 |
How to Make Cold Calling Effective
Author: Ari Galper  | Posted: 14-05-2008 | Comments: 0 | Views: 20 | Rating: (53)  (?) 
How can we make cold calls “work” when we’re talking to someone we haven’t met, about something they may not need? Well, it’s really simple. First we look at how to relate to them rather than hoping they’ll relate to us and our solution.
When we approach cold calling with a question about what their needs are, potential clients respond much more readily to the idea of talking with us.
To help you with this, here are a few examples of dialogues within four very different industries.
Example: Staffing
In the staffing or recruiting industry, the goal is to call a company and identify whether they need help finding new staff.
The old cold calling approach is, “Hi. My name is… I’m with XYZ Staffing Company, and we offer these services. I’m just calling to…” And by that time, the person pretty much says, “We’re not interested,” right?
With this new cold calling approach, the idea is to think about the problem you’re solving. The problem you’re solving is helping them find good people.
So I would start the conversation with, “Maybe you can help me out for a second?” And they usually say, “How can I help you?”
I reply, “I’m just calling to see if your company is still looking at finding good, quality employees to hire?”
The response to that is likely to be, “Well sure. Who’s this?” This is a normal response which we want to be ready for. I would simply say, “My name is Ari and I’m with XYZ Staffing Company and we help companies identify and find good people. I’m just calling to see if your company is in a situation now where you’re looking to hire and find new people.”
Example: Software
Let’s say you’re in the software industry, and that you sell software to improve the
productivity of an organization. What you want to do is focus on the problem that you solve specifically.
What most software salespeople do in cold calling is say, “Hi, we sell software to help improve productivity.” But that doesn’t really identify the problem it solves. You have to focus specifically on an issue.
So, for instance, the software might solve a problem with lost paper-based documents. That’s a very specific issue.
In this case, I might call and say, “I’m just calling to see if your company is having
issues with lost paperwork because of manual paper-based filing systems.”
See how specific that is? It’s very directed to the problem in their world. This is in contrast to, “I want to see if your company is looking to buy some software
or looking to improve productivity,” or something similar.
Example: Advertising
Advertising is a very good example. Typically, what most advertising sales folks start with is an introduction. They talk about their advertising product or services that they offer.
But with our problem solving approach, the question becomes, “What does advertising solve for people?” The first thought usually is that it gets people leads. It gets
more branding.
Let’s go deeper than that. What do leads do for companies? Leads provide sales, right? So if I sell advertising, I might call and say, “Maybe you can help me out for a second. I’m just calling to see if your company is open to new ideas of generating leads for your business.”
From this place, the discussion unfolds around their world, and not your advertising.
That’s the real shift in making cold calling relevant to their world.
Example: Collections
Another example is the collections industry. Typically, collection agencies call companies to see if they can be hired to collect invoices that are unpaid. They usually talk about their services as opposed to making their cold calling focus on the problem.
The client is looking to bring in more revenue from invoices that aren’t paid. So an approach might be, “Maybe you can help me out for a second?” The reply is once again, “Sure, how can I help you?”
“I’m just calling to see if your company is still having issues with unpaid invoices.” And the response probably will be, “Well, yeah, we are. Who’s this?”
You can then respond in a very relaxed tone, “This is John. I’m with XYZ Collection Agency. I’m just calling to see if you’d be open to some new ideas on how to better solve that problem.”
These are some examples of how to make your cold calling relevant to the other person and his or her needs. Practice this, and you’ll find that your cold calling conversations become more relaxed. You’ll no longer have to shift into an artificial “salesperson” role.
Rate this Article:
Current: 0 / 5 stars - 0 vote(s).
Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/sales-articles/how-to-make-cold-calling-effective-413426.html
About the Author:Ari Galper, founder of Unlock The Cold Calling Game makes cold calling painless and simple. Learn his cold calling secrets that even the sales gurus don't know. Listen to a free cold calling audio seminar, visit http://www.UnlockTheGame.com
|
Submitting articles has become one of the most popular means of generating quality backlinks and targeted traffic to your website. Join us today - It's Free! |
|
Related Articles
3 Cold Calling Phrases That Get Results
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
How can we possibly avoid rejection and still stay “real” while cold calling? Well, the truth is that the more genuine we are, the less likely we are to be rejected.
Once you understand why cold calling is so difficult, and you start to shift your mental view of the cold call, then you can move from thoughts to actual language that’s in alignment with this new way of thinking.
Determining a Fit in Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 03/04/2008 | Sales
One of the biggest challenges in cold calling I have to say is finding the truth in the prospects. It is hard for many of the prospects to open up to a stranger on the other end of the phone and without that trust quite often you are not getting the truth from them but hearing what they think you want them to say. This leads to chasing the prospect later in the sales process.
How to Use Your Right Brain When Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Do you struggle with the process of cold calling? For many of us, it’s a grueling experience. That’s because we try to carry on a conversation from a rigid, linear place. We’re trying to follow a strategy or a script. So when it comes to having a relaxed and enjoyable cold calling conversation, it just doesn’t work very well.
Forcing a Natural Voice in Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 03/04/2008 | Sales
Just as we often force ourselves to sound happy or force ourselves to learn the free cold calling scripts we can force ourselves to sound natural. This is a bad idea. If you have an agenda going in or are not being honest the prospect will pick it up. Forcing yourself to do anything in cold calling will tend to blow up in your face.
How to Throw Out Your Cold Calling Scripts
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Recently you may have received a cold call from someone using an old-style linear sales script. You probably recognized it as a cold call because the person sounded a bit robotic and kept talking without allowing the conversation to “breathe.”
New Ways to Open Your Cold Calls
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Most of us design our cold calling around scripts and strategies. Isn’t that how we’ve been taught by the sales gurus? Scripts are linear and step-by-step so you can move calls in the direction you want them to go. And sales strategies do the same thing.
The Surprising Truth About Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Haven’t you noticed the old "tried and true" cold calling techniques that were once successful in cold calling have completely lost their effectiveness?
That's why I’ve developed a new cold calling approach that will quickly and automatically put you ahead of the game, and in a league above your competition
4 Ways to Break Into the Prospects World in Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 09/05/2008 | Sales
The World of Cold Calling is often a cruel and hard one. Many of us often dread the mere thought of placing cold calls. However it is a necessary evil we can not avoid in the world of sales. There are many difficulties we face when calling prospects. Learning to get into their world could help us break the ice and relieve stress on both sides.
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Q&A Powered by: 
Latest Sales Articles
The 3 Worst Mistakes In Lead Generation Voice Broadcasting Messages
By: David Seldon | 05/09/2008
Successful pre-recorded messages for voice broadcasting must deliver inexpensive, quality leads. Here are the 3 worst (and most frequent) mistakes encountered in them.
Cutting the Middlemen – Make a Deal Straight With the Owner
By: Editor-123 | 05/09/2008
Save on commission, brokerage and other charges, and avoid legal hassles by buying a home for sale by owner.
Entrepreneurs - Fight vs. Flight In Getting Sales
By: Ramon Vela | 05/09/2008
Regardless your education level, your mental strength to choose fight versus flight in business is your strongest tool.
Reasons Why There are No Free Cell Phone Number Look Up Services
By: Apolie Turtz | 05/09/2008
I am going to tell you directly that there are no free services for cell phone number look up. The city and the state where the cell phone number was registered are the only free information that you can get when performing this search. According to different users online, the rates range from as small as $15 to $40 in getting unlimited year long cell phone number look up service. There are also additional charges for benefits in protecting the confidentiality of information to avoid scammers fr
Different Types of Scale
By: Jacob Christopher | 04/09/2008
Most of the sales are done based on weight. Bench scales, pocket scales, jewelry scales, industrial scales, laboratory scales, bathroom scales, and baby scales are some of the common types of scales.
Marketing Relationship - Secret to Business Profits
By: William Jimenez | 04/09/2008
Most people shun sales and any type of marketing relationship. They just don’t want to have anything to do with it. I've heard them make excuses regarding their lack of skills in convincing people on any product or service feature or a lack of people relationship and communication skills.
Luxury Swiss Replica Watch Shop Announces Swiss Automatic Hublot Watches at Discounted Prices Online
By: exactbrands | 04/09/2008
customers are no longer willing to pay the high prices that high end watches used to command, although discounted high end watches still have quite a market. For this reason, many consumers are finding this new site to be an excellent place to purchase the watches they want for prices that truly are affordable, even in today’s economy.
Customers that visit this new site find low prices on both men’s and women’s new and pre-owned authentic designer watches. Watches from more than 100 manufacture
Tips and Preferences on Buying a Swiss Replica Watch
By: exactbrands | 04/09/2008
Tips and preferences on Buying a swiss Replica Watch.We offer you the stock website online as your store reselling online,you get the money from your customers,then we ship items to your customers directly after you pay us.You just need to make the orders successfully at home,it is so easily to earn money.
More from Ari Galper
3 Ways to Better Understand Cold Calling Prospects
By: Ari Galper | 18/05/2008 | Sales
Most salespeople who are trained in the old way of making cold calls rarely think about the people they’re calling. They’re too busy thinking about their product or service. But really, this is backwards. If you’re only focusing on what you have to offer, you’re not relating to the other person. And this means that that most of your prospects won’t find your cold call particularly interesting.
How to Avoid Hitting the Cold Calling Wall
By: Ari Galper | 18/05/2008 | Sales
Let's say you're at your office and you're working away. Your phone rings and someone says, “Hello, my name's Mark. I'm with Financial Solutions. We offer a broad array of financial solutions. Do you have a few minutes?”
What would go through your mind when you hear this pitch? Probably the same thing your prospects are thinking when they get a cold call from you. In other words, “How can I get this person off the phone as quickly as possible?”
How to Avoid the "cold Calling Wall"
By: Ari Galper | 18/05/2008 | Sales
Let's say you're at your office and you're working away. Your phone rings and someone says, "Hello, my name's Mark. I'm with Financial Solutions. We offer a broad array of financial solutions. Do you have a few minutes?"
What would go through your mind when you hear this pitch? Probably the same thing your potential clients are thinking when they get a cold call from you. In other words, “How can I get this person off the phone as quickly as possible?”
4 Forms of Sales Pressure That Sabotage Cold Calls
By: Ari Galper | 18/05/2008 | Sales
If you’ve been trained in the old traditional sales approach, your cold calling strategy is probably one of persuasion. That is, you use a variety of way to try to persuade another person to buy your product or service. You point out the benefits and features of what you have to offer, and use strategies to convince them to make a purchase.
But what you’re really doing is pressuring the other person to follow your own personal...
How to Recognize and Diffuse Pressure in Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 18/05/2008 | Sales
Wouldn’t it be great if you could make cold calling pleasant for both you and the other person? Well, it’s very possible, if you’re willing to remove sales pressure from the interaction..
Why? Because sales pressure is the underlying cause of all tension in cold calling. You’re pressuring yourself to make the sale, and you’re also pressuring the other person to buy what you have to offer.
The Surprising Truth About Cold Calling
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Haven’t you noticed the old "tried and true" cold calling techniques that were once successful in cold calling have completely lost their effectiveness?
That's why I’ve developed a new cold calling approach that will quickly and automatically put you ahead of the game, and in a league above your competition
New Ways to Open Your Cold Calls
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Most of us design our cold calling around scripts and strategies. Isn’t that how we’ve been taught by the sales gurus? Scripts are linear and step-by-step so you can move calls in the direction you want them to go. And sales strategies do the same thing.
How to Throw Out Your Cold Calling Scripts
By: Ari Galper | 15/05/2008 | Sales
Recently you may have received a cold call from someone using an old-style linear sales script. You probably recognized it as a cold call because the person sounded a bit robotic and kept talking without allowing the conversation to “breathe.”
|
|
Business 
