MoneyWatch

How to Eliminate "Salesman Voice".

By Geoffrey James

Updated on: January 29, 2008 / 7:33 AM EST / MoneyWatch

Here's a quick tip that can really increase your ability to move a sale forward, especially if you're new to selling.

Many jobs have a characteristic "voice" -- a way of speaking (tonality, rhythm, vocabulary, tempo) that identifies the speaker as a member of that profession. Some obvious examples are:

"Doctor voice." Slightly clipped sentences, which convey authority, sympathy and an undertone of "hurry up, I'm a busy man."
"Preacher voice." Each sentence starts slowly, gets gradually faster and higher pitched until at the very end it pitches down.
"Newscaster voice." A slightly nasal tone, with frequent pauses, especially when... signing off...live...from wherever.
"Radio voice." Everything spoken with exaggerated energy, with words are stretched out as long as possible. Think disc jockey.

There's also a "salesman" voice. It's a bit more difficult to describe, but it's breezy, filled with false excitement, and sounds slightly staged, as if the speaker has rehearsed a script. (Which is sometimes the case, of course.) Every sales pro depicted on television has "salesman voice," because it's a way for an actor to sound like the person they're portraying.

Many real-life sales pros unconsciously talk in "salesman voice" because they've been subliminally cued by years of television and by listening to other sales pros who have it. There's no shame in having it, but it's not helping you sell. On the contrary, it's making selling more difficult. Here's why.

Career-specific "voices" are irritating to those who must listen to them. That's why the top practitioners of every profession don't have them and don't use them. For example, you almost never hear "newscaster voice" on the major networks. It's always the mid-market and small-market TV reporters who feel the need to use the voice. The great news reporters sound like normal people.

Same thing with "preacher voice." The most effective preachers have approaches similar to professional public speakers and avoid burlesque "churchy" tonalities. Similarly, the most successful radio personalities (think Howard Stern or Delilah) don't sound like they're on the radio.

If you've got "salesman voice" -- even the smallest tinge of it -- you're annoying your customers. What's more, every time you sound "like a salesman," you're communicating that you're only there to sell. Your credibility flies out the window.

What to do? Simple. Set up a tape recorder by your phone and record your voice when you're cold calling. (Don't record the customer, just your own voice.) Play the recording back after you've gotten home for the day. If you've got "salesman voice," you'll hear it immediately -- because you've been hearing that "voice" all your life from other sales pros, fictional and real.

Fixing "salesman voice" is simple. When you're making cold calls, visualize the recipient as a potential friend rather than as a potential customer. Try to talk in your natural voice. Keep recording yourself and listening to the results each evening. Over time, you'll notice that your tendency to slip into "salesman voice" gradually vanishes.

Trust me, if you rid yourself of all traces of "salesman voice," you'll find it far easier to move each sale forward.