Your Sales Leads Blog

The following article was written by Richard Burge, Account Manager, with Your Sales Leads, Inc.

People prepare for all sorts of things; natural disasters, retirement, a vacation, a family gathering for the holidays.  Even the Boy Scouts of America live by the motto “Be Prepared”.  However, when making cold calls can we really be prepared?  And what are some of the ways that we can best prepare? What is the value of cold call preparation? 

Cold calling success doesn’t happen by chance.  You don’t wake up one morning, say to yourself I’m going to pick up the phone, call some businesses and automatically be a huge success.  So the question is…. What does it take to be successful at cold calling?  In two words – a plan!  Cold calling requires a plan; a roadmap of steps that will prepare us for success.  What does that look like?  While there are many key areas that contribute to our cold calling success, let’s focus our attention on these three areas – who we are going to call, what we are going to say and how to handle objections (or conversation stoppers).

The first area that we should look at is who we’re going to call.  We have to identify a target.  So what should that include?  Indentify the geographical area that you want to work in i.e. City, State, Zip code area, and/or region.  Within that territory you can decide which types of businesses you would like to target.  For example, you might want to target businesses with certain revenue or a specific number of employees.  You may even want to call on a specific industry vertical which can be identified by it’s SIC or NAICS code.  Once you have established those parameters you can decide on who within each company you want to target as a potential contact.  For example, for telecom services that might include the Owner, President, CIO, CTO, CFO or the IT Director, even the IT Manager.  The hierarchy of who should be contacted is determined by who is most likely the decision maker and can ultimately cut the check for your product or service.  The value of these steps is that it will increase your close ratio and decrease your sales cycle – that’s the value of being prepared.

The next key area is being prepared with what we’re going to say once we make the call.  A script works great for this.  It’s been proven that when cold calling you have less than 30 seconds to capture a prospects attention.  Develop an introduction that tells the prospect who you are, what you can do for him or his business and ask for the appointment.  After all, that is the purpose of the call to begin with, right?  Having a script prevents you from being too wordy and helps you stay on task.  The value of using a preplanned elevator pitch is that it is brief and on point.  It also allows you to maximize the value of your product and service in a way that captures your prospects attention and motivates them to take action.  It also prevents you from trying to sell or close the deal  while on the phone.  Remember, your goal is to set an appointment to meet.  The best way to be prepared for cold calling success is to know what you’re going to say and a script is the most effective solution for this.

Finally, as prepared as we can be with how we will introduce our product or service, we must be more prepared to handle the unavoidable objections or roadblocks that we will encounter when making cold calls.  It is in this key area that perhaps we should spend the greatest amount of time preparing.  What do I mean?  Well, consider that statistically cold calling and prospecting is the number one disliked activity in the field of sales.   In fact, you only have to look on the internet to see how widespread this problem is.  We hear things like “I don’t like gatekeepers.” or “I hate it when I’m told no or they have no interest.”  Being prepared will help you overcome a much larger percentage of these calls and increase your success tremendously.  How?  Everyone who cold calls can agree that we hear the same objections every day.  So just like knowing the best way to introduce your company’s product or service, you can develop responses to the most common objections that you hear.  For example, what do you say when you hear “I’m not interested” or “I don’t have time” or “I’m happy with my current vendor” or “Just send me some literature.”?  At our company, Your Sales Leads, we do cold calling every day.  Because we hear these types of objections so frequently we have developed and even offer an interactive web based tool designed to train sales people on this very process (http://yoursalesleads.com/sales-coach-express.htm).  By developing, training, and then implementing these planned responses you too can increase your confidence, your sales performance, and ultimately your opportunities to close.  Mastering the art of overcoming objections will result in cold calling success.  And, in order to master anything you have to plan and be prepared!

In conclusion, whether we are going on vacation, retiring from work, or just one of the countless millions who are having their families over for the holidays… you must be prepared.  And when making cold calls never were truer words spoken.  As the saying goes “Plan your work and work your plan.” Knowing who you will call, what you will say, and how to overcome objections are all fantastic ways to BE PREPARED for cold calling success.

The following article was written by Robin Bohbot, President of Your Sales Leads, Inc. 

Lead generation is not telemarketing.  Many people interchange these terms but they are not interchangeable.  Lead generation is a focused and targeted effort.  Telemarketing is more of a shotgun approach – remember how your mother used to throw spaghetti against the wall to see if a few pieces would stick? 

Every business has core functions and non-core functions.  Core function means that there are specialists on staff who are dedicated to that task.  Non-core function usually means that many people are involved but no one is ultimately responsible.  

How do most companies do lead generation?  Typically lead generation is done during down times, when sales have taken a dip or when the pipeline dries up.  In reality, lead generation should be a continuous function to ensure that none of these occur. 

Outsourcing this function makes dollars and sense.  It makes dollars because you increase your pipeline of opportunities and, ultimately, bottom line revenue.  It makes sense because it is the outsourced firm’s core business – their area of expertise.  

Lead generation is not mass marketing.  It is an effort drawn from clear and concise planning.  It is an effort targeted to a select few.  It is an effort that must be ongoing in order to ensure continued success.  Companies that invest the funds in lead generation are those that continually have a pipeline of opportunities, generate increased revenue year after year and experience less economic fluctuation due to swings in the marketplace.  This is because they are in control of their flow of leads.  

Don’t want until sales are down to do lead generation.  Don’t wait until October to evaluate your bottom line revenue for the year.  Don’t wait until your pipeline of opportunities dries up.  Begin investing in lead generation before any of these things occur – because, inevitably, they will. 

Doing lead generation in house is usually reactive.  Outsourcing lead generation is proactive.  The following quote says it all “Being proactive means being reactive – ahead of time”.