I'll hang my hat on this one sales tactic

I'm not a sales guru. But I have had my own business... a couple of them. I've been a corporate sales manager. If I could summarize all of my experience in to only ONE tactic, I'd hang my hat on this one.

When I was getting started in the small business ownership life, I was HUNGRY (for work). I started from absolutely nothing. I didn't purchase a business. I didn't get a franchise. I literally built from the ground up.
I was excited to get every single phone call. 

As my journey progressed, I got busy. My phone was ringing a lot more frequently. The challenge was that I was in the field doing the work. It was easy to keep focused on the job, and not the future. I started living the roller coaster business. Slow week, busy week. Slow week, busy week. You get the picture. I'm sure you've been there on some level. 

In the restoration industry, we have to respond in the middle of the night. On a weekend. Hell... many of us have answered calls on important family holidays. The industry is about responding to emergency situations. If we don't respond. We don't make money. We don't even get the opportunity to make $$.

At its core, marketing is all about increasing odds. The more the company name is out in front of the public, the more likely your company will be called when advertised answer is needed to the audiences question or need. 

At its core, sales is about closing the deal when the phone rings. If you aren't answering the phone, you have 0.00 chance to close the deal. Your chances of closing deals are exponentially increased just by answering the phone. 

I get it. There is a ton of spam these days. Thankfully they can be identified within 5-10 seconds of answering. Its frustrating, but lets face it... at 10 seconds per call (on the high side) you might "waste" 1-2 minutes of your day? Can we agree that 1-2 minutes of "wasted" effort could actually turn into a few thousand dollars in the event that you don't mischaracterize a spam caller?

I lived the roller coaster business owner life for a while because I would put all my effort into sales when job count was down, then when job count went up, my effort went into production mode. I didn't create systems that would help both run simultaneously, so that I had steady work coming in, while consistently focusing on production.  

When it finally dawned on my peabrain... this is where my operations background paid off. I hired someone to help with the operations so that they could perform the work while I focused on the future. Once I was confident in my tech, I started focusing on automation. 

I asked myself, where can I get a computer to fill in the gaps of my weaknesses, or challenges? I automated as much as I could.... and I was still missing things, so I got someone who specialized in the redundant tasks that my personality despised. I delegated those tasks to that person. They were GOOD at them. They enjoyed those things! My admin managed the automation, and the office tasks, my field techs managed the work in the field, and I got to do what I loved, and that was build my business on cups of coffee. I loved getting to know other business leaders in my area and partnering with them to build our businesses together. 

And when the phone rang. If I was busy, my assistant Mike had all the tools to handle the call when it came in. 

You must answer the phone. 
Answer more calls, and watch your sales increase... I guarantee it!