Last week’s ezine discussed how to improve your chances of closing the sale during an initial consultation or phone call by pre-selling the prospect ahead of time. Done right, the prospect shows up knowing they want to work with you instead of still deciding if they will.

We also discussed one copy element which is critical to the process—an Interview page for your website.

The other copy element you need is testimonials. Hopefully, you’ve already been collecting some. Now you need to add a Testimonials page to your website and list all of them. (Yes, it’s ok to include ones that you’ve used on other pages.) It may seem like more than anyone would bother to read but a few people will actually read every single one. The rest will read a few and just be impressed that you have so many—which is really the point. You want them to come away thinking that it’d be silly not to work with you since your clients always come away so happy.

Prep Your Prospect

So, once you’ve added these two powerhouse pages to your website, you just need to make a few tweaks to your appointment process.

When the prospect calls and requests to schedule that initial consultation with you, set the appointment time and then:

1. Give Them Homework. Direct them to read the Interview and Testimonials pages on your website (giving them the links via email) BEFORE the appointment “so you can make the most of your time together.” Again, these should answer a lot of their questions, handle any common objections, and get them excited at the prospect of working with you.

2. Prep with Questions. Also give them several questions to answer and return to you BEFORE the meeting. In addition to the typical “what is it you’re looking to do” questions, ask a question or two that prompts them to think about what successfully completing the project or achieving the goal will mean for them—what will be next on their agenda. This will really help underscore the value of working with you to get it done. Also, having them complete the questions will increase their commitment to keeping the meeting and prevent no-shows.

3. Send a Reminder. If the appointment is more than a week away, consider sending an “I’m looking forward to talking with you” email that also reminds them about the homework and the questions a few days before.

And if the appointment IS more than a week away, consider mailing a Wow Package.

Exactly what to include in the package will depend on your business, but it should definitely include a letter highlighting the benefits of working with you and a sheet of testimonials from past clients.

But the real “wow” factor comes from adding a CD of a teleseminar, DVD of a demo, printed report or book on a relevant topic, photos, or whatever else may give them a taste of how much value you have to offer them. (Note: This does NOT include that boring old brochure you created about your products and services.) Again, the pieces themselves will help build enthusiasm, but they’ll be so impressed by the package itself that they’ll assume you’re this thorough and together with everything.

So start supercharging how you handle prospects so you can close the sale with ease and move on to making them your next happy client!