How to Get Past The Gatekeeper

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Here we go; yet another article all about the gatekeeper.

If you have ever read of my previous work, you will have seen that I write about the gatekeeper a lot. The reason for this is that trying to ‘get past’ the gatekeeper and trying to deal with the gatekeeper is one of the most common enquiries I receive when it comes to sales training.

For many sales professionals and business owners, the gatekeeper is seen as a scary, ogre type figure that is stopping them from making the sale. So much so that some sales trainers and experts come up with ways for sales people to brush past them – and to me this just is not right.

The inspiration for this article came from video I watched, in which I saw a well-known sales trainer and some other guy chat angrily about how sales people shouldn’t bother trying to ‘make friends’ with a gatekeeper, and that a sales person should in effect lie, manipulate and deceive the gatekeeper to get put through to the decision maker. In this video, the sales trainer brags and laughs about how he will lie to the gatekeeper and in effect take the mick out of this call handler to just get put through. Now, for some it may have made for good viewing; but I couldn’t help but feel it was like watching a bully brag about the latest smaller kid he has picked on. And that just isn’t right.

You see, the people in the video knew that what they were saying made for good viewing. It made good entertainment, would cause some debate; and here we are! It worked! But for any good sales people out there I have one piece of advice for you to help you get past the gatekeeper;

Treat them like a human being.

You see, the person picking up the phone and acting as the gatekeeper is infact a human being (believe it or not). They are you mum, father, your son, your aunty, your neighbour. They are a person with feelings, emotions and a heart. The second you start to lie or manipulate these people you are only going to leave ill-feeling towards you, and you simply will not be trusted.

Put it this way; if a sales person called my company, lied to my team members and made them feel foolish, then I would not be able to trust them to actually deliver the service or product they were offering. Nor would I want to do business with them.

If you are trying to just ‘get past’ the gatekeeper, then you are looking at the sales process in a completely wrong light. Your job as a sales professional is to develop relationships with as many people within a business as you can so that they can all help you and assist you to sell your product or service; that is if it is good enough of course! I have plenty of other articles on how to get past a gatekeeper, and am always available to support you and your sales team. If you need any further advice, do be sure to get in touch.

Paragon Sales Solutions are Leicester’s leading sales consultants, offering:

– Sales Contracts

– Sales Training

– Social Media Management

– B2B Telesales / Telemarketing

We cater for any size business, and what makes us stand out is that we truly care. Our services can be catered for your business and our sales professionals will work tirelessly to ensure your sales targets are met. Be sure to visit our website for more details on how our sales solutions can help your business. 

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