The Basics of Cold-Calling

While cold-calling is not limited to selling over the phone it has been a common objective of many businesses to use cold-calling methods to increase their sales. Due to the misuse of this method some people can have a negative impression of cold-calling.

By learning the basics of cold-calling you can better prepare yourself and increase your chances of success significantly. Here is what you need to know:

Define your goals:

Before you make any calls it is important for you to understand the purpose of your calls. Defining goals beforehand can make you feel more confident and focused.

Not all cold-calls are designed with the objective of selling as some would like to set appointments or generate leads that can be turned into sales at a later stage. It is essential for the purpose of clarity that you understand the reason for cold-calling in the first place.

Goals do not need to be limited to what you personally want or what your employer wants. The needs of the person you are calling have to be taken into account. The purpose of your call could be to provide a solution to these people.

Research:

The more you know about the person or company that you are calling the easier it will be for you to engage in a worthwhile conversation. Research can provide you with basic information so that you do not need to pester the recipient.

For a sales call you can find that knowing about the industry that the company operates in, company size, it's profits and objectives can make it easier for you to pitch your ideas and sell.

Cold-calling can sometimes be used to gather information. In this case you should do as much independent research as you can and use cold-calling to fill in the blanks.

Researching a person or business can have another benefit too. Through your language the other person can establish that you have done some research and understand what they want which means that they can be a little more acceptive to you than they would normally.

Call list:

With cold-calling you are usually expected to ring a large number of people. Having a list can make things much easier for you even if it takes a little time to gather the names and contact details in the first place. Some companies will even provide you with a full list of the people you need to ring so you may not have to get these details yourself.

You can arrange your client list in the order of priority, size or even distinguish between those people who you know are interested and those you have not contacted yet. Good organizational skills can come in very handy when you are cold-calling.

If you are required to look for clients by yourself you have a number of options. You can use the internet to find clients by visiting their websites or even using social networking sites to find out more about them. Professional companies can also offer you some leads but they tend to charge a fee.

The actual call:

Once you have all the information that you need you need you are then ready to move onto the next stage. This is where you will make the call and using your verbal skills you will try and engage with a prospective client.

Your tone of voice or language that you use can all be fundamental to determining the success of the call. This is why some cold-callers opt to use a pre-created script so that they do not falter during a call. Scripts do not always work as they can sound a little robotic so you can find that having rough guidelines are more useful.

Start with greeting the client appropriately and then a brief introduction of you and the company that you work for. Quickly establish what your company can offer them so that you attract their attention. Taking too long to explain this can turn a client away from you so take a little time to practice this beforehand.

Selling:

If the purpose of your call is to sell you need to try a range of tactics. During a call avoid being too pushy as some people will want time to think. The hard-sell technique is not always effective and can sometimes result in failure.

Selling through cold-calling can sometimes take a little longer. You may need to make 3-4 calls before you sell. With each call you should be polite and never bossy. Emphasis what your company can offer the client and why they should say 'yes' to whatever you are offering them.

There are also times where you may not be able to talk to the person you intended to ring. Assistants are usually the people you have to speak to before you are able to get through to the right person. Be respectful to them and try and establish some rapport with them. Tell them who you are, why you are calling and why they should allow you to contact their boss.

Now that you have understand the basics of cold-calling you can successfully make your first call. Cold-calling can be effective for businesses of all shapes and sizes but only if you know what you are doing. The tips above can help you to understand the basics of cold-calling so that you are familiar with all that is involved with making cold-calls.