It’s 2016… Technology is advancing, Google is getting more and more complex for many, Mobile usage is up and there are no signs of these things stopping. While businesses may be more willing when it comes to getting into the digital realm and expanding their marketing budgets; consultants and agencies are still using more traditional, “old school” methods.
Do you know why these methods are still used?
It’s not because they’re fun. People that say they love cold calling are usually lying… It’s not fun and it’s not the most fulfilling line of work.
It’s used because it works. Is it the best technique? I’ll leave that for others to discuss but there is no denying the fact that telemarketing works, and generates revenue for small time companies, individual consultants and big, Fortune 500 mammoth companies.
So for all you readers planning to hit the phones to “drum up business”, here’s 8 tips to help you along the way.
8 Cold Calling Tips For 2016 To Kick The Year Off Right!
1.) Automate Your Data Collection And Scrape Those Leads!
Yeah, you can use a phone book, you can also just Google different businesses and call them on the spot, but it isn’t efficient. Your lead or prospect data should be collected before you’re ready to pick up the phone and trade in those dials for dollars.
I’ve been recommending Mobile Renegade for a long time, that automatically scrapes data with the Yellow Pages and YellowBook, plus there’s additional plugins to scrape other sources (you can see it in action here). However, it isn’t necessary you use that software, there’s countless different pieces of software that can essentially do the same thing with other sources. You can also use a lead service like InfoFree or have a VA scrape for you.
The point is, you want the data to be available with a few clicks. You don’t want to waste time with searches every couple minutes so you can call the next number.
2.) Throw Out The Script and BE AUTHENTIC!
I don’t care what the sales gurus tell you. A script often times causes more harm than good.
If you’re trying to start your own agency or if you have an existing agency…hell, if you’re a business owner of any kind, you should know enough about what you do and offer that you don’t need to read off a piece of paper in front of you.
A couple of hours ago, I watched this horrendous video of a guy that was bragging about setting up an appointment. He was reading from a script, and it sounded absolutely awful. I predict that the business owner that agreed to the appointment, probably never showed up or allowed him to talk to him when appointment time came.
When sales trainers, gurus, teachers, etc. tell you to use a script, it sounds like something that makes sense. Some of those teachers are very good and walk the walk in real life, not just behind a computer, but the reality is that if they aren’t listening to you and there with you, they will never be able to help you adjust your delivery and tailor the script to your specific personality, voice and tone.
You can prepare yourself for calls, have an idea of what you’re going to say, especially to get past the gatekeeper, but understand that the point of the call is to have a conversation with the business owner. Scripts aren’t made for conversations. Scripts are made to eliminate thought so larger companies with telemarketers don’t have problems with people trying to “make their own script”, usually for insurance and liability reasons.
Are you a quiet person? Then call as a quiet, polite person. Are you loud and obnoxious? Then be that way on the phone. Be yourself. Do you live your life reading off a script? No… leave that for professional actors.
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3.) Call For Sales NOT Appointments
This one really gets under my skin.
Look… if you want to work locally, that’s fine. Call for an appointment if you feel much more confident face to face instead of over the phone. Personally, even if it’s local I would rather call for the sale, instead of having to meet.
Now, for some reason there’s people out there suggesting that when you cold call across your state or the entire country, you should call and get the person interested, and setup an appointment. A phone appointment or phone consultation is also what some people do.
The problem is quite simple, you’re just adding an additional touching point in order to get a sale. Sales don’t need to be made on the first call but if you want to be successful cold calling, you need to make sure sales are your focus, and NOT appointments.
Unless you’re traveling and doing the face to face or door to door thing, forget the appointments. Don’t ask for them, don’t give people them, don’t allow anyone to tell you to setup appointments when you already have an interested business owner on the phone. No… it won’t build up suspense, it just builds up opportunity for life to happen and the interest to drop.
Remember… keep it simple. Don’t let people complicate things.
Think about it, what sounds easier?
Cold call, get someone interested in what you off, sell them the idea of scheduling an appointment, go to the appointment, hope they’re still available, then SELL to them on the appointment…… OR……. Cold Call, get someone interested, sell what you’re offering?
I think the latter is ideal.
4.) DLL – Don’t Lose Leads…. EVER
This isn’t just a beginner’s tip. It’s a tip for those of you that are more experienced and have been successfully cold calling. It’s time to close out your excel files and hit the “X” on notepad. I’m sorry… It’s time.
There’s countless CRMs out there that allow you to effectively track your leads, keep notes, set reminders on when to call and they also allow you to visualize your data so you can see your conversions, win rate, loss rate, data to dump rate, sales in your funnel, funnel value, sales forecasting, etc.
I like Nutshell CRM, I’ve been using it for years now and they continue to develop a very strong platform that’s suitable for most people’s needs without the crazy complications other platforms tend to have. It costs money, but there’s other options out there that are free, like a self hosted VTiger, or you can go with insightly, or of course Salesforce.
You need an efficient way to track your leads and also see data within a couple clicks.
5.) Always Follow Up and ALWAYS NURTURE Your Leads!
Everyone that’s been in sales understands that not all leads are ready to buy when you first talk to them.
They express interest, but they want more information. They receive the information and now they have questions, then they need more information so they start researching, and this is the point where many companies lose out on business because they weren’t directing their research.
In 2015, I wrote the Ultimate Guide To Lead Nurturing, because this is an area that is rarely talked about among marketers and bloggers. Some of the Inbound blogs like Hubspot will discuss it but usually surface level stuff that doesn’t really help.
Let me put it this way… If you are investing the time, in doing something so remedial like cold calling, you better make sure you come up with a lead nurturing plan so you don’t let those leads bounce out of your funnel. You need to educate them. You need to direct them to YOUR OWN content that helps them make decisions and helps them answer questions.
You also need to understand that you will have to continue to follow up with your leads. Lead nurturing and following up are NOT the same things.
I’ve lost a lot of sales and I’ve had sales people lose a lot of sales due to “unlucky” periods of time in between following up. Every time you make a follow up call, you should want to make a sale. If they’re not ready, then you need to tell them you will follow up with them in X days or X weeks, is that okay? Usually they will say yes. If they say no, then they aren’t an active lead anymore.
To summarize: Remember that you need to follow up with your leads. Never rely on them to call you when they’re ready to do business, you have to call them. Also, develop a lead nurturing plan, it will come in handy, allowing you to close more sales and also save “lost leads” that have turned cold or inactive.
6.) Identify The Different Stages of YOUR Sales Cycle
A lot of people think in black and white terms. You call, you get someone interested and now they’re a lead… 1 month later, they still haven’t purchased from you… you think they aren’t interested anymore so you stop with your follow up calls and move on. The cycle then repeats.
Specifically in the web design, SEO, ORM, and digital marketing business, your average sales cycle can be longer than what you think is ideal.
You’re not selling newspaper subscriptions for $2/week. You’re not selling those delicious mint girl scout cookies everybody loves for $5/box. You’re selling a larger one time service/fee or a larger monthly commitment, right?
Sometimes these sales take a long time. Maybe you will never get a one call close with these services, it’s possible, but maybe it isn’t likely for you.
Guess what? It’s okay…
Marketers tend to brag about their victories, and many times exaggerate what they’ve accomplished. The reality of this business is that depending on your level of skill, and what marketing methods you’re using, your average sales cycle can be between 5 days and 5 months.
With cold calling, most sales people I had working for me were averaging about a 21 day sales cycle… some were better, some were much worse. In fact, a lot of sales came in after month 3 and 4.
This is why it is important to understand the different stages of the sales cycle.
1.) They have interest and they know the cost
2.) They have an idea of what they want, and have seen your work
3.) They’ve committed to a “package” or “quote” you’ve given them
4.) They’ve said they will be ready to get started on X date
5.) They Pay
There’s a guy that made calls for me… it didn’t matter if the lead was at the “having interest and knowing the cost” stage, he would make his follow up call and ask if they’re ready to buy, completely ignoring where the lead was in the sales process. It didn’t go very well for him.
What a lot of people don’t discuss about cold calling, is the fact you need to have a certain level of awareness. If you aren’t aware of where the lead is in your cycle, you have big problems!
7.) Ignore The Typical Sales Guru Hype
We’ve all seen Wolf of Wall Street. I forget all the other common movies that get clipped for telemarketing motivation.
I’d much rather watch Don Draper’s Mad Men magic in the boardroom where he sells ideas with authority, smoothness and pure confidence, instead of the scripted, superficial energy that the typical business owner despises… and since I referenced it, I must include it:
There’s a lot of advice out there, much of it being very bad.
Don’t talk in a higher tone of voice to sound more energetic. If you’re a man, you’ll sound like a girly man and no businessman wants to buy something from a girly man.
Don’t pay $$$’s for a “guru script”.
Chances are you aren’t going to find a secret sauce in some course.
Sales gurus know that the advice they give, often times doesn’t make a difference. The biggest difference maker is probably your attitude/confidence in yourself along with taking actual action.
8.) If You Live By The Phone… You Die By The Phone
What I mean by this is that you shouldn’t be using telemarketing or cold calling as your only strategy in creating revenue for yourself and your company. It’s a bad idea.
I’ve already covered many times, why ONLY focusing on cold calling can hinder you because the second you stop calling, is the second you stop generating leads, and in turn, revenue.
Smart diversification is always necessary when running a business, but it isn’t just about diversifying for preservation, it’s about implementing marketing and client acquisition techniques that provide a cumulative result, and exponential growth.
Final Thoughts
Cold calling for some reason continues to attract people even if they don’t have the right personality or “will power” to do it consistently. It’s NOT the right option for all people, all the time. I wish others would admit that.
However, it does work, and it can be a daunting task. Hopefully these tips will help you achieve more success in 2016!
Have any tips you would like to share? Did this list help you? Let me know in the comments below!
Cold calling fan? Cool. Cold calling hater? That’s okay too! My Ultimate Blueprint to Start A Web Agency covers a lot of different client acquisition techniques, and much more than that! Click here to see what people are saying about it.
Good write-up and I appreciate you also mentioned the lead aspect/nurturing, not just different cold-calling strategies. That is important stuff.
Anyway, any advice for being more confident on the phone? I’ve put off cold-calling so far because I feel quite anxious attempting to try to sell something. When I do, my voice turns rather quiet, shaky and unintentionally I start sounding like either a girl or as if I was about to start crying. I know how ridiculous that sounds. There must be a way to fix this?
Alex, Joe has a lot of great stuff in his post! One thing I’d like to add is that even though your focus is on selling, your goal should be to have conversations with the business owner. Take the pressure off yourself and the call, and you’ll be more likely to be comfortable having a conversation.
This stuff doesn’t happen over night. After long periods of not calling, I personally happen to have the same problem, a little shakey, stuttery and off my game, but after a few calls it becomes much more natural.
Sounds like you have pre-call anxiety. The only way to get past that is with time and practice!
Thanks Nathan, appreciate your reply. Looks like I have to stop overthinking stuff and just sit down and force myself to do it with the hopes of it getting easier after a while. At least pre-call anxiety exists and I’m not some lonely awkward case, haha.
Hi Alex,
I don’t want to step on Nathan’s toes, but I saw your post and thought I’d chime in.
First of all, we’re not machines, Alex. We’re human beings, and it’s not uncommon to experience different emotions when we’re nervous. The way you overcome this is by taking immediate action and not dwelling on it. The longer you dwell on it, the more you allow the negativity to get into your head. As Nike says “Just Do It!”
It’s like getting ready to jump into cold water when you go swimming. You know it’s going to be cold and shock you once you’re in all the way, but after a couple minutes your body adjusts and it’s not so bad. You get used to it pretty quickly.
Getting on the phone is really no different. Just stop dipping your toes in the water and freakin’ jump in head first!
I’ve been working the phones for around 2 decades all totaled now and it never really changes. Those that do it for a living are human beings, too.
There are days when I ask myself “how am I possibly going to do this today? I feel like crap!” But then I force myself to smile, force myself to pick up the phone (jump in the freaking cold water!) and just start dialing.
Before you know it you’ll get into a groove and it’ll become easier. By the time the day is over (most days) you’ll have made some sales or at least are much more comfortable on the phone.
By the way do NOT forget to ask for the sale! You can talk until you’re blue in the face, but unless you ask for the sale you’ll lose sales that you could have easily made.
One more thing and I’ll let Nathan take over. Be prepared. Have your product information, price sheets, objection sheet (list of ways to overcome common objections), a pen, a notebook (if relevant), etc.
Once you’re prepared there’s no reason at all to be nervous. Simply “smile and dial”. All you’re doing is a simple sorting process. You sort through all of the people who say “no” until you find the handful of people that will say “yes”.
Also, most people aren’t nearly as mean as you’d think. You’ll find an occasional idiot, but most people are nice, or at least cordial. They don’t bite.
It’s not that hard. You just have to get started. Once you do, it will become second nature.
Regarding the emotional stuff, nervousness, anxiety, etc. Go easy on yourself. Just go jump in head first and get to work! Before you know it you’ll wonder why you were ever nervous in the first place.
Hope that helps,
Joe
Thanks for chiming in Joe, awesome comment and response. You’re a good man!
Thanks a lot Joe, what you’re saying makes sense and it’s kind of a relief to see that I’m not the only one with this problem. Appreciate you taking the time out of your day to write this up, I’ll just give it a try and see how far I get. Thanks!
Thanks, Nathan. That’s a very kind thing to say. I try very hard to be, but there are definitely times when little horns pop up in my bald spot. Hehehe. 🙂
You’re very welcome, Alex. I’m always happy to help if I can. I will say though, “do or do not. There is no “try”.” You’re leaving yourself an out. Fix yourself on a set number of dials every time you sit down to work and dial until you hit that number. Don’t cheat yourself! Set goals, hit them consistently and change your life.
Just do it!
By the way, it is a great post, Nathan! I got sidetracked back there. The thing that stood out for me were as follows:
#3. I agree 1,000%! I’ve never understood the need to make a follow-up appointment. Maybe with a very high ticket item, but I’ve never sold anything that’s super expensive, so that’s a bit foreign to me.
My thoughts are that the person is at a warm level after you’ve done your presentation. Why not just ask for the sale right then? Of course, you may or may not have objections to overcome, but why wait? So you can tell them the same thing again later? So the excitement you just created is gone? I always ask for the sale on the initial contact.
#5. Exactly. As the old saying goes, “the fortune is in the follow-up”. Of course, that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t try to sell them during the initial contact, as you mentioned in #3. It just means that it takes some people longer to decide, it may not have been a good time when you called initially, things have changed for them and now they DO need what you’re offering, etc.
Also, they may have bought something less expensive from you initially and you’ll want to try to upsell them later. It’s almost always easier to sell a warm contact than a cold one.
#7. Love it! That reminds me of a guy I used to work with years ago. He was excellent at doing “takeaway selling”. We were doing door to door and had this pitch that had massive urgency, great value and was 100% guaranteed. He’d hit the door running, sometimes almost out of breath, pitch it to sound like they’d be crazy not to do it, ask for the sale and then if they stopped to think about it he’d just start packing stuff up and say, “look, I’d really love to have your business, but I’ve got to go!’ A lot of people would be like “wait! Where ya’ going with my stuff? It worked very well. I’d forgotten about that. Lol
#8. This is exactly why I’m changing my primary business model this year to move away from a product only based business to a service based platform that offers a decent front end income, but also builds backend income. If all goes according to plan, I should have a decent monthly income that I can rely on like clockwork by the end of this year and cut my work load down to very part-time by the end of year two. That’s barring setbacks. Worst case scenario I’d say it’ll all be in place by the end of year three.
As business owners, independent contractors, entrepreneurs, etc I think it’s important that we take time each year (or sooner) to reevaluate exactly where we’re at, what’s working in our business and what’s not, the direction we’re going, is that still the best direction, etc. I’ve had to do this not long ago and came to the realization that it was time for change, BUT that the change was going to be a good thing.
Once again, great post!
Love the video!! hahaha
Great comment, Joe. I usually start off ok and then freak myself out when picking up the phone. But, when I do it, it seems no one is mean or yelling, they’re either interested or ask to hear more.
Any, the crazy thing is… I worked for an accounting firm for 2.5 years making cold calls, but when I try to do it for myself, again, I freak myself out. I’m starting to think it’s lack of direction and confidence. When some calls or contact me then no problem, but for me to initiate the call, that’s where the problems come into play.
And, Nathan, I love your approach!
I think it’s normal David. The same thing happens to even the most seasoned callers. It doesn’t take long to get back into the groove though. Confidence never happens on the first couple calls.
And that video is a classic! lol.
Awesome and pure gold post Nathan.
This post has many others have been refreshing and brainstorming my mind on how cold calling should be done.
I also recommend to anyone to watch this video which explains carefully how should you use your voice to keep high the attention of the client/lead on you :
https://www.ted.com/talks/julian_treasure_how_to_speak_so_that_people_want_to_listen
For the various points listed I can only say that I’m guilty of non continuing to nurture leads that showed interests and letting them die.
I should probably go back to the whole old lead list and contact them one by one and don’t surrend for each one until I hear a “NO”. :).
Thanks again for the post.
Andrea
Cool video Andrea. Thanks for the comment.
I have no idea about the amount of cold calls you have already made, but you seem to misunderstand some stuff.
Read and listen to Grant Cardone. A man that made thousands of cold calls. I think you will find some of the things you said complete nonsense.
Scientology FTW I guess. LOL. I’ve read and listened to Grant Cardone, but I don’t sell training programs to car dealerships, my experience is in the web design and marketing field. If you were an expert, you wouldn’t have been reading a post about tips for cold calling. Thanks for the comment.
Good list bro. Great advice and I’ve followed most of these for a while. I have a call room with 8 reps calling for a variety of things. Spot on especially about the lead nurturing. Big difference in what you read people theorizing and what happens in real life. If I listened to those dudes I’d still be in my parents basement, broke as hell.
Real sales people don’t sell like Cardone. “Give me one person I can close today” GTFO here wit that shiet.
Haha thanks for the comment. You’re definitely right. Styles and approach will vary based on your target market, what you’re selling, and your personality. People think it’s crazy when I say to not have a script. Not having a script, doesn’t mean going into a call unprepared.
Nathan I fully enjoyed reading through your latest blog. Picked up some great resources that I’m excited to try out in my own agency.
Totally agree about closing over the phone, although I’m not opposed to meeting in person. If meeting in person is what it takes to develop a strong long term relationship with a new business owner prospect, it’s’ worth my time.
Keep the value coming Nate – this is one of my favorite offline blogs to camp out on for a while each month.
Thanks for coming by Matt, good to hear from you!
Hi Nathan, For the most part I agree with your points. I use and recommend Mobile Renegade, in fact Rick and I are friends. Joe too has some sound advice, he is obviously “A Player”. My experience goes back to the early 70’s. I literally set up real boiler rooms. At one point I ran 75 phone rooms, a residential dial program, for a national photography studio. Started doing B2B selling tools over the phone. Nation-wide calling, we used what was known then as WATS lines, walls with floor to ceiling book cases stuffed with phone books from all over the country, so I am no neophyte. I still believe in having a written presentation in front of me, a track to run on. Refining it to say the right thing, with the right phraseology. Practicing to have the right tone, emphasis, hesitation, and modulation, and then once you’ve “nailed it” SLOW DOWN! You know your product or service, but the person your talking to is hearing it for the first time. After all, for the Don Draper Sales Pitch, someone carefully wrote the lines, and rehearsed them, so it wouldn’t sound like reading a script. It’s a numbers game, I want to make my proposition, garner interest, and if it’s there, then, take the time needed to “brother up”, and close the deal. Tip #7 regarding paying the guru is good advice, Their “Secret Sauce” might work for them, but it is usually more about how they say it, than what is written in their script, though if I see or hear something that makes sense, I’m going to make it my own. Still, I write one out, and even have rebuttals for the 10 most commonly heard objections, printed out, large type, taped to the wall, right in front of me (that’s the old school you mention). My gatekeeper approach gets me through more than anything else I’ve used, but nothing works every time, and how I say it is the key. You can write me off, by saying; “If you were an expert, you wouldn’t have been reading a post about tips for cold calling.” I’ve already been “The Rock Star” and have nothing to prove to anyone but myself. I try to be smart enough to know how stupid I am, therefore, I can always learn, and be re-introduced to practices that work, but I’ve gotten away from. Until that day when everyone I approach, cuts me a check, I shall remain a student. Thank you for your insights, and for allowing me to share mine, I hope I’ve been of some value.
Hey John, I appreciate the in depth comment. I don’t think it’s a bad idea to give yourself some bullet points or a rebuttal list but my problem with scripts stem from people sounding so terribly rehearsed, and completely lost if the lead takes them off script.
I have no problem with people disagreeing with me. Different strokes for different folks my friend! I can always respect differing points of view, as long as there is substance behind it.
Thanks for the discussion!
I have nothing of value to add here, I just want to thank you Nathan but also thank the other commenter’s here for the amazing contributions in the comment section. I’ve never seen a blog with such great content not just in posts but in the comment section.
Glad you’ve found this helpful SEO Dude!