20_b2_Bcold_calling_tips_to_generate_more_meetings

1. 20 B2B COLD CALLING TIPS to Generate More Meetings

2. Didyouknowthatastaggering49% ofbuyersprefercold callingasthefirstpointofcontact? Coldcallingisnotdead. Onthecontrary,ithasbeenfoundthatalargenumber ofprospects,especiallyinthetechnologyandprofessional services,respondwelltocoldcalls. Image Source Butdoesthatmakeyourjobeasyasasalesperson? Well,tobehonest,coldcalling,thoughuseful,continuesto beoneofthetoughestaspectsofsales.Understandably,it isn’teasytodeliverapracticedpitchtosomeonewho hasn’tshownanyinterestinyourproductpreviously. Besides,notwocallsareeverthesame – whichcanmake theexperienceexciting,aswellasalittlescaryattimes. Yet,itisafactthatcoldcallingremainsoneofthemost effectivewaysofgainingcustomersforyourbusiness – whichiswhywehavecompiledthislistof20coldcalling tipsthatwillhelpyoudelivermorevalueandconnect betterwithyourprospectsinthefirstgo. 02

3. 01 FOCUS ON YOUR VOICE AND INTONATION

4. Whenyoumakeacoldcall, andonly7percentis donotsoundapologetic. comprehendedfromthe Instead,soundcheerfuland wordsactuallyspoken. energetic,aspositive Hence,itisvitaltoensure behaviorisusuallyquite thatyousoundenthusiastic infectiousandtendsto andunderstanding,instead mirrorwithyourprospects, ofbeingimpatientor leadingtoabetterresponse. irritatedwhenyoucallupa Remember,intheabsenceof prospect. bodylanguageandfacial cues,upto38percentof Anothercoldcallingtipthat spokencommunicationis workswellismirroringthe comprehendedaccordingto speechpatternsofyour yourtoneorhowyoumouth prospectsfromtimetotime yourwords, toconnectwiththembetter. 03

5. 02 SPEAK SLOWLY & USE PAUSES FOR MAXIMUM IMPACT

6. andabsorbwhatyouare saying,butitalsoshows thatyouareincontrolof thesituation,building confidenceand trust.Speakingslowlyand impactfullyisanartthat youmustmasterwith practicetoimproveyour coldcallingstrategy.Ifyou thinkyoutalktoofast,try includingdeliberate pausesinyourspeechor useatimerdeviceto improveyourdelivery. Veryoften,wetendtorattle offastellarscriptquickly onacoldcall,waitingfora positiveresponsefromthe prospectbutendupbeing rejected.Thereason,very often,isthatpeoplewho talkfastmaybehardto understandandcome acrossasunder-confident, whichmeanstheymaynot betakenseriouslyby prospects. Talkingslowlynotonly helpsyourprospects comprehend 04

7. 03 RESPECT YOUR PROSPECT’S TIME

8. Whenyouarecold callingaprospect, youareessentially intrudingintotheir time.Therefore,itis vitaltoproveyour valuewithinthefirst fewsecondsofthe callorriskbeing hungupon.Onecold callingstrategythat helpsinsucha situationisasking forpermissionfrom yourprospectstogo ahead. 05

9. Forexample,youcan Onecoldcallingtipthat asksomethingspecific weliketostressupon like, “MayItake35 hereiscreatinga secondsofyourtimeto targetedlistof [valuestatement]” to prospectsbeforeyou raiseyourprospect’s evenbegincalling. curiosityandalsogain Insteadofmaking theirapprovaltospeak randomcalls,valueyour timeandthatofyour further. prospects,byonly Evenaftertheprospect callingindividualswho givesyouthego- fitintoyourtargeted ahead,itisessentialto leadpersonas. keepyourconversation shortandsweet,while focusingonthenext stepstofixan elaboratemeetingor demowhereinyoucan pushthesale. 06

10. 04 ASK OPEN-ENDED QUESTIONS FOR A TWO-WAY DISCUSSION

11. Coldcallingisnot supposedtobea monologue,butrather,a two-wayexchangeof informationor conversation.Therefore,it isvitaltoprepareyour callingscriptinamanner thatitcontainsseveral open-endedquestions, allowingyourprospects ampleroomforresponse. Forexample,questions thatstartwith ‘what,‘ ‘where,‘ ‘when,‘ ‘how,‘ etc., giveyourprospectsa chancetosharetheirpoint ofvieworexperience, whichleadstomore engagingandpersonalized conversations. smallpausesinthe conversationwithencouraging wordsthatshowyouare listeningtothespeakerand comprehendingwhatheorshe issaying. Onceyouengageyour prospectinaprolonged conversation,usingan open-endedquestion, don’tforgettofillupthe 07

12. 05 BE PREPARED FOR OBJECTIONS

13. thisisbydocumentingall theobjectionsthathave comeupinyourprevious callsandpreparingdetailed answerstoquestionsabout yourproductsandservices. Youcanalsoexchange noteswithyourpeersto comeupwithapossiblelist ofreasonsoutliningwhy prospectsmayrefuseyour productorservice,soas tobepreparedinadvance toovercomethese objectionsforasuccessful outcome. Didyouknowthat58% of potentialbuyersfeelthat salesrepsareunableto answertheirquestions effectively?That’sprecisely whyitisimperativeto prepareacompellingcold callingscript,before pickingupthephone,to objectivelylistyourvalue- propositionand alsoprepareanswersto commonobjectionsand questionsthatmaycomeup duringacall. Oneofthebestwaystodo 07

14. 06 MAKE USE OF VOICEMAILS

15. Alargenumber ofcoldcallsgo unansweredand endupas voicemails. However,many salespeople considervoicemails tobeawasteof time,whichisnot exactlyright.On thecontrary,an effectivevoicemail canleadtoacall backfromyour prospect,whois already ‘warm‘ by now,asyouhave previouslymade contactwiththem viavoicemail. 08

16. Buthowdoyouensureyourvoicemaildeliversthe resultsyoudesire? Well,theideaistobedifferent.Wesuggestthat insteadofstartingwithyourname,whichisthe usualpractice,startyourmessagebyoutlining yourvalueproposition,followedbyyournameand contact.Itisalsoagoodideatokeepyour voicemailsunder30seconds,asanythinglonger willdistractyourprospectalmostcertainly.You canalsokeepafewvoicemailscriptsreadyand testtheirefficacyoveraperiodoftime.Thiswill notonlysaveyoutimebutalsoimproveyour successrateintermsofgettingcallbacksfrom yourprospects. 09

17. 07 USE A LOCAL PHONE NUMBER FOR MAKING COLD CALLS

18. Whenyouaremakingacold Youcanseeastaggering call,itisalwaysbesttousea increaseinconversionrates localnumbertowinthetrust whileusinglocalareacode ofyourprospectsinanytime numbersascomparedtotoll- zone.Thereasonbeingthat freenumbersinthefigure customersnaturallyfeel below: morecomfortablereceivinga callfromanumberwith recognizableareacode. IMAGESOURCE Anotheradvantageofhavingalocalnumberistheadded convenienceforyourcustomerswhocanreachouttoyou quicklyvialocalcalls. 10

19. 08 KEEP SMALL CONVERSION GOALS

20. Youraimisnottoclosea dealonacoldcall.In fact,youshouldnoteven intendtosellduringthe firstcall.Instead,keepa smallergoalofbuildinga rapportwiththeprospect onacoldcallanddiscuss thenextsteps,suchas fixingatimeslotwhen youcanspeakindetailor haveademo. However,don’tattemptto moldaprospecttoyour buyingprocess.Instead, suggestthenextstep, listentotheirfeedback, andfacilitatethebuying processforthemto seamlesslymovethemto thenextstageofyour salesfunnel. 11

21. Forexample,saysomethingspecificlike “Will Thursdayat11ambeagoodtimetotalk?” than saying, “Let’sconnectsometimenextweekto discussthisfurther.” Youraimistogetyour prospecttocommittothenextmeetingduringthe firstcallratherthanendingthecallonavaguenote withoutanyfollow-upplan. 12

22. 09 FOLLOW-UP PROMPTLY

23. Itisalsoagoodideato Itisafactthatittakes sendafollow-upemail multiplecallstoconvert afteracoldcall.Youcan aleadintoapaying alwaysendtheemail customer.Yet,most withadirectquestionto salespeopleavoid setupafollow-upcallto makingfollow-upcalls. moveforwardinthe Remember,persistence salesprocess.While paysrichdividendsin followingupisgreat, coldcalling; most youarealsoexpectedto expertsagreeittakesa bepunctual,which minimum7ormore meansifyoupromisea attemptstoconverta prospectacallbackata prospect. (usesome specifictime,makesure otherwebsiteforstat youdothat,lestyoulose ref.alreadyusedonce) yourcredibilitywiththe – otherstatsareby saidprospect. Velocify; ageneral statementhasbeen includedinstead. 13

24. 10 DON’T MULTITASK WHILE CALLING

25. Sittingatyourdeskand coldcallingforhours, repeatedlytryingto connectwithyour prospects,gettingthrough switchboardsandIVRs,can bequitedullattimes – but coldcallingrequiresa high-leveloffocus. So,don’tletthehumdrum ofroutinetemptyouto entertainyourselfwith otherthings,suchassocial media,texting,or daydreamingwhiletalking toprospects.Instead, followthegoodoldcold callingstrategyofjotting downnotesduringyour Remember,notwocallsare exactlysimilar,andyou mayloseoutonsomevital informationwithinafew secondsofdistraction. callstostayfocusedand takeregularbreaksto preventboredomfrom settingin. 14

26. 11 USE SALES DIALER TO INCREASE YOUR PRODUCTIVITY

27. withyourCRMtogiveyou Salespersonnelspenda significantamountof deepinsightsonevery timeincoldcallingeach prospect,savingalotof day.Yet,unfortunately, timeforyoursalesreps. manyofthesecallsgo Predictivedialersarealso unanswered,andsales designedinawaysoasto personnelendupwasting automaticallylimit timeinleaving abandonedcallsand voicemailsandwaiting complywithallthelocal forleadstocallthem regulationsinyourarea back. aroundcoldcalling. Anotherbenefitisthat Tomakethingseasier, salesdialersusually youmayinvestinasales matchtoalocalnumber dialer,whichcanboost theefficiencyofyour whilecallingprospects, salesteamimmensely. whichisknownto Oneofthemost increasetherateofthe significantadvantagesof conversations. amodernsalesdialeris thatitcanbeintegrated 15

28. 12 BE A GOOD LISTENER

29. whichisrewardingfor Everygoodsalesperson isalsoagreatlistener. Yes,coldcallingisnot justabouttalking; itis alsoaboutlisteningto yourprospectstomake themfeelvaluedand alsounderstandtheir concerns. boththepartiesbecause theprospectfeelsgood talkingabouthimselfor herselfwhileyouwin theirtrustandalsogain informationthatmay helpyouaddresstheir painpointsbetter. Whenyoulisten actively,youkeepthe focusontheprospect, 16

30. 13 ACCEPT REJECTION WITH A SMILE

31. Instead,keepapositive Thismaysoundalittle philosophical,but rejectionispartand parcelofyourlifeasa salesrep,especiallyif youmakealotofcold calls.Itisafactthat nobodycloses100% of theirprospects – which meansyouwillface rejectionmanytimes. However,youcannotlet itgettoyou. attitude,replaycall recordingsfrequentlyto understandwhatwent rightandwhatwent wrong,andcontinue doingyourjobwith confidenceasthereis nothingtofeelsad about. 17

32. 14 KNOW YOUR PROSPECTS BEFORE YOU CALL

33. Tomakethisprocess Ifthere’sonlyonecold muchmoreefficient,you callingstrategythatyou canalsousean intendtofollow,itmust intelligentlead bethis – researching generationsoftware yourprospectsbefore likeClodura,thathelps youcallthemup.You youidentifycompanies canusemarketresearch inyourtargetmarket andsocialmediatofind andreachouttothe outmoreaboutyour decision-makerswith prospectsandhowyour completecontact productcandeliver information,including valuetothem.Thiswill emailIdsanddirect giveyouasignificant dials.Thesoftwarealso advantageasyou’llbe providesintelligenceon abletotalktothem 25+ vitalbuyingsignsto abouttheirbusiness identifylowhanging andneedswhenyou salesopportunitiesto callthem. closemoredeals. 18

34. 15 MEASURE YOUR CALL-TO-CONVERSION RATIO TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS FASTER

35. Likeallsalespersons, youcertainlyhavea salestargettomeet.But doyouknowhowmany callswillittakeyou everydaytoachievethis goal? Well,youcanfigureout themagicnumberof callsyouneedtomake eachdaytohityour monthlyquotaby calculatingyourcallto conversionratio.For this,simplycountthe totalnumberofcallsyou madeintheprevious month,howmanyof thesecallswere answered,andhow manyofthoseanswered callsactually qualifiedintothenext stageofthefunnel. 19

36. Forexample,Joedecidedtocalculatehiscall-to- conversionratioandfoundthefollowing: CallsMade – 100 ConnectedtoProspects – 6 Conversions – 1 ThismeansthateventhoughJoehasaconnectrate of6%,heisonlyconverting1outof100callshe makes.So,ifhismonthlytargetis convertingcustomers,bythiscalculation,heneeds tomakeabout1,000callseverymonthtomeethis goal.Togetevenclosertoyoursalesgoals,we suggestthatyoucraftacompellingsalespitchand tweakitforyourprospectsaftersolidmarket research. 20

37. 16 PLAN YOUR SCHEDULE

38. Doyouhavetencallslined upforthedaywith noparticular schedule?That’samistake thatmaycostyousome eagercustomers. demos,followupcalls,etc. Toensureyouaccomplish everythingyouhavetargeted fortheday,itisnecessaryto haveafixedschedule,lestyou feeloverwhelmed.Agood Apartfromcoldcalling, thereareseveralother tasksthatyoumustfitinto anygivenday.These includeinternalteam meetings,strategic planning,marketresearch, customer ideaistousethebesttimesin theday (whichhavehigher prospectconnectratios) for coldcallingwhilereserving theremaininghoursfor peripheralactivities. 21

39. Youwillnoticethat prospectsaremorelikely toanswercallswhen theyarenotheavily engagedinwork,thatis, beforelunchortowards thelatterhalfoftheday. Usethistimetoconnect withyourhighestquality prospects,andthe remainingtimeintheday canbeusedforplanning yourschedule,modifying yourscript,sending follow-upemails,etc. But,howdoyoupickthe besttimesforyour calls? Byfindingoutthetimings whenpeoplearemost likelytoansweryour calls. Thinkaboutit – How likelyareyoutoanswera callfromanunknown numberatnineinthe morningwhenyouhave justarrivedatwork,or,at 5pm,whenyouare hurryingtowrap-upthe day’sworkandleavefor home? Also,youcananalyzethe callrecordsofthe prospectsyouhave closedandcheckifthere isanypatternregarding thenumberofcalls receivedon anyparticulardayor time. 22

40. 17 KNOW THE BEST TIMES AND DAYS TO CALL

41. Managingyourtime canbetrickywhile coldcalling.For example,youmay dedicateanhourto coldcallingeveryday butfindthatyour prospectsarenot alwaysreadyto answeryourcalls whenyoucallthem. So,evenafteryour However,thisdoesnotmeanthat scheduledhouris youcan’tplanyourdayatall over,theremaybe whilecoldcalling.Toensure severalcallbacks,and maximumresults,avoidcalling youmustalwaysbe duringtimesordayswhenyou readytoanswerthe aren’tlikelytoanswerthephone phoneanddoyour yourself,suchasMonday jobsuperbly. mornings,lunchtime,after5pm onFridays,etc. 23

42. Ifyouarecallingprospectsindifferenttimezones, youmustalsomakesurenottocallupatan inappropriatehourtocheesethemoff. Ofcourse,there’snoguaranteedformulato calculateagoldenhourwhenallyourprospectswill answer,butresearchindicatesTuesday, Wednesday,andThursdaytobethebestdaysfor coldcalling. Statistically,Wednesdayisconsideredtobe thebestdayforcoldcalling,withamaximum responseratebetween4pmand5pmeveryday. 24

43. 18 MAKE GATEKEEPERS YOUR ALLY

44. Doyouhateitwhenareceptionistorsecretary answersyourcallinsteadofthedecision-makeryou intendedtoreachoutto? Well,turnthismomentofpossibledefeatinto victorybybeingpleasanttowhoeverpicksupthe phoneandseekingtheirhelpinreachingouttothe rightpeopleintheorganization.Forexample, askingsomethingassimpleas “Iwaswonderingif youcanhelpme” canopenthegatestovital informationsuchasthenamesofotherkey personnelinthecompanyandthebesttimetocall them. 25

45. 19 PRIORITIZE YOUR CALL LIST

46. Youhavemultiplecalls linedupfortheday – but howdoyoudecidewhomto callupfirst?Well,themost practicalcoldcalling strategyiscallingyour highestqualityprospects first,duringaperiodwhen theyaremostlikelyto answeryourcall.Buthow doyouseparatethehighest qualityprospectsfrom othersisaquestionworth considering. Forthis,youneedaccessto reliablemarketintelligence thatwillkeepyouinformedof triggereventsthatmaywarm upyourcoldleads. Forexample,ifyouarea hardwarecompany,news aboutabusinessmovingtoa biggerlocationmaysignifyan opportunityandgiveyouthe perfectreasontoconnectand pitchyourservice. 26

47. Totracksuchtriggereventsandmarket intelligence,youcanrelyonvarioustools,suchas settingupGoogleAlerts,usingHootsuiteto ‘listen’ tosocialconversions,andusingaleadmanagement softwarelikeClodura,thatprovidesyouwith relevantintelligenceaboutsalesopportunities, whichcouldbethelowhangingfruitsyoucan immediatelyaimfor. 27

48. 20 NEVER STOP PRACTICING

49. Practicemakes Forexample,maintaining perfect – Truerwords therighttoneandpace haveneverbeensaid! whiletalking, That’swhyitisvitalto recognizingtheverbal practiceyourscriptin cuesgivenbyprospects, frontofthemirror,and perfectingtheanswersto overrepeatedcalls,to commonqueriesand improveyoursuccess objections,andtweaking percentage. anddeliveringyourcold callingscriptcorrectly Bygoingthroughyour andconfidentlyinevery coldcallingscript, situation. previouscall recordings,andthe commonobjections raisedbyprospects, youcanpickupsubtle cuestorefineyourcold callingstrategyfurther. 28

50. WRAPPINGUP Ifyouareasalesrepresentativelookingat improvingyourconversationandclosingrate, these20tipswillsurelytransformthewayyou connectwithclientsandhelpyougeneratemore meetingsoutofyourcalls. However,onceagain,we’dliketoaddthatyou canneverconvert100percentofyourleads, whichmakesitimportanttokeepapositiveand resilientattitudetowardsrejections,learnfrom themandmoveon.Evenifyoufacearudebrush- off,maintainyourcalm,andlearnfromthe experience.Bymirroringtheprospect’semotions insuchasituation,youareonlygoingtomake yourdayworse.Remember,youareonlydoing yourjob,andthere’snotimetofeelhurtorgive up. 29