Best Practices for Cold Calling

[Blueskies4me]

Cold calling can be intimidating especially when you're new to the idea, but it doesn't have to be. There are resources that can help you become more comfortable with the process and ideally more successful with closing a sale / partnership / new vendor / funding etc.

Since we're talking about fastlane business here then let's establish:

• You are not a sales agent. You are a professional business owner. Don't let the idea of cold calling make you feel any different about that.
• Your time is valuable (as a business owner). Don't waste it on work you can outsource, unless you're just starting out and have no cash and even then there are solutions.

Set a Goal

• Set a clear goal before you call.

Appointment
Sale
Partnership
Follow up Date / Time
Email Address​

• Don't hang up until you reach it.

Prepare / Practice a Script

• A script is just a list of questions and responses that are intentionally designed by YOU to direct your conversation during a cold call. It is not meant to replace a natural conversation.
• Elements a script can contain depending on your goal:

Brief Introduction (probably to a gatekeeper)
Ask for Decision Maker
Ask for Time
Create Interest
Ask for Goal #1
Overcome Objections
Ask for Goal Again
ThankYou​

• If you HAVE to sell over the phone state how long you intend to take up their time and stick to the timeframe.
• Face to face appointments especially if you're asking for a big change, is always better than a phone appointment.

If anyone else would like to add to this, feel free. I'll copy a discussion from another forum that some found useful.

​

 

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[Blueskies4me]

Formatting was being a little weird...

 

[Blueskies4me]

From the other forum

[BTW just to clarify this was written from the experience of Corporate Insurance. We were asking companies to change their entire infrastructure for Health / Supplemental Insurance so our approach required face time. If you're asking a company to make huge changes or your product has features that need demonstration, you may need to consider a sit down appointment. If you're asking for a small service change, this won't be the case.]

First of all, the people answering the phone are used to getting multiple sales calls a day so it's not a big deal to them. Get used to the realization that they make appointments to see sales reps all the time. Don't freak out however it will NEVER get comfortable. NEVER.
This is also a numbers game. You HAVE to call 200 companies a day. Minimum. If that sounds horrible then hire it out. Remember don't be embarrassed or feel like you have to apologize for being a business owner who wants to meet another business owner. You are a professional not a salesman.

Recruit a college intern (cheapest) on commission or odesk / elance professionals to call for you. Out of 1000 calls in a week you should have a full week of 20 appointments. If you can't see making that many calls a day hire it out.

Mistakes:

• Sales requires FACE TIME so don't use your materials or samples as a crutch. They won't get a signature on a contract and like GetRight said they get a ton of promo crap. It's not that impressive.

• Some of the larger businesses have a regular schedule for reviewing products. Some don't. Don't be afraid to schedule an appointment during that time even if it's 6 months out.
  
  
• Some companies in some industries especially franchises can't approve large purchases or changes for an individual site. That's why it's important to find out what decisions are made by whom. If you're going to the CEO of a large company, that's often a marketing / PR campaign.

• NEVER EVER try to sell over the phone if you can get an appointment face to face. I've rarely closed a sale over the phone and if you try to close the sale too early they'll say no. Once the no is out there you're in an uphill battle to get a yes.

• Don't start pushing your product too early. Find out how and if you can help. Make a list of questions and ask the same ones every time so you head the right direction. Open ended "Explain how you set events now..." or "People in this industry have mentioned to me that they see [problem your product solves] as one of the biggest problems, what do you think about it?" Yes, no (closing questions) "Would you agree that in a perfect world solving that problem would save you time / money / effort?" If you ask enough of these... you will have your close fall into your lap.

Appointment Setting:

• If you have the owner's first name (from infofree.com or salesgenie or just the phone book), use it. "Hey Betty, this is Bob from XYZ company over here on Main Street (sounding local), is Joe (owner) around today?" If she thinks you know him on a first name basis, sometimes she'll just transfer you. If it's that easy just say, "Hey Joe, thanks for taking my call. This is Bob over here at XYZ company on Main St. I know you're a busy guy so I'm not going to take up your time today but I'm going to be out that way on Tuesday and just wanted to stop by for 5 minutes and introduce myself. Are you a morning or afternoon guy?" Then set your appointment.
  
  
• I know that may sound too informal but if sometimes if you're too formal they feel a sales pitch coming and often shut you down right away.
  
  
• This is the script you would give to your callers if you want to have people call for you. Only they would say this is Gary calling on behalf of Mr. Bob.

• If the owner's not in, don't get all speechy about your product with the gate keeper..she doesn't need to know you've got the most amazing product in the world just that you're a super relaxed nice guy and she likes you. Just say, "Thanks Betty. Hey, what's the best way to reach him? How can I get some time with Joe?" Sometimes she's actually in charge of his calendar and can schedule you an appointment. So ask. If she keeps answering your questions then keep asking. Make her sound like a genius for knowing so much about the company. "Thanks Betty, Oh...hey you might know, does your company use a [your type of product] now? Who makes the decision about what kind of [your type of product] to use? Is that Joe? OK thanks Betty you've been very helpful."

What draws people in? They need to trust you. 100% trust that you're going to steer their company in the right direction. If your gut tells you they don't need you... TELL THEM. I've refused to write insurance policies that are wrong for a company or individual even if they WANTED it. It was hard but I had to say, this will not benefit you.

 

[nickR8]

What draws people in? They need to trust you

Very true... If you don't get the business owner to trust you, you've lost.

When calling larger companies, the "gatekeeper" can really become a problem. To get past them I highly recommend watching this video by Chet Holmes (author of "The Ultimate Sales Machine"). It's quite long but If you're serious about cold-calling it's a must-watch. He shows some awesome techniques to get past the gate keeper and he also gives some great advice on cold-calling in general too.

 

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[MattCour]

I've made thousands of cold calls throughout my career and the A#1 thing to focus on is WIIFM ( What's In It For Me?) Straight from Cashvertising and MJ himself.. No one give a shit about your goals, only what you can do for them.

 

[Blueskies4me]

No one give a shit about your goals, only what you can do for them.

The goals listed here are only to keep you on track so that YOU not the other business owner know what you're trying to accomplish. The easiest mistake is to talk glowingly about your service / product and not actually accomplish anything like a sale / partnershp etc.

But as far as closing the sale you're right, they DON'T care about what you need. It's important you ask them "problem" questions that will lead them to your product as their most ideal solution.

 

[Blueskies4me]

I don't have experience in your industry but I've been making B2B cold calls for 10+ years (in the freight transportation industry, buying and selling space on cargo planes and trucks for the movement of dry, frozen, perishable, dangerous goods, etc.). In all this time I have not met a single customer in person yet - everything's handled over the phone. Maybe it's just the old skool nature of the industry that I'm in. I mean, the vast majority of people still use FAXES to send/receive shipping orders and delivery confirmations! It is very labor-slowlane-intensive, trading time for dollars, but cold-calling works in the freight world.

It's definitely a numbers game but I'm pretty sure you could do some serious damage if you had a short, concise message outlining exactly how you can alleviate your prospect's headache(s). Again, I'm not familiar with your industry but below is my format for prospecting. Feel free to adapt it to your situation:

MONDAY - Cold Call - Hey Mr. Prospect, my/our name is ABC. I/We offer DEF. Do you ever have a need for XYZ? ..XYZ is exactly what we provide. Get permission to send your info.

TUESDAY - Send Info - Email 1 page PDF, highlighting how you can alleviate your prospect's headache(s). Avoid bragging about the size of your company or how many eons you've been in business, when it was established, etc..nobody give a rat's a** about that stuff. Those strategies are from 1984, they don't work in this day and age. Avoid ME, ME, ME. Stick to YOU, YOU, YOU (the prospect).

WEDNESDAY - Follow-up Call - Hey Mr. Prospect..review my info yet? TRIAL CLOSE - got my info? Great. Got any live freight I can move for you today? ..didn't get my email? No problem, I'll resend it. In the meantime..got any live freight I can move for you today? ASK FOR THE BUSINESS!

The above may or may not apply to your situation but I'm a firm believer in cold-calling because it's cost-effective as compared to mailing out brochures (or a box of goodies). It can certainly be scary at first if you haven't done any cold calls before but believe me it gets easier and easier as you go along.

What's the worst that could happen? They don't end up doing business with you. No biggie. NEXXXTTT!!! Plenty of other fish in the corporate event planners' sea! But the thing to remember is that eventually you will be getting more YES's than MAYBE's or NO's.

If you need a hand, PM me and I'll gladly help you put together a cold calling "script" of sorts.

@MHolland posted some great advice as well.

 

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[JEdwards]

@MHolland posted some great advice as well.

Yep the 3 step calling process works and takes the edge off always. Try it. You'll like it.

 

[Jazzcat]

Very true... If you don't get the business owner to trust you, you've lost.

When calling larger companies, the "gatekeeper" can really become a problem. To get past them I highly recommend watching this video by Chet Holmes (author of "The Ultimate Sales Machine"). It's quite long but If you're serious about cold-calling it's a must-watch. He shows some awesome techniques to get past the gate keeper and he also gives some great advice on cold-calling in general too.

The Ultimate Business Mastery Program from Anthony Robbins is great. Especially the segments featuring the late, great Chet Holmes.

The call open is crucial. Here is the opening sequence I have used and taught with great success. It can be used on the phone or during a cold walk in.

1. "Is this a bad time to talk?"
Usually 3 responses are possible. "Yes it is"...if this is the case, regroup and move to a future visit. Best not to get your face and pitch associated with something bad. "It's always a bad time, but what have you got?"...proceed. "No, it's a good time"...proceed. Two out of the three possibilities are a go.

2. "I'm going to take a quick minute to tell you why (I called/I am here)...and then you can decide whether we should keep talking or not...Sound fair?"
This helps to reassure them that they are in "control", you respect their "control", you have asked for a reasonable amount of time, and you have played to their sense of fairness.

3. Your 30 second commercial. This should be crafted, practiced, drilled, and rehearsed everyday. It should be something that you can comfortably present at a moments notice. This determines whether the conversation continues or is stopped cold. At it's core it should be all about the earlier mentioned radio station inside everyone's head...WII-FM. It's all about them and their business, period. This pitch is all about a solution so in touch with them and their business that it makes them want to hear more.

The beginning determines the end and hopefully leads to a prospect with a need, a budget, a personality fit, a sale, and a business relationship. Hope this was helpful.

 

[MHolland]

Since we're talking about fastlane business here then let's establish:
You are not a sales agent. You are a professional business owner. Don't let the idea of cold calling make you feel any different about that.

Excellent advice! I think many forget to remember the fact that they are business owners and not just sales reps.

IMO - instead of trying to "sell" something like a robot, try having a conversation instead, human being to human being.

 

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[MHolland]

2. "I'm going to take a quick minute to tell you why (I called/I am here)...and then you can decide whether we should keep talking or not...Sound fair?"
This helps to reassure them that they are in "control", you respect their "control", you have asked for a reasonable amount of time, and you have played to their sense of fairness.

YES!!! - Give them the "power" to choose and remain in control right at the outset and you're off to an advantageous start!

 

[JAJT]

1. "Is this a bad time to talk?"

I've always liked this one.

Most people laugh at it and say something like "you have no idea" or "wow, tell me about it" or "hahaha, I've got x doing y and z is acting up and... ahh... haha, what can I do for you?".

It really breaks the ice and softens them up. And even if they say "now really isn't a good time" you get to play hero by respecting their time and quickly just scheduling a call back. Then when you call back you can ask them if their crisis was resolved to break the ice.

 

[Mowbetta]

Yes, telling them it's up to them or not to continue the conversation if they don't think you can "help" them in 45 seconds, seems to ease tension.
We all have been at the other end of the line, when I hear someone just start talking non stop (throwing a scripted pitch) I get very irritated, just like anyone else.
When they agree to a verbal contract to listen to you for 45 seconds, they can focus on what you are actually saying, not wondering "how long is this a**hole going to talk"?

 

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[Five Star]

Had success with the following INTRO in the past for COLD CALLING on the phone:

-Hi, I'm ______ from xyz company. If you're anything LIKE ME, I'm sure you're not a fan of cold calling. However, if I could have JUST 30 seconds of your time to introduce myself/my product, then YOU CAN DECIDE if you'd like to continue the call. How does that sound?

-NLP in 1st sentence, sub-conciously plants the seed that they already 'LIKE YOU'
-30 seconds is a tiny amount to time to ask for. Majority of people are happy to at least give you that!
-Like the posts above state, the power is then back in their hands TO DECIDE if they continue, which makes them feel more comfortable, and in control.​

-Sure, go ahead.

-Ok, great! So what we do is....(make sure you have this 30 sec snapshot perfected!). How does that sound?

-You should have grabbed their interest at this point, hopefully by addressing some of their 'pain points' in your snapshot.
-Notice the 'open' question at the end. They can't just say yes/no. This will encourage them to open up a little, hopefully they'll tell you something like, 'Yeah, _____is really frustrating for us' etc..​

-Well if YOU'RE HAPPY to continue the call, I can explain how we can help alleviate some of that frustration / help reduce the number of faulty parts you're producing etc..

OR

-Can I have 2 more minutes of your time to tell you how I can help, and then we can take it from there?

-Again, you're asking for their permission to continue, so they should still comfortable and in control. All being well, the call should flow from here....​

Obviously this needs tailored to suit your customer and your product etc., but the basics are there.


A few points worth mentioning:

Always make sure you're speaking to the DECISION MAKER.

Always, always ASK FOR THE SALE (whether it's an actual sale, or an appointment etc.). You wouldn't believe how many 'sales' people don't even try to close. "It's sounds like our product is ideal and can really solve your needs, would you like to place an order now?"

STAND UP, put your shoulders back....it will convey confidence, and come across in the tonality in your voice
.....even try wearing a headset to free up your hands if you're an animated person, the positive energy will be felt on the call. Compare that to when you're sitting slouching behind a desk - TRY IT!

 

[Mowbetta]

Had success with the following INTRO in the past for COLD CALLING on the phone:

-Hi, I'm ______ from xyz company. If you're anything LIKE ME, I'm sure you're not a fan of cold calling. However, if I could have JUST 30 seconds of your time to introduce myself/my product, then YOU CAN DECIDE if you'd like to continue the call. How does that sound?

-NLP in 1st sentence, sub-conciously plants the seed that they already 'LIKE YOU'
-30 seconds is a tiny amount to time to ask for. Majority of people are happy to at least give you that!
-Like the posts above state, the power is then back in their hands TO DECIDE if they continue, which makes them feel more comfortable, and in control.​

-Sure, go ahead.

-Ok, great! So what we do is....(make sure you have this 30 sec snapshot perfected!). How does that sound?

-You should have grabbed their interest at this point, hopefully by addressing some of their 'pain points' in your snapshot.
-Notice the 'open' question at the end. They can't just say yes/no. This will encourage them to open up a little, hopefully they'll tell you something like, 'Yeah, _____is really frustrating for us' etc..​

-Well if YOU'RE HAPPY to continue the call, I can explain how we can help alleviate some of that frustration / help reduce the number of faulty parts you're producing etc..

OR

-Can I have 2 more minutes of your time to tell you how I can help, and then we can take it from there?

-Again, you're asking for their permission to continue, so they should still comfortable and in control. All being well, the call should flow from here....​

Obviously this needs tailored to suit your customer and your product etc., but the basics are there.


A few points worth mentioning:

Always make sure you're speaking to the DECISION MAKER.

Always, always ASK FOR THE SALE (whether it's an actual sale, or an appointment etc.). You wouldn't believe how many 'sales' people don't even try to close. "It's sounds like our product is ideal and can really solve your needs, would you like to place an order now?"

STAND UP, put your shoulders back....it will convey confidence, and come across in the tonality in your voice
.....even try wearing a headset to free up your hands if you're an animated person, the positive energy will be felt on the call. Compare that to when you're sitting slouching behind a desk - TRY IT![/

I will try it! Thanks for the great tips!

 

[Ubermensch]

Cold calling can be intimidating especially when you're new to the idea, but it doesn't have to be. There are resources that can help you become more comfortable with the process and ideally more successful with closing a sale / partnership / new vendor / funding etc.

Since we're talking about fastlane business here then let's establish:

• You are not a sales agent. You are a professional business owner. Don't let the idea of cold calling make you feel any different about that.
• Your time is valuable (as a business owner). Don't waste it on work you can outsource, unless you're just starting out and have no cash and even then there are solutions.

Set a Goal

• 
  
  
  • Set a clear goal before you call.

Appointment
Sale
Partnership
Follow up Date / Time
Email Address​

• Don't hang up until you reach it.

Prepare / Practice a Script

• 
  
  
  • A script is just a list of questions and responses that are intentionally designed by YOU to direct your conversation during a cold call. It is not meant to replace a natural conversation.
  • Elements a script can contain depending on your goal:

Brief Introduction (probably to a gatekeeper)
Ask for Decision Maker
Ask for Time
Create Interest
Ask for Goal #1
Overcome Objections
Ask for Goal Again
ThankYou​

• If you HAVE to sell over the phone state how long you intend to take up their time and stick to the timeframe.
• Face to face appointments especially if you're asking for a big change, is always better than a phone appointment.

If anyone else would like to add to this, feel free. I'll copy a discussion from another forum that some found useful.

​

@Thiago Machado

The term "script" often comes up in discussions about sales calls.

Not many people talk about what really matters, especially when selling high-ticket items: ASKING QUESTIONS (re: SPIN Selling).

 

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[welshmin]

@Thiago Machado

The term "script" often comes up in discussions about sales calls.

Not many people talk about what really matters, especially when selling high-ticket items: ASKING QUESTIONS (re: SPIN Selling).

Or better yet, implication questions.



Page 61 of Spin Selling.

As the value of a sale increases, there becomes less of a need for closing and more of a need to prove the VALUE of your solution to a problem. One way is obviously to increase the value of your product, make it cheaper, more effective, longer lasting, easier to use, etc.

The other way is to increase the seriousness of the question using "implication questions", I will shorten the examples used in the book to illustrate:

Page 75, 76 -
Bad example:
Seller: (situation question) Do you use X machines?
Buyer: Yes,
Seller: (problem question) are they difficult for your operators to use?
Buyer: (implied need) they are rather hard
Seller: (offering a solution) we could solve that with our Easiflow machines
Buyer: How much does it cost?
Seller: $120,000
Buyer: (AMAZED) $120,000? Just to make a machine easier to use? You must be kidding!

Currently, the equation looks like this:


Sidebar - implied needs can be thought of as small problems, i.e., not fast enough, a little annoying, looks ugly, etc. In the case of low cost sales, these are useful.
Explicit needs become strong wants or desires. They are things that have Serious Implications. Such as high cost, low efficiency, etc.

The correct way to use implication questions would be to find more serious problems that are implied by less serious ones.
In this case, the difficulty in using the machines becomes:



And the balance tips the scale. I haven't posted the full conversation used in the example, but this illustrates it well.
Questions such as:
Seller: (implication question) You say they're hard to use. What effect does this have on your output?

The seller leads the buyer through the implications of the problem and they discover that long-term, there are very serious implications.

Mad rep to @Ubermensch for recommending the book, this thing CLICKS for me because it is all about selling VALUE. Not BS closing techniques.

 

[Ubermensch]

Excellent advice! I think many forget to remember the fact that they are business owners and not just sales reps.

IMO - instead of trying to "sell" something like a robot, try having a conversation instead, human being to human being.

One of the best ways to sell is simply by asking questions, listening intently to the answers, and then offering solutions to problems discovered in the prospect's answers.

It's all about maximizing the profitability of each conversation, and maximizing the total number of profitable conversations you have in a day. The way to accomplish the former is through repetition; the way to accomplish the latter is to enhance the number of good repetitions (perfect practice makes perfect) through the use of a dialer like the one sold at www.mojosells.com

 

[RahKnee]

I recognize a lot of advice from Spin Selling and Rain Maker. Solid.

Question for our resident sales gurus:
I've done my due dilligence and identified a potential customer. I've dug into publicly available company records and come up with the names of several members of the board of directors and their business mailing addresses. But there are zero phone numbers associated with these names.

Would sending a letter be an appropriate method of reaching out to them? I could hand write it and have it delivered by FedEx to make it stand out as other than spam/garbage. Or is this so over done that they would roll their eyes and throw it in the trash?

How would you proceed?

 

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[Ubermensch]

I recognize a lot of advice from Spin Selling and Rain Maker. Solid.

Question for our resident sales gurus:
I've done my due dilligence and identified a potential customer. I've dug into publicly available company records and come up with the names of several members of the board of directors and their business mailing addresses. But there are zero phone numbers associated with these names.

Would sending a letter be an appropriate method of reaching out to them? I could hand write it and have it delivered by FedEx to make it stand out as other than spam/garbage. Or is this so over done that they would roll their eyes and throw it in the trash?

How would you proceed?

There are always ways to compile phone numbers for almost any campaign (especially with the Internet) - you just have to know where and how to look.