words that drive your clients insane

1. ''Sorry to disturb'' immediately gives your client the feeling that you are actually disturbing them and are interrupting their workflow — even if this isn't true. Just cease apologizing and interrupting. 

2. Abandon the habit of using disjunctive tags like ''isn't it'' or ''No, but'' because these serve as involuntary triggers of a negative response. 'Wouldn't you like to...?' — 'No, thanks', 'I don't think so, but...' — 'No, thanks', 'No, but if you'd like to...' — 'No, thanks'. 

3. Avoid talking a blue streak and trying to chat up the client.

This is one of the most common mistakes freshmen do, either trying to tell it all at once, or fearing that the client would simply hang up if they stop talking. 

4. Never ask a client with negative customer experience ''Why?''. For example: 'I don't need any intermediary services to sell my apartment.' — 'But why?'... — and the client would just keep harping on their reasoning and defending their standpoint. 

5. Give up using ready-made phrases and reading the script because this manner of speech is too obvious. Imagine yourself losing focus while reading — and the awkward silence that is bound to follow. It is always best to learn the text and retell it with your own words using the script merely for prompting purposes just not to miss anything important.

6. Never say the word ''forget''. "Forgot to call back", "forgot the number"... — all these contribute to the negative image of yourself, and the company as a whole. There is no point for the customer to further deal with the company that starts out from forgetting about them. 

7. Throw phrases like ''don't know'', ''not sure'', ''didn't get, ''no idea'' away from your lexicon. 
You are perceived as an expert in real estate, who is supposed to know everything, — otherwise, what's the point of dealing with you? Try to replace the phrases above with something neutral like ''Let me check it for you '', ''I'll check it out and get back to you''.

8. Do not get angry and lose your temper in case of rejection or inappropriate behaviour of the client. The clue here is to get your mind set right and accept it that there is always more rejection than willingness from cold calls. In order not to slide into pessimism from being recurrently rejected, use personal efficiency methods of shifting attention and keep focused on the calls (try listening to music, talking to colleagues, 10-15 min. coffee breaks, etc.).

9. Never yield the initiative to client. This will only help them elicit all the information they need from you and hang up. Try sticking in phrases like ''I will explain this a bit later'', ''We will surely get back to your question, but first tell me...''. 

10. Forget about saying ''Are you sure?'', ''You are wrong'', ''I would recommend you''. 
Lucky you are, if your client gets along with no offence... Never dare question your client's decisions because this is most offensive. Besides, you might not even have the slightest suspicion of how much expertise they have in the field. Whenever you want to make a suggestion, throw in something like ''Let's go through the key points once again'', ''Let's clarify the details''. Give recommendations and share your opinion only when asked. 

11. There is nothing more undermining your reputation of an expert than saying ''I understand what you mean''. As a rule, clients have a pretty vague image of what they want, and offering them not right the thing they expected after you had told them "I know what you mean" is bound to cause a huge disillusionment in your expertise. Try clarifications instead: ''You mean you want...?'', ''Does this mean...?'', ''Let's make sure there's no misunderstanding''. 

12. Avoid discussing other clients. Disclosing other customer's information in your conversation with clients makes them sure you would do the same in their regard. There are really few people who like it.

13. Abolish all sorts of vulgarity and slang. Even if a client indulges in these, it is totally unacceptable for a professional. There even exists a certain number of customers you can easily lose just because of using inappropriate language. Anyway, your manner of speech contributes a lot to the general image of your company as a whole.

14. Stop hammering ''I, me, my...''. Any customer only wants to hear things concerning them, not you. Keep away from mentioning yourself and your achievements.

15. Do not turn a phone conversation to a showcase. This does not prevent you from sticking in a small portion of your service promotion to the dialogue, but be extremely careful to deliver the information correctly and — most important — find out what your customer wants. Remember: your paramount goal is only to make an appointment. 

16. Abandon the monologue mode, for it is only the dialogue that is potentially productive. Keep your client involved in the conversation at any time — this will help you talk them into further cooperation. 

17. Always conceal your uncertainty and your reliance on client's decision. 
This is just as horrid as patronizing. Do not downgrade your expertise, speak with confidence, don't fuss around. 

18. Always smile. Forgetting to smile is no crime — meanwhile, this useful habit can dramatically increase your chances to break the ice and win your client's trust. 

19. Kick the habit of offering discounts without being asked. This is one of the most common mistake of freshmen caused by the desperate wish to sell at least something and close a deal. Unexpected discount only depreciates the offer, forcing the client to think that once given, it can take the price down even further. Save the discount for a rainy day and always present it as a huge final bonus. 

20. Do not mess up the price. For instance, never give your client a smaller amount first, say, $125,000, and then throw something like ''Sorry, it was $135,000''. This trick might hypothetically work the other way, making the client think the product is worth buying before the price goes back up. But when the client had already accepted a certain value for money, it would be extremely difficult to raise the price again. 

21. Abolish the phrase ''You must'' and ''You will have to''. 
Your clients seek solutions, assistance and advice. They are NOT obliged to do anything. Use "Let's try this..." instead.

22. Avoid admissions like ''No'', ''impossible'', ''cannot'', ''but'', ''no way''. All these justify you are unable to help your client. Therefore, your services are useless. Try replacing these with ''Let me suggest this...'', ''Let's try another option'', ''What if we try this...''.

Keeping your speech interjected with phrases above can seriously spoil your reputation as a professional. You'd better avoid them.



Back to Contents

APRO CRM is a SaaS cloud solution and is hosted by our servers. The CRM is flexible and can adjust to your business needs. You will be getting all the necessary assistance from your personal adviser while using the system