The prospect said, “Call me at 10 a.m.” Ever call a telephone appointment on time but get his voice mail instead? Ever call a customer at the appointed time and she has to be “chased down” because she’s in a meeting?

Sure you have.

What if there was a way to get 100 percent of the people to meet with you on the phone 100 percent of the time, on time? There is. The solution to no-show telephone appointments is one of the best-kept secrets in sales. And it’s a solution I have been using for more than three years.

The solution? An on-demand, toll-free conference line.

Here’s how it works: I use InterCall (www.intercall.com), a third-party conference call provider. That company supplies me with a private, toll-free conference call line and a personal identification number. One of my dynamic staff members or I serve as the moderator and set up the call by dialing in. At the appointment time, the customer or prospect dials our conference line number and enters our code on their telephone keypad. With a simple keypad command, I have the option to record the conversation. Yes, all parties are notified that the call is being recorded. Over the last three years, only one customer declined to be recorded.

But here comes the secret: Instead of passively waiting for my call, the customer has to take action. My customer has to dial into the conference line. The customer dials in, uses the PIN, and presto, everyone is on the line at the same time.

You will no longer be blown off because the prospect or customer is in a meeting. If the prospect agrees to dial in at a specified time, odds are the prospect is gonna make the call. When scheduling a call with a conference line, the customer is forced to write down the conference line number and the PIN. It’s a firm appointment, not just an oral agreement. Conference calls can take place anywhere; no need to be someplace specific. And, my particular service allows up to 125 people to be “present” during a call.

Here’s the cool part: It works!

The simplicity of dialing in, or even listening to a recorded call, means everyone in the group or in the company receives the same message and gets the same information. This eliminates two things: whisper-down-the-lane communication and errors.

Recording the call ensures that every detail is documented and every promise can be kept. Recording also eliminates misunderstanding. We record every conference call and often transcribe the notes for internal use. Sometimes we surprise our customers by sending them a recap outline and an action-item list, which is guaranteed to be 100 percent accurate.

One other important note about recording: If you know the details are being recorded, your mind is free to see the big picture and generate ideas.

I use the conference line strategy many different ways:

1. To make an initial sales call that’s information intensive.

2. To make a sales presentation. In some cases, your customer can follow along with slides that you send before the call. Or, InterCall gives me the option of sharing the slide presentation over the Internet.

3. To solidify ideas or actions with key people. Whenever I give a speech or do a training program, I prepare by talking to several people in several locations to get the information I need. During this call, I get the objectives of what the senior managers expect the speech or training program to contain, and what they expect from me. All of them can dial in at a pre-appointed time and not only get the same information, but everyone can have input.

4. To make strategic follow-up calls. Too often salespeople don’t make a firm appointment to follow up on the sales call before they leave a customer. When this occurs, it means a salesperson has to chase after the customer. All follow-up calls should be solidified BEFORE you leave a sales call.

5. To hold virtual meetings. People are often scattered across the country and unable to be in the actual meeting room. Set a conference call time and send everyone an e-mail.

6. To close a sale. All decision makers can be on the call no matter where they are located. Your job is to get a commitment.

Since I started to use the conference call line, our batting average for customer and prospect connection has gone from .333 to 1.000. I love it. The customers love it. And everything is documented.

Want some more vital reasons to get a conference line and make more sales? Go to www.gitomer.com, register if you’re a first-time user, and enter the word CONFERENCE in the GitBit box.

Jeffrey Gitomer can be reached by phone at (704) 333-1112 or by e-mail at salesman@gitomer.com.