Shake Off Your Fear of Cold Calling
Celeste Giordano
Celeste Giordano Consulting | Professional Business Coach and Speaker
Halloween is coming up, and that means it is the season for frights. Today, I am writing about two words that may make the hair on your arms stand up straight in fear: cold calling (cue the haunting music!).
Many people avoid cold calling if at all possible, stacking their to-do lists with anything else in order to avoid picking up the phone.
But the reality is, at some point or another, you will have to pick up a phone, call someone you don’t know, and ask for something. You might as well have the skills and strategies to succeed at it!
Last week, I shared why lead generation should be a top priority if you want to earn more money. I mentioned that generating new, warm leads is an easier strategy than cold calling. But let me be clear… That doesn’t mean cold calling is without merit.
In my 46+ years as a sales professional and franchise owner, I utilized cold calling as an effective strategy to identify new prospects and gain new customers. There are numerous benefits to picking up the phone – or even walking in the door – cold.
Reasons you need to start cold calling:
So today, I want to share with you five cold calling strategies I’ve used effectively over the years, so you can face your next phone call or drop-in with confidence:
1) Take a Client-Centered Approach to Cold Calling
Many entrepreneurs make a critical mistake while prospecting. They believe that to make the sale, they need to speak at great length about who they are and what they do. But it’s crucial to keep in mind—this is about them, not you.
Sales is about demonstrating to prospects how you can solve their problem or meet their need. And you can’t do that without learning about your prospect!
Ask thoughtful, strategic questions designed to show what key benefit will make them want to purchase your product or service. Also, ask questions that will shed light on the fears and doubts that may be holding them back from making a purchase.
Listen carefully to their answers rather than trying to speak over them or dominate the conversation.
2) Prepare Your Questions Ahead of Time.
In order to master the client-centered approach to sales, you need to come prepared. Wear your detective hat and come into the call with a list of questions that will guide your client to share what they want and need.
The more quality information you can obtain from your prospect during the cold call, the better able you will be to qualify the prospect and—ultimately—make the sale. It will also shed light on who doesn’t qualify as a warm lead.
It’s important to plan your questions and put them into a logical sequence in advance. Begin by asking general, open-ended questions and then follow up with more specific questions.
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3) Avoid Generic Cold Calling Scripts!
After you’ve obtained a positive answer from your prospect to your first question, the door is open to ask more qualifying questions. Don’t pull questions from a generic cold calling script. The more personalized your questions, the more engaged your prospect will be, which means they will be more willing to open up and provide valuable information.
The key is to ask questions designed to gather information that will help you show the right prospects that you have the solution to their problem.
4) Know When NOT to Sell.
The chief objective of an initial “cold call” is information gathering. Your goal on this first call is not to make a sale. If the prospect gets the sense that you’re trying to make the sale, they’ll often put their guard up and be reluctant to answer your questions openly.
Stay focused on asking your prospect thoughtful qualifying questions and listen carefully to their responses. Be sure to take notes that you can review after the call is complete. At the end of the call, if the prospect has qualified as a lead, set up a follow-up meeting or let them know when and how you will be in touch next.
5) Keep Your Prospect Relaxed.
We’ve all been on the receiving end of a forceful cold call. When someone tries to aggressively sell us right off the bat, we close off and start searching for ways to end the call.
It’s important to keep your prospect relaxed so that you can gather the information you need to know if they are a warm lead worth pursuing. Put your prospect at ease by being amiable; asking meaningful, personal questions; and demonstrating genuine interest in what they have to say.
By taking a non-sales approach in your first call, you begin to build a relationship and come across as more friendly, genuine and non-threatening. This is critical, because as prospects relax, it becomes easier to calm their fears and doubts about investing in the product or service you offer.
Today, I challenge you to make ten cold calls. Let me know how they go in the comments—and what questions come up while you’re making calls.
At Celeste Giordano Coaching, I work one-on-one with entrepreneurs, business owners, and corporate leaders to develop the daily habits, strategies, and mindsets that will generate the results they seek.
Contact me today to explore what practical action steps you can take to “double plus” your income before 2024 comes to a close.
Celeste Giordano’s mission is to help business owners develop the skills, knowledge and attitude necessary to “DoublePlus™” their income and become effective and inspirational leaders in their fields. Whether it’s taking your successful business to the next level or starting a new venture, she will teach you the exact skills and strategies you need to enroll more quality prospects, build a rock-solid team, and break through obstacles to achieve real profit and lasting success. Celeste is a professional business growth specialist, a master sales strategist, and dynamic speaker with more than 40 years experience in direct sales and managing high-performing teams.
To learn more about Celeste, click here.
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