve done for someone else. If you can talk about the results of what you’ve done for them, so much the better. The reason that works better (and remember, nothing works all of the time) is that we all think that someone else who does what we do knows something we don’t. So, if we appeal to that human insecurity, we’ll have better results.

Here’s an example of mine: “…The reason I’m specifically calling you today is that our clients have been consistently reporting back results of a doubling or better of the number of initial meetings their sales teams have been setting using our holistic approach to appointment making…”

I’m not saying my approach is better…my clients are. Give it a try!

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