Cold calling can be very intimidating, but it has its advantages. It is a great way to create market awareness, build rapport and continuously increase your sales pipeline. Here are some tips on warming up to cold calling.
Get to know your targets. Be aware of who you are calling and what type of industry they are in. Include meaningful information on your call about the prospect and their company, it adds value to your call, and proves you deserve earning their business. Have a conversation, ask open ended questions. You’re not a robot! They will appreciate the personalization, and the effort you put in to learn about them, which will lead to a more fundamental conversation.
Listen to what your prospects are saying. Your goal is to earn their business by offering a solution to their business needs. If you understand and can relate to the problems their company is facing, you can provide the solution they are looking for. Your targeted prospect will feel valued which will build relationship of trust between you both. Listening to your prospect will also make them feel comfortable enough to trust you with additional parts of their business that needs other solutions you may offer.
Your opening sentence is crucial to keeping your prospect on the phone and proof that you are worth talking to. Differentiate yourself from the competition, you must be likable, take notes and use that knowledge to personalize your next call.
Figure out the best time to make your cold calls. According to some studies, afternoons during the week is the peak time to make cold calls. Majority of these calls are specifically on Tuesdays Thursdays between 3:00-5:00 pm. Be sure to block off a portion of your time to make your calls. It is important that the time you use to make your calls is undivided. Blocking your time off is helpful to staying focused and in the zone when selling to prospects.
Cold calling to sell can be challenging, if can be helpful to start with a basic sales script. During that first call you may not know what to say, you may feel overwhelmed so keep it simple, and establish your comfort zone! The idea is to have something to guide you by eliminating the first call jitters so you can communicate confidently and precisely.
In time, you will find yourself throwing new statements into the mix and you will see what works for you and for your prospects and what does not. As time goes on you will get more comfortable and confident when cold calling.
