Cold Calling Tips for More Cold Calling Success

1) Focus on the goal.

Beginners tend to think that cold calling is about making the sale. It's not. It's about
getting the chance to make the sale. Specifically, the purpose of a cold call is to set an
appointment to make the pitch.

2) Research your markets and prospects before cold calling.

You need to target your cold calling to the right audience. Use market research to focus
on your target market. Then find out as much as you possibly can about the company or
individual you're going to call in advance. This gives you the huge advantage of being
able to talk about their business and their needs when you call them.

In a typical business with 100-500 employees an average of seven people are

responsible for most buying decisions, so connecting with the right people is critical to
your cold calling success.

3) Improve your chances to connect by leveraging social media contacts.

If the person you are calling is in a common LinkedIn group you are 70 percent more
likely to get to speak with them on a cold call. And what's true of LinkedIn is true of other
social media platforms; having a connection through a social media group will increase
the prospect's receptiveness when you reach out to contact them (one more reason to
work on establishing/extending your social media presence).

4) Prepare an opening statement for your call.

This lets you organize your thoughts before calling, and helps you avoid common
mistakes in the opening that would give the person you're calling the chance to
terminate the conversation. For instance, when you're cold calling, you should never
ask, "Is this a good time to talk?" or "How are you today?" Don't read your opening
statement into the phone, but use it as a framework to get the conversation off to a good
start.
5) What should be in the cold call's opening statement?

This organizational scheme for cold calling works well: "Include a greeting and an
introduction, a reference point (something about the prospect), the benefits of your
product or service, and a transition to a question or dialogue."

Here's an example of a cold call opening:

Good afternoon, Mr. ABD. This is XYZ from CISS. We got your reference from DFG/ our
database. (Our earlier sales person was in touch with you). We specialize in Total
Security Solutions and would request an appointment to share a 15 min presentation on
the same. I am in RST area on Thursday would it be convenient to meet in second half?

6) Prepare a script for the rest of your cold call.

Lay out the benefits of your product or service and the reasons your prospect should
buy. Write out possible objections and your answer to them. Without a cold calling
script, it's too easy to leave something out or meander. Once again, it's not that you'll be
reading your script word for word when you call, but that you've prepared the framework
of the cold call in advance.

Be prepared to answer detailed questions about your products and services! 58% of
potential buyers report that sales reps are unable to answer their questions effectively.

7) Ask for an appointment at a specific time during your cold call.

Say, "Would Wednesday at 11 a.m. be a good time to meet?" instead of saying, "Can I
meet with you to discuss this next week?" You want to get your prospect to commit to a
meeting during this first call, rather than leaving it vague and necessitating a second call
to set up a meeting - which may never happen if you can't get through to the prospect
again..

10) Do your cold calling early in the morning or late in the afternoon, if possible.
These are the best times to reach the decision maker directly. Statistically, Thursday is
the best day to cold call, Wednesday is the second best, and Tuesday is the worst.

11) Be persistent.

"Eighty percent of new sales are made after the fifth contact, yet the majority of sales
people give up after the second call". Don't be one of those who gives up so easily. If
you want to make the sale, you need to try and try again.

And One Last Cold Calling Tip

Above all, practice, practice, practice. While cold calling may never be much fun for you,
you can get better at it, and the more you practice, the more effective a sales
technique it will be. So get your script and your call list together and reach for the
phone. The people who want to do business with you are out there - but you have to let
them know about you first.