Why Everyone Dislikes Cold Calling And Why That Is Beneficial For You
Despite what others would have you believe, cold calling is not dead. We know the best ways to get in touch with people on this list.
In this example, we will see how a company has been rewarded for rewarding their employees.
?Hello Ms. XYZ. This is so and so from company Y. We are working on solutions to help streamline delivery processes in the business industry. Would you like to hear more about it??
When a salesperson hears these words from the other side of the call, they know that this is going to be an uphill battle.
Why?
Because cold calling sucks.
I understand that most people don’t like to cold call. I was the same way when I first started out.
One exception to this is the salespeople who are using it for their own success, which can be measured in millions of dollars.
For some reason, cold calling techniques are still effective in generating more sales. No one likes being ambushed and no one wants to be caught off guard by a call asking for an unexpected conversation that they were unprepared for. The only downside is that people often see it as invasion of privacy.
This article will talk about the benefits of cold calling, as well as provide cold calling tips on how to use it effectively.
Need Help Automating Your Sales Prospecting Process?
LeadFuze gives you all the data you need to find ideal leads, including full contact information.
Go through a variety of filters to zero in on the leads you want to reach. This is crazy specific, but you could find all the people that match the following:Ā
- A company in the Financial Services or Banking industry
- Who have more than 10 employees
- That spend money on Adwords
- Who use Hubspot
- Who currently have job openings for marketing help
- With the role of HR Manager
- That has only been in this role for less than 1 year
How Is Cold Calling Defined?
Cold calling is when salespeople call potential customers without any previous contact. Cold-calling technique refers to the solicitation of a prospect through different channels, typically telephone or in person.
Over the years, cold calling has changed from a form of giving or reading sales pitches to an increasingly target-driven and data driven way of selling. Click To Tweet
Salespeople will target prospects who they feel confident in to help them reach their goals.
It is difficult to give a sales pitch if the person has never heard of you or your products.
Actually, cold calling is not illegal.
But in some countries, regulations and laws limit how salespeople can contact potential customers.
Cold calling is a necessary part of the sales process. It has always been and will continue to be an important tool in any company’s arsenal.
The first thing I want to talk about is how effective B2B sales can be. The second thing I want to mention are the myths that still surround cold calling even though they’re false.
9 Effective Cold Calling Techniques and Tips
- Don?t be afraid to get rejected, use it as an opportunity.
- I learned the hard way that an immediate sales focus is not enough.
- Technology is the answer to boring, repetitive tasks.
- Don?t waste your time and the other person’s.
- When you’re presenting to an audience, be yourself and not a script-reading robot.
- Set a schedule that works for you.
- You need to know what you want and have a plan of action.
- When you call someone, take the time to leave a voicemail. Make sure it is concise and includes what they need from you.
- Seek to maintain high quality while increasing quantity.
With all the negativity surrounding cold calling, it can be hard to see how these calls are worth your time. But this is exactly why you should consider them.
If you master the art and science of cold calling, you can become the highest paid sales rep at your company. Like all other forms of prospecting, bad cold callers are easy to spot. So if you?re really good, you will stand out in stark contrast to your competitors. And that will make you successful.
Cold calling is an underutilized technique for closing more business, helping people and writing your own paycheck. Here are cold calling techniques that really work and the foundations you need to be successful.
1. Accept Rejection (Do Not Flee From It).
No one can be successful 100% of the time. Rejection is a necessary part of sales, no matter if you are prospecting or closing.
How to get over your fear of rejection:
One actionable takeaway is to have a “funniest rejection” Slack channel where team members can share their worst rejections. The person with the best one wins.
When someone turns you down, make sure to ask them why they are not interested. This will give you valuable information about the person and what might be holding them back from buying your product.
Try something like this:
?I appreciate your honesty. The hardest thing about my job is not knowing whether we can help someone. For my own edification, do you mind telling me why you don?t think we can help you??
Don?t waste your time trying to sell something here, just use this opportunity as a learning experience.
Actionable Takeaway #3: Ask a colleague to give you their most severe rejection. When they do, remind yourself that it is better than your own.
If you are constantly getting turned down, try reading testimonials from your happy clients. They will remind you of why what you do is important and how lucky they feel to work with a company like yours.
It is important to remember that you are there for the people and not just for your paycheck.
2. Prioritize Immediate Learning Over Immediate Sales.
One of the effective marketing cold calling tips is to set a goal for each call. This could be as simple as trying to remember something from the conversation or asking an insightful question.
Here’s a quick and dirty guide on how to be successful in cold calling sales:
One way to start with sales scripts is by using the same one every time and not changing it until you have enough data.
The second actionable takeaway is to figure out where you are struggling in the script. If your prospects or customers shut down more than 50% of the time, it’s worth figuring out why and trying something new.
Rewrite that section of your script until you stop getting rejected.
Practice the script until you can get through it on more than half of your conversations.
For an effective sales call, one of the many cold calling strategies paying attention to the answers prospects give when you ask them open-ended questions.
The better your question is, the more they will talk. Click To Tweet
Journaling is a great way to stay on top of what you?ve learned, and keep track of the good that came from your failures.
If you are not getting the results that you want, talk to your manager about what is happening. You may find out some valuable information on how other people in similar positions have succeeded.
If you expect to be a good salesperson and continue learning, your journey will go much smoother than the average person.
3. Utilize Technology to Automate Difficult Tasks.
There are so many tools available to the modern salesperson that you should never have to do another tedious, inefficient activity again.
In my experience, here are some of the best tools for salespeople:
ConnectAndSell is a company that I have used to avoid the worst parts of cold calling. Their service automatically dials, navigates phone trees and other difficult tasks for me.
The Outreach team has always been in touch with the needs of sales teams and continues to improve their product. It is useful for many things, including full sequence management (phone, email, SMS).
DiscoverOrg is a company that provides data on potential and current customers, as well as buying triggers. It’s the gold standard for companies looking to expand their customer base.
Nextiva is a great choice for VoIP because it’s easy to set up, lightweight and reliable.
If you are using Salesforce CRM, there is a good chance that your sales team has access to many productivity tools.
If you are using a different CRM, never fear. There is usually an option for standalone use of many products and there’s also Zapier which connects disparate systems.
The most common excuses of the lazy seller are that they do not want to be responsible for choosing which tools their company will use and that they don?t have a budget.
4. Avoid throwing away anyone’s time, including your own.
I am always trying to find the most efficient way of calling people, which is why I have created a database that makes it easier for me when deciding who to call.
If you’re not getting the results that you want, be sure to only contact companies and contacts who are likely to work with your business. This will help reduce rejection.
There are a few things to look for when considering any company:
- Industry
- Geography
- Related technologies
- Role/title
- Salespeople need to use specific tools in order to perform their job.
- Who they report to
- Who reports to them
Calling someone who doesn’t fit your ideal criteria is like stealing their time. Calling people that can benefit from what you are selling, however, will only help them improve the quality of life and business.
5. Follow Your Cold Call Script As If You’re An Actor, NOT As If You’re A Damn Robot.
When I first started cold calling, I just assumed that the only way to be successful was by getting into a zone. However, it turns out acting is not all you need.
Actors have to rely on scripts for most of their work, but they still manage to sound human and not like robots.
It’s easy to assume that a script will work on potential customers, but it can’t be just read off. They’re full of real human emotion!
Cold calling is one of the most difficult things to do in sales, but if you’re willing to put in a lot of work and practice your script, it can be easy. Click To Tweet
How to Make the Best Cold Calling Scripts (With Examples)
To be successful in sales, you need to know how to introduce yourself and what your product is. If you can tell someone about who they are and why their life will change for the better if they buy from you, then it won’t matter so much when things go off script.
?Hi, this is Rex with Company XYZ. I wanted to see if what we do to help sales reps gain insights from historical win/loss data can benefit your team. Did I catch you with two minutes??
When asking questions, you have to be prepared for the other person’s answer and not just wait for your turn to talk again.
?Once your sales team closes a deal, how are they leveraging that success to source and close the next deal??
When you?re first learning how to make cold calls work, it will be difficult for you to come up with responses on the fly. To help in this process, write out your most common objections and their corresponding answers word-for-word.
Example Objection:
?We?re really more focused on top of funnel right now. Our closers are great. So we?re good for now, thanks.?
Example Response:
That’s actually one place where win/loss analysis can do the most for your team. Imagine having an analysis of all opening pitches based on how much revenue they brought in. Your entire team could be optimizing their call and email messaging to fill their funnel 2-5X faster.?
Finally, practice the skill until you are well-versed in it.
The first time I tried this, it was awkward because the person would always ask questions. However, as soon as they had to imagine what a customer might say or do in response to my pitch and only heard their voice through headphones on Skype- all of those fears went away.
Slowly increase the level of resistance that your assistant gives you in their follow-through.
You can get incredible results by doing this one thing.
Start by getting agreement on the next step. There are no objections at this point.
Next, we need to identify one of the most common objections and come up with a quick response.
Eventually, you should get used to handling objections like “I’m not interested” and end of call questions such as “Just send me an email.”
6. Establish a Cold Calling Schedule That Is Effective
If you call prospects at set times each day, then they know when to expect your call. If not, it will be hard for them to prepare or schedule meetings with other potential clients because there is no way of knowing what time the salesperson might show up.
When prospecting, knowing when to call and how often is important because it can help you avoid wasting time on prospects who are less likely to answer the phone or speak with you.
Actionable Takeaway #1: Analyze your prospects and see when they are most likely to answer the phone. Spend more time on those days calling them.
One way to increase your odds of getting a call back is by being available during the time that prospects are most likely to answer.
One of the things that InsideSales has found is to make your first call on a Wednesday or Thursday. Other people are thinking about making their first call at this time, so you need to find what works best for you.
The takeaway is to use time management techniques. The offensive chunk of the day should be used for sales and marketing, while defensive chunks are reserved for meetings or other tasks that can’t be avoided.
The best time to call a prospect is not at the beginning of their work day, but rather during lunch or near quitting time. If you can’t get through then, try calling them before they go home for the night.
Make sure you find the best time of day to call prospects and use other times for things like writing, planning, or script work.
7. Make the Appropriate Request and Establish Proper Next Steps.
The art of the cold call is not to close a deal right away. It’s about gauging interest and setting clear next steps so that both parties are on board with what needs to happen.
Prospects don?t want to be pushed through your sales process. Instead, you should help them with their buying process.
I used to try and keep my prospects on the hook by never giving them an opportunity for input. I now give them opportunities early in the process so that they can provide feedback and take ownership of their future.
Gong.io found that sellers with the highest deal velocity spent more time discussing next steps, which is often a way to get customers on board for additional purchases.
8. Develop the Ability to Leave Effective Voicemails.
When I began to know what is cold calling, it turned out that 90% of the time you were greeted with a voicemail.
Leaving a voicemail is an important part of your sales process, but it’s not as simple as just leaving one. You need to know how to leave an effective message that will grab the prospect’s attention and make them want more.
The goal of the voicemail is not to sell, but rather to capture their interest enough so that they call you back. The first step in this process is deciding on a strategy.
How to Leave an Effective Voicemail Message That Captures Your Prospect’s Attention
The first step is to identify what you want your prospect to know after they hear your message. Do you want them to feel comfortable recommending or hiring someone else, do you need help solving a problem, or would it be enough for the person just recognize who I am?
If you just focus on one message, then your voicemail will be concise and to the point. This helps when leaving a second or third (or fourth!) message because it can help you avoid running out of things to say.
The next step is to write your scripts. You should have a few ready that can communicate different messages, such as why the customer needs this product or how it benefits them.
For example, you may want scripts that leave the following impressions:
- I am someone who is well-known and trusted by your friends.
- I understand the difficulties you are experiencing, and I have a solution for them.
- The salesperson’s pitch was compelling and he had a strong belief in what he was selling.
- “I need to talk with you about something urgent.”
Step #3: Now that you have your plan, it’s time to execute. Here are some important points for consideration:
- DO keep it under 20 seconds.
- The next time you are on the phone with a potential customer, speak in an upbeat and friendly tone.
- DO insert some urgency.
- It is important to remember that when you are speaking with your prospect, be sure to use their name and yours.
- DO NOT give up on a voicemail because it is one of the most efficient ways to get in touch with people.
- DO NOT sound desperate by mentioning a deal, special offer or discount.
The next step is to keep track of which voicemails are the most effective. Track your success and continue tweaking them for even better results.
9. Live at the Crossroads of Quality and Quantity
To summarize, I found out how to effectively cold call leads if you do it in the following ways (consider this as cold calling sales tips) :
- One way to make rejection a less scary experience is by turning it into something more lighthearted.
- Practice is essential for all kinds of things. Whether it’s practicing the piano or improving your skills in a sport, practice makes perfect.
- Asking good questions and having thoughtful rebuttals can be very effective.
- Spend your time wisely by not calling prospects who you know will never buy from you.
- You should never improvise before you are prepared.
- Spend time with tasks that cannot be eliminated or automated.
When you have the right mindset, tools and techniques, then success is waiting for you at that intersection of Quality and Quantity. Click To Tweet
Cold Calling Prospects is NOT a Waste of Time! Put an End to So-Called “Experts”
We need to stop listening to the so-called “experts” who claim that prospecting is a waste of time. These are probably the same people who cold call without following these tips.
The following are the myths of cold calling that have been debunked by us.
6 Myths About Cold Calling Exposed
- Cold calling is dead.
- Cold calling is not an effective way to sell.
- When it comes to cold calling, there is no escaping the call.
- Cold calling is a difficult, and sometimes offensive method of prospecting.
- The constant need to use a phone and create contacts can make salespeople seem robotic.
- Cold calling is a numbers game, and it does not matter how good you are at selling because the person on the other end of your call will most likely reject.
1) Cold calling has been declared extinct by “experts” and so-called “Gurus.”
Cold calling has been getting a lot of negative press lately. It’s tough to stay faithful, especially when leaders in emerging industries have called for an end to cold calls ? social sellers and marketers are among them.
I will say that cold calling is not dead.
2) It’s much easier to claim that something does not work than to figure out how to do it properly.
If you have attempted cold calling a few times and not found success, it is easy to join the haters. It takes time and effort for any sales skill to be mastered.
3) Numerous salespeople are being forced to make cold calls, which is driving them insane.
Calling strangers to sell them things is not always fun. It can be really difficult when your boss demands that you make 50 calls a day.
4) We’ve started compensating excessively for the “buyer’s journey.”
The way I see it, we need to sell how customers want to buy. But because this applies equally across the process, there is a fear of interrupting people in order for them to make decisions.
5)Nobody wishes to be a machine.
Cold callers are used to scripts, but most people don?t know how to use them in a natural way. They either sound like robots or they have no idea what is going on and say anything that comes into their head- which can lead to disaster.
6) Fast food taught us that quantity and quality are mutually exclusive.
After all, it’s not like they were going into McDonald’s expecting gourmet food or anything – so why should cold calling have been any different?
Need Help Automating Your Sales Prospecting Process?
LeadFuze gives you all the data you need to find ideal leads, including full contact information.
Go through a variety of filters to zero in on the leads you want to reach. This is crazy specific, but you could find all the people that match the following:Ā
- A company in the Financial Services or Banking industry
- Who have more than 10 employees
- That spend money on Adwords
- Who use Hubspot
- Who currently have job openings for marketing help
- With the role of HR Manager
- That has only been in this role for less than 1 year
Want to help contribute to future articles? Have data-backed and tactical advice to share? Iād love to hear from you!
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