Cold Calling is Dead? Not so Fast!
Cold calling is thought to be ineffective: people hang up, and telephone transactions are being replaced by online services. However, we all get cold calls from banks, hospitals, and fitness centers almost every day. But it’s still functional?
Cold calling – that is, calling people who have never heard of your brand – appears to be a simple and cost-effective way to gain new customers. But how important is it? Even though people are less likely to pick up the phone when calling from an unknown number, 70 percent of shoppers answer cold calls, according to a recent survey.
So, how do you make cold calls work for you?
First, build a good base. If you start calling everyone in a row, you will spend a lot of time and resources, but 99% of recipients will not be interested in your offer. There are two options to get the base: build it yourself or buy it.
Second, consider how the cold-calling script differs from that of your main competitors. It’s easy to do – simply set a pre-selected phone number as a contact for a prospective customer, and persistent sales managers can start calling it in less than a week.
You may be shocked to discover that your conversation script is identical to hundreds of others after listening to a few scripts (pay particular attention to the introductory part). Consider how someone (your potential client) would respond if they were forced to listen to the same thing every day.
You just get one chance to make a first impression, as we all know. And if you start the conversation off dull and uninteresting, you will be turned down right away. As a result, consider the start of the discussion and experiment with various choices.
If you note that more than half of the customers are leaving at some point during the chat, it’s time to change the script. Line managers may be involved in this project. They’ll first assist you in identifying the issue and rewriting the script in “customer’s terms.” Second, they would feel like they were a part of the script’s development and would be more likely to pursue it.
Third, give the customer a benefit. As soon as possible! There’s no need to beat around the bush and waste your assigned attention on curtsies. The advantage to the customer, your irresistible bid, should be stated explicitly in the second or third phase of the conversation. And, of course, avoid questions to which your interlocutor might answer “no”. If you give him such an opportunity, he will use it.
Also, do not depend on advice from books written in the previous century. Sales technology is constantly evolving, and if unpretentious manipulation in the style of Dale Carnegie was once successful, it no longer is. Your clients have already read these books and are well-versed in classical techniques.
The best thing you can do is update your arsenal of tricks and tricks with quality sales training.
- Finally, remember to keep track of your progress. There’s always a possibility that your boss, no matter how nice he is or how fine the scripts you send him, will not work out. And it’s up to you to note it before it’s too late. Therefore:
- Pay attention to the interactions of managers and assess each stage of the interaction, from greeting to goodbye. Put positive moments to work, and make minor changes to poor ones.
- Give the managers a goal for the number of new connections they want to make and see if they stick to it. It’s human nature to put off the most important decision until the last possible moment. This harms company earnings. Work on it if any of the workers are falling behind the rest.
- Calculate Conversions: The number of effective cold calls divided by the total number of new contacts. Take a closer look at one manager’s interactions to figure out what his secret is if he has a higher conversion rate than the others.
Good luck and remember to smile and breathe as you speak.
