As consumers, most of us hate receiving a cold call from a sales team. Who has time to talk to some random person about buying something you didn’t even want? Yet the telemarketing calls continue.
Why do they keep calling? The answer is simple. Cold calling works. Telemarketing is a highly effective sales tool, but there are still tricks and tips for how to cold call successfully.
Best Cold Calling Tips and Techniques
Sales teams tend to dread making cold calls, so how can a sales manager better equip their reps to make more effective sales calls to cold prospects? Fortunately, there are plenty of cold-calling techniques that really work. Check out the following 15 best cold-calling tips to boost your conversions:
Conduct Pre-call Research
Cold calling involves hard data. To effectively communicate your sales pitch, you have to have some understanding of the prospect on the phone. Don’t expect to find success calling random numbers and speaking to whoever happens to answer the phone. Cold calling must be done strategically. Who is on the other end of the line, and what makes them a target customer?
Write a Cold Calling Script
Unsuccessful cold calls often lack both structure and direction, which can be challenging to achieve without a well-crafted cold call script. Sales representatives who develop cold calling scripts for their pitches can enhance conversion rates by incorporating every essential element of a successful cold call into their telemarketing strategies.
Schedule Best Calling Times
What is the optimal time for cold calling? Research indicates that cold calls tend to be more effective on certain days and at specific times. Cold callers are more likely to secure an appointment or close a sale on Wednesdays or Thursdays, according to InsideSales.com. Additionally, studies suggest that the best time for a cold caller to connect with a prospect is between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m. or 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.—definitely not first thing on a Monday morning!
Test Opening Lines
A prospect will decide whether or not the call is worthwhile within just a few seconds, so the cold calling opening line can make or break the sales pitch. Successful sales professionals will write and practice a variety of opening lines, then take note of which are most successful during their cold calls. Remember, while you want to capture your lead’s attention, initially stating the purpose of the call increases conversion rates.
Aim for Longer Cold Calls
Short cold calls usually are not successful cold calls. In fact, cold calls resulting in a sale or an appointment generally last about twice as long as their counterparts, but how many sales reps create cold calling scripts of that length? When crafting a cold calling script, be sure to plan for the entire structure of the call, including a hook, touching prospects’ pain points, a value proposition, and a call to action. Don’t forget to prepare ways to overcome a variety of sales objections.
Practice Your Sales Technique
Don’t assume that you can develop an effective sales script and instantly use it for successful cold calls. It’s essential to sound confident right from the first ring to impress potential buyers. Sales, like any other skill, requires practice to master. Before making your calls, practice your cold calling technique and prepare for various responses from prospects. After your calls, evaluate which aspects of your selling process worked well and make adjustments to your approach.
Use Your Best Closing Line
Remember, many sales are closed sometime after the first cold calling post. Therefore, your closing line can be just as important to your success rate as your opening line. Create and practice your best closing line, and be sure you leave your prospects wondering why they didn’t already close the deal with you. The lead will remember your pitch and be waiting for your next call.
Schedule a Follow-up
The follow-up call is a crucial part of the sales process and an essential component of cold calling. In fact, only about 2% of sales occur during the initial cold call. This means that without follow-up calls or appointments, 98% of potential deals could be lost. Be ready to leave professional and courteous voicemails for prospects, and make sure to schedule callbacks at times when they are available.
Keep It Professional
Understanding your target customers and communicating with them appropriately is crucial. Are you contacting consumers or involved in B2B cold calling? Are you addressing an executive-level decision-maker? Ensure that your cold calling script and conversation align with the necessary level of professionalism. Although some small talk can be suitable, a professional telemarketer will quickly redirect the cold call back to its main objective.
State Your Full Name
Seems like this should go without saying, but successful sales reps making cold calls provide their full names as well as the name of their company at the beginning of the call. It sets a professional tone for the sales call and allows even new salespeople to maintain control of the call from the start. Callers who use their full name command respect. If the prospect has to ask for this information, the telemarketer has surrendered the conversation.
Include an Enticing Value Proposition
At the heart of every cold call is the value proposition. What does the sales rep have to offer the prospect, and how will it benefit their life or business? While it’s important to capture prospects’ attention and touch on their pain point, the cold call will not result in a follow-up if the caller doesn’t offer value of interest.
Master Your Tone
While a cold calling script is important, it’s not always what you say but how you say it that matters when developing sales skills. Sales reps who sound bored aren’t going to attract much interest among their leads. Prospects won’t get excited to hear about a product from a cold caller who sounds angry, sad or annoyed. When rehearsing your cold calling script, be sure to practice mastering your tone of voice.
Highlight Exclusivity and Urgency
In your pitch, highlight any exclusive offers or time-sensitive opportunities. Instilling a sense of urgency can motivate prospects to take action quickly. However, it’s important to use this strategy authentically and not as a manipulative tactic.
Offer Solutions, Not Just Products
Focus on how your product or service can solve a specific problem or improve the prospect’s situation. People are more interested in solutions to their challenges than in the product details. Tailoring your conversation to address these solutions can make your call more impactful.
End with a Clear Next Step
Always conclude the call with a clear and agreed-upon next step, whether it’s a follow-up call, sending additional information, or scheduling a meeting. This ensures that both parties have a mutual understanding of what’s expected moving forward.
Read More: Cold Calling Services
How to Cold Call
The prospect of making a cold call might be nerve-wracking, but the process of cold calling is simple. Just gather your list of sales team prospects – or let your cold-calling software do it for you – and start talking!
Not sure how to approach cold calling? Simply follow these steps, and you’ll be amazed at how you ever made sales without this effective pitch:
- Know your prospect – Pre-call research is vital to making the cold call. Be aware of who you are contacting before making a cold call.
- Use a creative opening line – Write multiple opening lines for different types of prospects, and choose one opening line to use before placing the cold call.
- Hit on your prospect’s pain points – Why should the prospect care about what you have to say? Make cold calls matter to your leads by touching on their paint points.
- Offer a value proposition – What do you have to offer your prospective customer? Every successful cold call must include a value proposition that matters to the potential customer.
- Deliver a call to action – Never assume your prospect knows why you’re calling them. In fact, they might be waiting for you to ask! If the reason for the call is a sale, then ask for it. If the call is to set up a follow-up sales appointment, then include that task in your call to action.
- Request a follow up – Few cold calls result in a sale on the first attempt. In fact, many result in no contact at all. When leaving a voicemail, be sure and request a follow-up meeting. Also, request a follow-up meeting for prospects who don’t have time to talk or who express hesitation about closing a deal.
| Step | Description |
|---|---|
| Know your prospect | Conduct pre-call research to understand who you are contacting before making the cold call. This helps personalize the conversation and increases the chances of a positive response. |
| Use a creative opening line | Prepare multiple opening lines tailored to different types of prospects. Choose the most engaging and relevant one to make a strong first impression and capture the prospect’s interest. |
| Hit on your prospect’s pain points | Identify the pain points or challenges your prospect may be facing. During the call, address these pain points to demonstrate how your product or service can provide solutions and add value. |
| Offer a value proposition | Clearly articulate what you have to offer to the prospective customer. Present a compelling value proposition that addresses their needs and demonstrates the benefits of choosing your product or service. |
| Deliver a call to action | Avoid assuming the prospect’s understanding of the purpose of the call. Clearly state the desired action, whether it’s making a purchase, scheduling a follow-up appointment, or any other specific next step. |
| Request a follow-up | Acknowledge that not all cold calls result in an immediate sale and request a follow-up meeting. Leave a voicemail asking for a return call or schedule a follow-up appointment for further discussion and relationship-building. |
What is Cold Calling?
What is cold calling? Also commonly called telemarketing, cold calling occurs when sales reps connect for a sales conversation, usually via telephone, with potential customers with whom they’ve had no prior contact and who have not requested the information or expressed any prior interest in the product or service being sold. To achieve the best sales call results, teams often rely on cold calling scripts when engaging in telemarketing activities.
Does Cold Calling Work?
Cold calling has been going on since the invention of the telephone, and it is still an effective sales strategy. According to professional marketer Charlie Cook, about 2% of cold calls result in a sale, which wouldn’t be great if there wasn’t the potential to make massive amounts of cold calls every day. After all, 82% of buyers say they’ve accepted sales meetings after receiving a cold call.
The Benefits of Cold Calling
Companies use cold calling as a sales strategy for a variety of reasons, and telemarketing provides brands with multiple benefits, including:
- Cold calling provides a human touch to a sales interaction. People respond to other humans, and the interaction in a telephone call can’t be duplicated with creative keystrokes.
- Cold calling allows brands to identify target customers. Cold calling allows sales reps to quickly determine the decision maker, so they can focus their time on selling to the right person before setting an appointment.
- Cold calling results offer valuable and informative data. Brands can analyze the outcomes of their cold-calling campaigns to gather crucial insights about their potential clients and to understand which aspects of their strategies are effective.
- Cold calls increase conversions. They directly lead to sales. The higher the number of cold calls a sales representative makes daily, the greater the potential for setting sales appointments, which can ultimately result in closed deals. How many cold calls can your sales teams make?
Read More: Cold Calling Scripts
Cold Calling Vs. Warm Calling
What distinguishes cold calling from warm calling? The key factor is interest. In warm calling, the prospect has already shown interest in the product or service, which may occur through actions like visiting a website, subscribing to a newsletter, or interacting with a sales representative. In contrast, cold calling targets leads who have not shown any interest and have no previous association with the brand. While warm calling often leads to higher conversion rates, it requires more effort to gather leads compared to the research needed for cold calling tips.
Is cold calling illegal?
Cold calling and cold calling services are entirely legal in the United States, however there are restrictions on who can be called and during what times. For example, if a prospect has asked a company to no longer call them – or if they’ve registered for the Do Not Call Registry, those wishes must be obliged. In some other countries, such as the United Kingdom, for example, cold calling is illegal.
Is cold calling dead?
While strategies have changed in recent years, cold calling is alive and well. Buyers – and the entire buying process, however, have changed in the 21st century, and they are more informed than in the past, thanks to their access to the World Wide Web. Therefore, it’s become more important for cold callers to do their research and qualify prospective customers as best possible to capture a prospect’s attention.
Conclusion
Despite the common aversion to receiving cold calls, cold calling remains a powerful and effective sales tool. Cold calling allows sales teams to engage with potential customers who have not expressed prior interest in their products or services. By following the 12 best cold calling tips and techniques, sales reps can significantly improve their success rates and conversions.
The benefits of cold calling include providing a human touch to sales interactions, identifying target customers efficiently, and gathering valuable data for future marketing strategies. Cold calling can lead to successful conversions and appointments when executed strategically.
To achieve success in cold calling, sales reps must conduct pre-call research, create and practice a well-structured cold calling script, and schedule calls at optimal times for increased response rates. Engaging opening lines, longer calls that cover pain points and value propositions, and masterful use of tone are crucial for effective communication.
Follow-up calls play a crucial role in the sales process, as the majority of deals require further interaction beyond the initial cold call. Sales professionals must maintain a professional tone, offer enticing value propositions, and master the art of closing lines to leave a lasting impact on their prospects.
While cold calling is legal in the United States and many other countries, there are regulations regarding call recipients’ preferences and times of calling. Adhering to these guidelines is essential for ethical and effective cold-calling practices.
In contrast to warm calling, where prospects have shown prior interest, cold calling requires thorough research and qualification to capture prospects’ attention in today’s informed buying landscape.
In conclusion, when conducted with a strategic approach and following best practices, cold calling remains a relevant and effective sales strategy. By mastering the art of cold calling, sales teams can build valuable connections with potential customers and drive business growth.
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