When training a blood bank Conversational Marketing™ Expert (CME) we focus more on the compassion side of their personality. One of the main things we have to do is allow a new CME to see that we do truly care about the person on the other end of the line. We want to listen to what the donor is saying and show that we understand where they are coming from, as well as be able to use our listening skills to do the best we can to strengthen relationships with the donors and the blood center. During training, we listen to veteran Conversational Marketing™ Experts calls to show the new CME these items in action.
When talking to blood donors, the best thing a Conversational Marketing™ Expert can do is create a connection with the donor. This allows them to know that we too are human and that connection you create will go a long way during the phone call. We are listening for this, as well, when monitoring veterans’ calls.
In training, we strive to teach each new CME the things they need to be a conversational. Those things include, but are not limited to, showing their compassionate side to the donor, using solid listening skills, and building off what the donor says to create a connection and build a relationship. We also show them how the blood centers work to get the word out that donations are needed.
In training, we also spend a lot of time talking to CMEs about the different programs blood centers offer and the different things blood donors receive from spending that little amount of time donating blood. This includes things like donor loyalty points, knowledge of saving a person’s life, and a mini-physical to ensure they are in good health, etc. And we spend time training them on how this information can be used in their calls to help schedule appointments.
Another thing we strive to teach new CMEs is that their conversation isn’t limited to what they read on the screens; we are more than that. In order to strengthen any relationship, we have to spend time focusing on the donor and what the donor has told us. The best calls they will make are going to be the ones in which they really spend time listening to and acknowledging the donor. We spend a lot of time role-playing, both one-on-one and in a group setting. The type of role-playing we do allows the new CMEs to get a feel for the different ways a call may go, and how to handle the call in the best possible way.
The best thing we can do is spend time teaching each new CME how to personalize the call and to make sure we as trainers prepared them for the job as best we could. There you have it – an inside look at what we do in CME training.