Any attempt to get business using a telephone to connect with potential clients who might not have heard of your company is known as cold calling. Cold calling is a powerful tool that many business owners have used for decades to grow their customer base and, therefore, their brand.
Recently, with the upswing of social media, more people have questioned how efficient cold calling is in this day and age of constant connectivity. Many businesses think the scalability of the internet has effectively replaced the phone call.
In this article, we discuss in-depth how effective cold calling truly is and how business owners like you can make the most of it to grow your business and make more money. We’ll also discuss how Podium Phones can help you get the most out of every phone call your business takes or makes.
How effective is cold calling?
There are several reasons people have started to consider cold calling techniques are a marketing tool of the past. One of the reasons businesses think that cold calling statistics are down is that they know people are increasingly busy. They don’t want to feel like they are interrupting a person’s day or evening home with their family. It’s more than just being busy, however. There are several other reasons people consider cold calling to be out of style.
Cold calling is considered an old sales technique because it uses older contact information, among other reasons. Many people won’t answer unknown phone numbers, which leads marketers and sales reps to believe that cold calls are a waste of time. Other companies believe it to be a slow and tedious process. But the fact is a salesperson can get many dials in an hour compared to just a single appointment.
The truth is that cold-calling strategies have changed because buyers have changed.
Not everyone you have contact information for will want to hear about your product or partake in your services. Cold calling isn’t as attractive as modern prospecting methods, which include:
- Text messaging
- Social media platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and others
- Current client referrals
- Networking groups and webinars
The internet and social media also provide easier methods to start researching lead generation. In particular, social media sites can provide powerful insight into the potential client you are about to call. Once you have done the research on their social media accounts, you should place the call. It will take more time, but the potential reward will be greater, and your cold-calling statistics will improve.
Your outreach efforts can indeed be more productive with cold emails or email marketing, but they won’t include human interaction. Some of the reasons cold calling is still effective include:
- You receive immediate feedback on whether you should follow up with the lead or not.
- Emails are easier to ignore than phone calls.
It is true that some generations prefer digital interactions. In many companies, decision-makers tend to belong to older generations, who might prefer phone interactions. More than 50% of decision-makers would prefer to be contacted over the phone.
Moreover, 71% of buyers would prefer salespeople to reach out to them. More than half of sales go to companies that are proactive in reaching out to their clients.
How to Cold Call Effectively: 11 Tips and Techniques
While you are on the journey of learning the best way to effectively place a cold call, don’t forget to study the different resources available. Hundreds of personal development books and sales books will help you create effective cold-calling scripts.
To help you get started, we have gathered some of the best cold-calling tips for creating the best cold-calling script.
1. Research and Target Effectively
Before picking the phone up, make sure to spend some time doing your research. Learn everything you can about your target market and their needs. For instance, you may have a hard time selling cars and auto services to people who don’t have a driver’s license.
Instead, take the time to carefully research your leads so that each phone call has the best chance of leading to a sale. This will go a long way in boosting lead generation and conversion rates.
Understanding the nuances of your potential customers will go a long way to helping you connect with them over the phone. Do they come from a primarily rural area or are they in more of a big city? These details will give you an idea of how to relate to them and lead you to what their possible interests are. This helps you and your product better address their pain points and close a sale.
2. Craft an Engaging Script
Make sure to create a well-thought-out sales script that speaks to your clients’ needs. This will make your sales call go smoother. Many sales professionals take the time to practice the sales call ahead of time without anyone on the other end. If you don’t know where to start, there are templates online you can download for free to get started with the sales process.
Open with the highlights of your product or services. These are usually the features that solve your client’s problems or needs. You may have an auto-cleaning grooming tool for cat owners or perhaps a fuel-efficient vehicle. Make sure to highlight these benefits first and avoid leading with the price, even if you think it’s competitive.
Make sure to take the time to research sales pitches and tactics to help develop yours. Practice your script with a friend and use their feedback to finetune your script.
3. Exude Confidence and Enthusiasm
Don’t be shy once you have your phone numbers; get to dialing as soon as possible. Once you have your prospective client on the phone, speak up and with confidence. This will go a long way to building trust. You don’t want to be overly cocky or assertive, but you need to know your product and services inside out.
Understanding every detail of what you are presenting will lend you confidence because you will be able to answer any questions that crop up. Be articulate and personable when working with a lead or customer on the phone. People don’t buy from shy salespeople; they buy from charismatic ones. Charisma comes from confidence.
4. Communicate Your Value Proposition Clearly
Make sure to open with what your product or services do best. This means quality sales professionals and cold callers take the time to clearly explain all the benefits of working with their brand, starting with the most popular advantage first.
Sales prospecting starts with understanding what your brand provides. What problem does it solve for your customer? How can you explain this in the easiest way possible? Knowing the full value of the item you are selling will help build your confidence and help your potential clients see the benefit of owning or using it.
5. Handle Objections Proactively
When your prospective client has potential issues, address them head-on. Your sales call can look like it’s going south when a potential client starts asking a lot of questions, but it’s important not to be discouraged in this case. Answer the questions clearly and be as transparent as possible.
You don’t want to lead your clients astray for the sale because this will only damage your brand in the long run. Instead, simply say, ‘That is a great question,’ and provide the information they are after. Questions are a good thing because they indicate interest from the lead.
6. Practice Active Listening
Don’t daydream when your potential client is speaking. This will make it hard to address their specific needs and questions. You will also develop trust more readily by answering their questions without sounding lost. Be responsive and prepared and your conversation will be better for it.
Listen to what they are saying and ask questions to draw out possible problems that your product or services can provide solutions for. Don’t interrupt them or get overzealous with sharing details about your personal life. Let them do the talking about issues they have had with past products or services. Then, you will have the information you need to help them better.
7. Time Your Calls Strategically
You don’t want to spend time at the desk making a bunch of phone calls when people aren’t home. Instead put the time in ahead of calling and see when your target demographic will most likely be available. The internet and Google make it easy to research a range of different details about your potential clients. Make sure you find the best time to call your target audience and clear your schedule for this time block.
8. Personalize Your Approach
The first step to making a sale is connecting with the person on the other end of the phone line. Sometimes, this looks like sharing parenting stories, talking about how you each take your coffee, or discussing what car troubles you have dealt with. Finding something you can connect over opens the door to trust, which can lead to a sale.
Cold-calling scripts work best when they’re personalized. Whether you make sure to ask your potential customer about their pet and share details about yours if you are in the pet industry or you make a point of relating to their hometown sports team, you need to connect with the lead.
Take the time to have an actual conversation and do your best to not rush. Your prospective client will feel when you’re trying to hurry up and think you are nervous or don’t care about their needs.
9. Leverage AI
There are dozens of AI tools available to help you leverage your time. From organizing voicemail and other messages to automating entire workflows, AI can save you time and money. You can use AI to help with many parts of the sales process, including creating cold-calling scripts and documents like quotes and contracts. It’s important that, with all these tools at your fingertips, you learn to work smarter rather than harder.
10. Implement a Thoughtful Follow-up Strategy
Short of an abrupt conversation where your potential customers end up asking to be removed from your call list, you will usually need to follow up with them. Your sales teams will need to understand pain points that can be addressed when a follow-up call is made. Many consumers say they were on the fence and then the salesperson followed up with a thoughtful phone call that was personal—then they become loyal customers.
11. Qualify Leads Effectively
Sales prospecting begins with researching your target demographic and gathering phone numbers of potential clients. You don’t want to waste time dialing numbers to homes that have no use for your goods or services. Spend the time, money, and effort up-front to make sure your leads are of the highest quality so that you have a more successful sales program.
Turn Calls Into Leads With Podium
Podium has developed the best phone solution tools for businesses that are on the path to growth. Through Podium Phones, small businesses get a VOIP system that directs all calls to a centralized inbox, where social media messages, texts, and other customer communications can also be found.
With all these features, your reps never have to miss a call again. They also get easy access to customer information, making it more convenient to personalize and add context to any customer communication.
Whether you are looking for help with automation for follow-up responses and calls or organizing customer information, Podium is ready to guide you as your business grows and you make more money.
Cold Calling FAQs
No matter where you are at with your sales career, cold calling can be a daunting process. This is why we have gathered some of the most popular FAQs to get you off to a successful start.
Q: What is the success rate of cold calling?
A: On average, the rate for successful cold calls comes in at 2%. This is much lower than many sales tactics, which is part of the reason successful cold calls take so much effort and time. It is, however, a solid form of generating outboard leads and should be used in any sales strategy.
Q: Is cold calling a good idea?
A: Cold calling can provide many benefits for your business. This is especially true for new sales reps, as cold calling provides excellent training in handling leads and customers. With cold calling, you get a chance to perfect your sales pitch. Once you’ve had a few cold calls, you will start to get a feel for what gets customers’ interest. You can get real-time feedback and adjust your sales pitch.
Q: How many cold calls a day is good?
A: Your target market and product will determine the number of calls you should make every day. On average, a person in B2B sales will make between 30 to 40 calls every day. Others make up to 100 phone calls every day. The biggest takeaway here is that the more phone calls you make, the more your sales will grow.
