“Saw you're in Dallas. How's the weather?”🙄
While it’s polite to ease into most dialogues, sales conversations are typically time-sensitive.
You have a finite amount of time to capture a prospect’s interest & earn a next step.
Don’t waste sales conversation starters on generalities like “how about that economy?”
Here are 4 more personalized & impactful ways to kick things off:
Better Sales Conversation Starters
1. Found Something Naturally In Common
It's not fake, and you actually care about it.
"Hey! before we get rolling, I have to say, saw your post about the World Cup. What a freaking disappointment. You back anyone besides the US?"
2. Found Something Unique
You found their content, read it, and have valuable takeaways. Perfect personalization.
"I was doing some research and stumbled across your newsletter. Found a few gems within (edition #/title). Going to deploy your post-meeting framework. Hopefully, they work on you haha"
3. Found Something Relevant To The Sell
Research showed relevant areas where you may be able to drive immediate impact.
"Super excited about this conversation because I noticed that in the past 2 months, you've launched 5 partnerships. Learning about that will be really helpful."
4. Just Couldn't Find Anything
That's okay. Not everyone is public about their passions, work, and life.
Don't fake rapport. Just roll right into the meeting.
"Hey (Name), really appreciate you showing up today. I'm gonna skip the part where I ask about the weather if you don't mind, and I would love to learn what caught your interest? (talk about this for a bit). Great, here's a flexible agenda (1 slide), I'm gonna add what you mentioned so I don't forget".
Want to improve your conversation starters & talk tracks? Try Pickle for free!
Next article: Are you talking too much? Too little? (Talk-Listen Ratio Guide)