Page 167 - Marky Stein - Fearless Career Change_ The Fast Track to Success in a New Field (2004)

The Accelerated Job Search

The purpose of the pitch (for both a warm and a cold call) is
to accomplish the following:

• Grab the listener’s attention.
• Impress him or her with one or more of your qualifications.
• Target your statement to those qualifications you think the
employer values most.
• If possible, mention a relevant fact you have learned to prove
that you have researched the company.
• Ask for an interview. (An interview is any face-to-face contact
with the employer.)

Handling Screening-Out Questions and Objections
It’s rather unlikely that the decision maker is going to answer the
phone initially. It’s more likely that you’ll get a receptionist, super-
visor, or executive assistant whose job it is to screen out unwanted
calls. In large companies there may even be more than one of these
assistants.
The script in the section “Making the Phone Call” will show
you exactly what those assistants are trained to say—and you may
be pleasantly surprised that the dialogue shows you exactly how to
counter their screening efforts and get past them to the hiring
manager.
You’ll also notice that it’s unlikely (though not at all impossi-
ble) that the decision maker will agree to a meeting the first time
you ask. The sample phone script shows you exactly what we’ve
found to be the typical doubts (we call them objections) that the
employer may have.
Again, it may surprise you when you actually start making calls
that, indeed, these are exactly the objections you encounter.
Fortunately, you’ll be prepared. Before you make a call, be careful
that you are comfortable with your pitch and know the tactics for
getting past the assistants. Also, learn to anticipate the objections the
employer will raise and become competent at dealing with them.

Making the Phone Call
When three business days have passed since you sent your letter to
the decision maker, it’s time for you to give him or her a phone

149