Why Stick-to-the-Script Syndrome Could Kill Your Business

Back in March, when the pandemic was a fresh, new misadventure for all of us, I wrote this email asking why the local traffic reporter needed to do her thing every morning — even though no one was driving to work.  

I concluded that she and her station kept doing their thing because that’s what they do. No deviation. No adjustment to respond to shifting customer needs.  

(Sigh!) 

I told that story because Stick-to-the-Script Syndrome afflicts so many people and damages so many businesses. 

Case in point:   

I got a GREAT email the other day from Ted Prodromou — my favorite LinkedIn marketing expert and an all-around good guy — who bumped into one of those no-deviation, no adjustment sales people recently.  

Ted’s email tells the story. With his permission, I share the email now: 

Subject Line: Take My Money Please

Hey Tom, 

The other day a sales rep invited me to connect on LinkedIn. 

I took a look at her profile and I was interested in their SaaS product. 

I accepted her invitation to connect and she replied: 

“Appreciate you connecting with me! Would love to learn more about your business and if you have time to chat?” 

I replied “I’d like to learn more about your product. Here’s a link to my calendar so we can set up a short chat” 

She replied “Absolutely Ted. I was wondering if we could continue chatting on LinkedIn first! Would like to hear more about what you do!” 

After reviewing their website I’m almost ready to sign up for the SaaS product but she wants to continue chatting through LinkedIn messages. 

A 5 minute conversation would easily turn me into their latest customer. 
But she wants to continue chatting on LinkedIn. She didn’t send me a link to a demo.

She didn’t provide any additional information in the LinkedIn chat. 

She wants to continue chatting with me on LinkedIn while I’m standing in front of her waving my credit card. 

I’m saying “Take my money please!” but she wants continue our “get to know each other” chat on LinkedIn. 

Should I continue chatting with her or walk away? 

I decided to walk away and she lost a very easy sale. 

Ted

Ohhh. That poor sales rep.  She has her routine… 

…all mapped out… 

…tried and true (she thought)… 

…and nothing — and I mean nothing — was going to knock her off course… 

…Not even a hungry buyer asking for a demo.  

So many lessons here.  

Focus on these two:  

1. Learn how to read buying signals (countless great resources on this topic).

2. Your routine is a framework, not a hard-and-fast, stick-to-it or die script. You have to adjust with the circumstances. You have to meet prospects where they are. If you can’t do that, prospects (as in prospective buyers who have their credit card ready) will tune out and move on.

p.s. If you believe LinkedIn can help you grow your business, but you’re struggling to make it work, I HIGHLY recommend that you check out what Ted has to offer.

See TedProdromou.com and linkedin.com/in/tedprodromou

He has literally written THE book: “Ultimate Guide to LinkedIn for Business” (and he wrote one about Twitter, too). If you’re struggling to get traction on LinkedIn, Ted can help. He is a 20+ year business coach, social media strategist and online lead generation expert.