How to Get More Consultations

Why is it that when you say “Free Consultation” your prospects think you said “High Pressure Sales Pitchfest?”  

We blame our friends in the Time Share Industry.  

Regardless of HOW that all happened, we now have to work harder to book consultations, which are still a key part of the sales process for most aviation products and services.  John and I share four ways to make your consultations more attractive to help you book up your calendar.  

Which is VERY important to your revenues six or eight months from now!

Your Free Consultations Are Probably Great, But Your Prospects Don’t Know That.

If you’re like many aviation companies, a “free consultation” is a vital part of your sales strategy. This is great, because most of our products and services require some discussion to find out if they’re a good fit. And it takes a pretty detailed conversation to explain all of the features and benefits properly, and to learn about your prospect.

A Full Calendar = A Healthy Sales Process

If this is the case for you, look at this month’s calendar. If it’s full of appointments, you’re probably in good shape for future sales. In fact, if you know your average “close rate” from a consultation, and you know the average amount of time that generally passes between the consultation and the sale, then you’re can get a pretty accurate revenue forecast.

This is great, because then you can confidently make financial decisions and sleep well at night, knowing you’ll be able to comfortably meet your expenses!

Here’s Why It’s So Hard to “Sell” a Free Consultation

The problem is that it’s getting harder and harder to get those consultations lined up. The economy is a factor, sure, but John and I blame the time share industry and other aggressive salespeople who use lavish incentives to get people committed to a “free consultation” that turns into a high-pressure, high-energy pitch-fest!

How do you differentiate your “Free Consultations” from the others on the market, and how do you communicate to prospects that YOUR free consultations are different?

We rely on the famous “Four “U”s of copywriting. This is a great way to come up with an attractive offer to “sell” your consultations.

Yes, you really do need to actually “sell” your consultations. Even though they’re free, your prospect time and attention is at a premium and you’re gonna have to earn it!

The Four “U”s Help You Communicate Value

The 4 “U”s are – Useful, Unique, Ultra-Specific and Urgent. You may not be able to pack in all four, but you should be able to get your consultation to answer one or two of these factors.

How can you make your consultations more useful?

We promise prospects at least three actionable ideas to improve their marketing and generate more sales, whether they decide to work with us or not. You can also provide

• A useful report or study
• Valuable industry data
• An audit or evaluation
• A recording and/or transcript of your meeting

How can you make your consultations more unique?

The information you provide in your consultations should be different from anything they can find elsewhere on the web. Do a quick Google search to find out for certain that they can’t just download this information from elsewhere!

How Can You Make Your Consultations Ultra-Specific?

To make your consultation ultra-specific to your particular prospect, you will of course need to do research ahead of time. You may also wish to send a questionnaire so that you can prepare more fully for the time that you spend together.

How Can You Make Your Consultations Urgent?

Why MUST your prospect do something NOW, as opposed to six months from now? Is a law or regulatory requirement changing? Is the tax year ending? Is a technology that they rely on going to sunset? Will they miss an important deadline?

Even if the only urgency you can conjure is lost opportunities, quantify the urgency if you can, and include it in your consultation offers.

Whether you pitch your consultations by phone, by social media, or advertisement; if you can include the four “U”s in your offer, you will get a whole lot more of them than if you just tout “Free Consultation,” like everyone else does!

Download the Checklist

We’ve created a checklist of items you can include in your Free Consultations to make them even MORE appealing! Download it here.