The best aspect of selling that has a great fear in people’s hearts is the cold calls. A good way to understand cold calls is to stop thinking of it as a “cold” calls,
It is important to understand the purpose of cold calls so you have a realistic attitude about this type of business development activity but try thinking of them as a “introductory” calls instead of having it as a cold calls so that we can take much more about phone prospecting and other types of marketing efforts that will lead to a another exploration of a new frontier and will take a time to get results.
Three Things To Do Before You Pick Up A Phone
1. Use a Targeted List Of Prospects.
if your doing a real estate business, If you sell homes to home buyers, why call people from hospital, repair shop, and more? Get the right list of prospect.
2. Determine The Best Time Frames For Calling.
If you are selling financial services to upper-income CEOs or entrepreneurs, wouldn’t it be nice to know when their corporate fiscal years end? Perhaps most of their investment purchases are made two to four weeks prior to that year-end close-out. That’s when they know how much extra income needs to be sheltered in a pension plan.
If Preparation For Cold-Calling Is Easy But Actually Making Calls Is Painful For You, Here Are Seven Easy Steps To Get You On The Phone Fast.
1. Personalize Each Call By Preparing Mentally
Your mind-set needs to be aligned with your language, or the conversation will not ring true. You need to work on developing a warm but not sugarcoated telephone voice that has that “Don’t I know you?” or “Gee, you sounds familiar” ring to it.
2. Perfect Your Phone Style Alone, Before Making Any Calls.
If you are self-conscious about calling, you need to feel safe to act uninhibited. Try this: Gather a tape recorder, a mirror, a sales journal of incoming and outgoing phone scripts, a pen and a legal-sized pad. Either write or selected a favorite phone dialogue: then talk to yourself in the mirror. Do you look relaxed, or are your facial expressions rigid? Our exteriors reflect our inner selves. If you look like you’re in knots, your voice will sound strained as well.
3. Create Familiarity All Around You.
Use family photos, framed testimonial letters, motivational quotes, or whatever gets you in a positive, enthusiastic mood. If you like, play some music the inspire you.
4. Use Your Imagination.
Pretend you are a prospective customer calling a bookstore to see if they have a book in stock. If it helps, record how you sound to get the feel of your inquiring phone voice. It’s always easier to imagine you’re a customer in need of information than a salesperson trying to force your way into the customer’s time. The inquiry call is good practice because the tone of the conversation is “Can you help me?” or “I need some information.” Try to convey that same attitude when you use the phone to contact future customers.
5. Watch Your Tone Of Voice.
You do not want to sound sheepish and embarrassed, nor do you want to be arrogant. The ideal tone is warm, businesslike, curious and straight to the point. A good option is a question or a cut-to-the-chase statement such as: “I’ve got a problem. We are offering a two-for-one special during the next 30 days on all our coffee drinks, just to get people into the store. I need to know if you have ever stopped in while shopping at the mall, and, if not, why not? We have got the greatest ice-blended mochas in town”
6. Make your Goal A Fast “50 In 150”–That is, 50 Calls In 150 Minutes.
Three minutes per call is all you need. With so many voice-mail systems intercepting calls today. this should be easy. Never give people the impression you have time to chat. Chatting is not prospecting. You’re on a mission. Get to the point, then move to the next prospect.
7. Take Five After 15.
after 15 calls, take a five-minute break – stretch, eat, sip a soda, turn on some tunes, and pat yourself on the back because you’re making it happen. Then grab the phone for 15 more calls.
NEXT STEPS WITH COLD CALLING!
Cold calling isn’t easy, but your skills will get better with practice. The key ingredients to a perfect sales pitch depend on many variables, but ultimately it comes down to confidence and practice. With the right attitude, rejected pitches can be soon as a positive learning experience. If you still need help, see if your company offers sales training and on boarding software to help accelerate your learning process.