Finding leads and converting them into customers is your ultimate goal. There are many ways to do it, and cold-calling has traditionally been one of the major tactics used. Many sales personnel vouch for it, while some feel it’s archaic. Some believe that it can yield a large number of opportunities in the sales funnel, while others consider it to have a low strike rate. While everyone is entitled to have an opinion, let’s evaluate its effectiveness by taking a pragmatic look at its pros and cons.
When starting fresh and not having an existing network of connections, cold calling can be an ideal option.
Cold calls can be effectively used to identify the needs of the prospect-client. The information can be subsequently used to offer a customized solution. It can lead you to an undiscovered market segment that can open up a perennial flow of customers.
While it is usually difficult to get the right person on the phone at the first instance, even when you’re lucky, the person might not be in the mood to listen and could disconnect the call with impudence. So, there is no scope for a second approach.
Systems that are designed to screen and deflect sales calls can be next to impossible. Also, too many unsuccessful calls can leave you disillusioned and low on confidence, which could affect your motivation to perform.
An increase in the number of attempts and resources needed to capture leads would also increase the overall cost of the process and minimize the ROI. So, if you want your sales and marketing to be much more predictable and scalable apart from functioning 24X7, then you need a better alternative. Perhaps, a refined version of cold-calling tactics may help you achieve the desired results.
As most business deals still happen over the phone, cold-calling can indeed help reach out to your prospects and turn them into customers. Discussed below are the key tips that need to be followed to maximize the benefits of cold-calling.
Radical methodology
Having prior knowledge of your prospect-customers before approaching them can be much more constructive. Specific details such as their preferences, needs, buying habits, purchasing power, apart from their name and address, can help you in personalizing your offerings in a way that could be hard for them to refuse.
In B2B scenario, most of the information required about the company which you want to target is usually available on the internet. You can find the latest news about an organization from its press releases, while a lot can be learned about its financial status through the 10K forms, SEC filings, and other related statistics.
Additionally, it would also instill much-needed confidence in you, which would enable you to come up with appropriate rebuttals and eventually convert them into customers. Hence, any attempt to directly interact with the prospect customers should be followed by thorough research that provides specific insights about them.
Merchandise information
Cold-calling is a technique through which it is easy to get the customers excited about a new offer or a new offering. However, an excited customer can go about asking a string of specific questions. If you are unprepared with the appropriate answers, you stand the risk of losing a potential customer. Hence, it is important to spend enough time gaining profound knowledge about the product/service or the offer, which can help you answer the prospects with confidence.
Deal presentations
It can happen that you have all the information about the customer and also possess the knowledge to handle their queries with confidence. Yet, most customers show little interest in listening to you. The reason could be an unattractive sales pitch that beats around the bush without coming to the point.
You must know that most of your customers are always busy and they might not like to listen to you for long if they aren’t able to figure out the reason for your phone call.
Once you are able to follow these essential tips, you’d surely be able to improve your proficiency in cold-calling. In fact, cold-calling could be fun when you get better at it, and the more you’re able to reach, the more you’d be able to sell. Thus, it could lead to huge opportunities in your sales funnel.