10 Cold Calling Tips for Salespeople
Cold calling is a great way to get in touch with potential customers. It’s also one of the most effective ways to generate leads and close sales. But it can be intimidating, especially if you’re new at selling or haven’t done much cold calling before.
Here are some tips for making your cold calls more successful:
Be prepared
Before you make any call, know exactly what you want to say and how long it will take. You don’t want to waste time on the phone with someone who isn’t interested, but neither do you want to rush through an important pitch because you didn’t plan ahead. Also have all your contact information handy so that when they ask for it, there won’t be any delay while you look up their number or email address on your computer screen (or worse yet, try looking up their name in a database). If possible, prepare some talking points about why this person should care about what you have to say even before picking up the phone; that way if they aren’t immediately receptive or seem distracted by something else going on around them (like kids playing nearby), at least they’ll give your first few sentences a chance before hanging up without hearing anything from you other than “Hi! I’m [your name] from [company name]. How are things going?”
Don’t sound like a robot
When people hear automated messages over the phone these days they’re likely just as annoyed as when they see spam emails in their inboxes — which means that no matter how well-written those messages may be, many people will simply hang up rather than listen further. So, avoid sounding too robotic when introducing yourself and giving details about who’s calling and why: instead of saying “This is John Smith from XYZ Company,” try something like “Hello Mr./Ms., my name is John Smith from XYZ Company.” And never use phrases like “to whom am I speaking?” That makes it sound like whoever answered was not expecting anyone to call them today…and probably wasn’t ready for whatever reason either!
Get right down to business
Even though we’ve already mentioned this above once or twice already here’s another reminder: don’t waste time chatting aimlessly with whoever answers the phone unless there’s really no alternative (for example if someone picks up after only two rings). Instead, get straight into telling them why YOU’RE calling THEM specifically and then quickly follow that by explaining why they should care about what you have to say and how it can benefit them.
Ask questions
This tip goes hand-in-hand with above: once again don’t chat aimlessly unless absolutely necessary — instead, ask questions designed both 1) To help determine whether this person might actually need/want what YOU’RE offering AND 2) To find out more specifics regarding THEIR situation so that later on during your conversation(s), when appropriate/necessary/relevant…you can tailor YOUR message accordingly based upon what THEY tell YOU!
Practice makes perfect
The best way learn how NOT TO sound robotic while still being concise & clear is by practising beforehand until it feels natural enough for real-life situations where speed counts & every second counts too!
Have fun
Cold Calling doesn’t always have to feel stressful & uncomfortable; sometimes having fun along the way helps keep things lighthearted & relaxed even during times where stress levels rise due unexpected circumstances such as getting cut off mid-sentence by someone who suddenly has an emergency come across his desk requiring immediate attention etc..
Make sure caller ID works properly
If yours doesn’t work correctly then fix it ASAP because otherwise whenever anyone sees an unknown number pop onto their screen chances are good they’ll ignore THAT call regardless of WHO’S trying to reach THEM via telephone!!
Keep records of everything
Whether its notes taken during conversations themselves or actual recordings made using voice recorders etc..keep track of EVERYTHING including names addresses numbers dates times etc..so next time around contacting each individual again becomes easier since now all pertinent info needed re contacts past interactions etc..is readily available
Followup appropriately
Once initial contact has been made always followup properly by calling back as soon as possible after the first conversation has taken place.
Always leave detailed written notes following each conversation whether conducted via telephone email text messaging fax snail mail letter carrier pigeon smoke signals telegraph semaphore flag-waving.
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