Do you feel like cold calls overwhelm you? Trust us – you’re not alone. Every cold call is different from the last one, and while that’s something that makes the whole experience intriguing and exciting, it’s also what makes it, at times, scary. However, cold calling services remain the backbone of most sales strategies today, which is why learning how to do them properly is useful. Mastering the art of the cold call means obtaining social and professional skills that will remain useful to you for a long time.
With that in mind, we’ll cover some useful cold-calling tips right here.
Why Does Cold Calling Matter?
For a sales newbie, cold calls are uncharted territory. However, they’re essential for nurturing leads and, eventually, closing a sale. Basically, you’re on a cold call when you call a potential lead to spark interest in a service or product. There’s just one catch; you’ve never interacted with this person before, and neither has anyone at your company or agency.
You’re calling them completely out of the blue, as a stranger – that’s why it’s called a “cold” call. And despite their initial wariness, you need to engage them enough to raise awareness about what you’re selling, pitch it successfully, and land a sale. If all of this sounds hard, it’s because it is. And it’s even harder to pull off on a consistent, everyday basis.
However, with e-commerce riding as high as ever, cold calling can be hugely lucrative in today’s remote world. Considering that, it pays to get better at cold calling.
Do Your Homework
Okay, so your lead is obviously not familiar with you. At the start of the conversation, they don’t know who you are, and they don’t know why you’re calling. Naturally, they’ve got their guard up and probably want to end the conversation as soon as possible. So, it would help if you established an atmosphere of familiarity and safety to keep their attention. That way, they’ll stay in the conversation longer than they initially planned to.
Since your prospect doesn’t know you, the only way to establish a rapport is to show you know them; tastefully, of course. No one wants to hear that a random stranger knows intimate details of their lives. However, you can improve your cold-calling numbers immensely by just doing more research beforehand.
If you learn all you can about the lead, you’ll know more about their motivations – and how to approach them with a unique value proposition with a better chance of leading to a sale than a generic script. The sales conversation works better when you’ve got a personalized approach and a tailored message for the lead.
When approaching key decision makers in B2B leads, go through their company website, LinkedIn, and other social media pages. Soon enough, you’ll have a rough idea of what these people like and how you can make them more comfortable during the cold call.
Write A Quick Outline
We’ve already mentioned that generic cold-calling scripts rarely work. However, that doesn’t mean you should go into the call as casually as you’d start a random private conversation. You still need a plan – so write up a short outline of what you want to say in general. Put it on your phone, a browser tab, or another easy-to-see place to quickly reference it if necessary.
This outline should help you understand some of the messaging basics, like who you are, why you’re calling, and how you want to help your target audience. Of course, this won’t be a detailed script you’ll memorize or read verbatim; the idea is to have a guide that stops you from making awkward pauses, sounding less confident, and losing your train of thought.
And if you think you couldn’t forget such basic stuff, think again; even the most professional salespeople lose their footing for a moment or two after a hundred cold calls. An outline will help you get back on track quickly and maintain your momentum.
Write An Opening Beforehand
There’s no second chance at a first impression – and when we’re talking about a cold call, that’s even more true. The person on the other side of the line can’t see you, so your first sentence is the only impression they get of you at the start. And that sentence can make or break your entire cold-calling strategy. So, make sure you’ve got a few killer openings that separate you from countless other callers in the first ten seconds.
Start by introducing yourself – but once you do, immediately turn your focus on the lead. Quickly mention something that makes the call more personal and human. Also, if you’ve got any useful stats and research, mention one of them in the beginning. If your lead loses interest right away, you’re done; they’re only looking for a way to politely end the conversation.