Cold calling has gotten a little bit of a reputation as something undesirable in the last few years now that email marketing has grown in popularity. The truth is, however, for many industries and businesses – especially those working in a B2B setting – cold calling is an expected and useful part of the business process.
Cold calling gives you an instant opportunity to create a positive experience with another brand. Even if your prospect doesn’t decide to convert in the initial conversation, you’ve already ignited them into thinking about you. And, if you can ensure that that first impression is a positive one, you’re far more likely to nurture a relationship that can eventually turn into a sale.
Tips for Prospecting With Cold Calling
If you’re new to the B2B realm and want to ensure you’re making the right moves to start cold calling the right way, we’ve gathered a few techniques together to help you navigate.
Transition Into Warm Calling
Warm calling is the act of establishing that first connection before following up with a prospect through email or another form of contact. This means, from the very beginning, it’s less about the sale and more about the connection. You can find out a connection you may have in common and reach out that way, or find someone and send a connection request on Linkedin. From there, you can find or request a phone number and you will already have a recognizable name on the caller ID.
Fewer people look forward to phone calls, so if you’re able to reach out first via email even, you’re more likely to secure a better connection when speaking on the phone. Outlasted Data’s Email Finder is a great first step to finding the right people and connecting with them before sending them that phone call.
When You Do Call, Make it Positive and Welcoming
When you do arrange a call or decide to reach out in this way, always start by introducing you, you’re position and company, and asking if you can have a minute of their time. By diving right into your sales spiel, especially if you haven’t asked permission first, is likely to distract a prospect or instantly put up their defensive. Remind them of your connection and why you think that relationship has value for both of you.
If You’re Delegating Cold Calling To Your Employees, Measure Success The Right Way
Many marketing managers who delegate cold calling to staff will measure the success of their run by how many calls they make in a day. Measured against that is whether each call resulted in a sale or not. These can be misleading when more calls have negative results than positive ones. Instead of pressuring employees to speed through as many calls as possible and read from the same script each time, promote an environment where they secure connections, gain another meeting time, etc.
Want to increase your chances of succeeding in the first call when prospecting? Take a look at the rest of OutlastedData’s valuable content here.
