How To Cold Call People Properly

If you’re in business, or even just trying to get ahead in life, you’ve probably had to do some cold calling.

That’s when you call someone who doesn’t know you at all (or doesn’t remember meeting you) and try to sell them something like insurance or a new car. In this post, I’ll show you how to make your cold calls more effective by following these 7 steps:

How to Make a Cold Call [Cold Calling that WORKS]!

Takeaways
1. Mastering cold calling techniques is essential for successful outreach.
2. Effective communication skills are crucial to engage prospects positively.
3. Personalize your approach based on prospect research and pain points.
4. Overcome objections with empathy and by providing value-driven responses.
5. Combine digital strategies with cold calling for a holistic outreach plan.
6. Continuous practice and learning are key to improving cold calling skills.
7. Handling rejection is part of the process; use it as a learning opportunity.
8. Build rapport by actively listening and tailoring your pitch to the prospect.
9. Address objections by showcasing relevant success stories and benefits.
10. Embrace the value of direct, personal interactions in the digital age.

Table of Contents

Set A Goal

Begin by setting a goal. This should be based on how many people you want to talk to and how many interested prospects are in your pipeline.

For example, if it takes 2 minutes per prospect (including the time spent on their voicemails), then that would mean that one hour of cold calling could yield 15 conversations.

Cold calling can seem daunting, but mastering the techniques can open doors to countless opportunities. Learn more about effective strategies in our guide on getting over 100 interviews through cold calling and take your outreach game to the next level.

Prepare In Advance

Preparation is key, and that’s especially true when it comes to cold calling. You can’t just pick up the phone and start talking to someone without knowing what you’re going to say.

Before you pick up the phone, take some time to prepare a list of questions and topics that will be relevant for each person on your list.

This could include asking about their experience with certain services or products, asking them if they have any questions about a specific service or product, or simply asking how they like working with your company so far.

After all, not every call is going to go perfectly and if you don’t have an answer ready for something unexpected, it could make things awkward for both parties involved!

Research Your Target Audience

Research your target audience. Before you cold call anyone, it’s important to understand what they’re looking for. You may need to do a little research beforehand or even talk with someone at their company or organization. Here are some topics to consider:

What are their interests?
What pain points do they have?
What demographics do they represent?
What goals do they want to achieve in their personal and professional lives?
What needs does your product/service fill for them?
How can you uniquely position yourself as the answer to their challenges and problems through personalization (which I’ll discuss later)?

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Plan Your Lures

Before you begin cold calling, it’s important to have a plan. This can be as simple as a list of companies you’re interested in targeting with your cold calls.

Or it can be something more complex that outlines all the details of who you want to reach and how you will go about reaching them. Here are some things to consider when planning your lures:

Define your target audience: Who is going to be on the receiving end of this message? What is their role? What do they care about?

Define your target prospect: Who is this person going to report directly or indirectly back up in an organization chart? How do they make decisions and what decisions are they making right now (or soon)?

Define your target company: Where does this company fit into today’s society/economy/environment/world stage?

What are its strengths and weaknesses compared with similar businesses in its industry space? How big is it? How much revenue does it generate annually (or whatever metric makes sense for what you’re selling)?

Define your target industry: Why should anyone buy from me rather than another salesperson working at another company within the same industry space.

And why would they want my product over someone else’s offering from one of those companies within that same industry space?!

Asking these questions can help determine whether there really *are* any benefits at all for me being here today…

Find Your Inner Fish

You can find your inner fish in a few different ways. You just have to be open and honest with yourself about who you are and what your style is.

I’m going to say this without question: cold calling is fun.

There’s no doubt about that. Sure, it can be nerve-wracking at first when you’re learning how to do it properly, but if you start making calls regularly and continue improving over time, eventually cold calling will become second nature for you.

And once that happens, it’ll feel just like being in water like a fish swimming around happily in its native habitat.

So let’s talk about some ways we can get ourselves into our comfort zone so that when we have conversations with potential customers or clients over the phone (or even via email) they know exactly who they’re talking to:

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Define Your Desired Outcome

The first step in cold-calling is to define what you want to accomplish. You should be able to define the problem before starting on a solution, so it’s important to set goals before you start cold calling.

Don’t worry about what other people’s goals are—you need to be ambitious, but stay realistic when setting your targets. Some examples of tangible fitness goals you could achieve in three months include:

losing 20 pounds by July 1st
finishing 26 miles of running by May 25th

Set Up A Script That Works For You

The first thing you need to do is create a script. A good script will be short, sweet, and to the point.

It should give enough information so that your prospects are interested in learning more about what you have to offer them, but not too much information that it needs an hour of explaining.

Your script will also need to be flexible so that it can change depending on the situation. If someone calls out of the blue or reaches out via email or social media, there may not be time for much back-and-forth discussion before they hang up on you (or block your number).

In this case, having a quick response ready is imperative for getting their attention long enough for them to engage further with your brand especially if they’re just going through the motions of cold calling people themselves!

Once you’ve got those two factors down pat, tailor your script specifically toward who’s listening: Is it going out into general circulation? Or do these people already know each other? Do they represent potential clients?

Are they industry contacts looking for leads? Knowing where these people are coming from could help inform what kind of content might resonate best with them;

After all, knowing which way people lean politically doesn’t always mean one party comes out ahead when money’s involved!

Similarly, important considerations include whether or not there’s competition between companies offering similar products/services;

How often do users interact with technology companies like yours before deciding whether or not such interaction would benefit them personally; etcetera ad nauseam…

While marketing strategies vary, cold calling remains a powerful method for becoming a true Marketo master. Delve into our insights on how cold calling is the key strategy for Marketo mastery and learn how to leverage this approach for remarkable success.

Put The Phone On Mute When Talking To People

When you’re on the phone, you want to make a good impression. This means not talking over people and being polite in general. So how can you make sure that your interactions are as smooth as possible?

Put the phone on mute when talking to people. If someone else is speaking with you, don’t worry about being rude they can’t hear you anyway!

That said, if they seem like they might be able to hear your conversation and it would be uncomfortable for them if they could do so, then mute your end of the line and move away from where they are sitting or standing.

Don’t worry about interrupting people while calling them: It’s just a phone call! If someone else is trying to speak with one of your friends.

While they’re working at their job or whatever and there’s no way around it without making things awkward for both parties involved (like if those two parties are each other).

Then feel free not only to interrupt them but also to continue after doing so without waiting for an answer it’ll probably sound rude anyways since neither party knew what was going on until now (and now there’s no time).

Don’t worry about being too personal too quickly: With cold calling specifically though I think this rule could probably apply even more strongly; because people haven’t actually met yet (and therefore don’t know who we are).

We should probably err towards caution when discussing personal topics during initial conversations unless invited otherwise by our target audience(s). In other words: Do not ask questions like “What do YOU think?

Get Them To Speak First, And Listen Carefully To What They Have To Say

Before you start speaking, listen carefully to what they have to say.

Don’t interrupt them or talk over them. It doesn’t matter if you’re busy or in a hurry; when someone is speaking, their words should be heard and valued.

Don’t talk too much about yourself or your company/product/service until you are asked about it by the prospect.

This will make them feel like they are being sold something that’s not relevant to them at this time and that can make them feel uncomfortable with the idea of doing business with you later down the road (if they like what they hear).

Don’t be afraid of asking questions if anything is confusing or questions about their responses during your cold calls. If it seems like something might be important enough for an open-ended question (i.e., “What do think?”).

Then go ahead and ask it! You’ll get a better sense of where some of their headspaces are at right now than if all you did was explain things without first getting feedback from them firsthand.”

Let Your Prospect Do Most Of The Talking

To be a good cold caller, you need to allow your prospect to do most of the talking. This is because the person on the other end of the phone wants to talk about what he or she is interested in and wants to hear about.

If you aren’t letting them do this, it will become apparent very quickly and make for a bad experience for both parties.

For him or her to feel comfortable enough with you so that they will listen when it’s time for them to ask questions, let him or her talk about himself first.

Let him express what his goals are this way he can get his points across before even having heard yours. It also shows that you’re listening attentively!

Keep It Short And Sweet At First

You don’t want to be too long, or too short. You don’t want to be either vague or specific. You don’t want to seem overly familiar or formal.

If you’re on the phone with someone and they’re not responding, ask yourself: “Did I just say something offensive?” If the answer is yes, try again with different words that aren’t offensive. Sometimes people just need time to warm up before they open up don’t give up!

Don’t Worry Too Much About Interrupting Or Being Rude

Don’t worry too much about interrupting or being rude. It’s a cold call, so you don’t have the luxury of having a conversation going on for hours. The person you’re talking to might not even want to talk with you in the first place.

So if they aren’t saying anything by the time your phone call is over, just get off the phone and move on; there’s nothing wrong with that (in fact, it’s probably better than forcing someone into an awkward conversation).

Moreover, if you’re worried about how personal or polite (or whatever) your cold calls should be don’t. As long as you are making and keeping eye contact while speaking and trying not to stammer too much when asking questions then everything will turn out fine!

Don’t Get Too Personal Too Quickly; Take Things Slow And Steady, As A Good Telemarketer Should!

The most important thing to remember is that you’re not the only person who can make it through this call. If you’re going to be cold-calling on the phone, people are going to be hanging up on you all day long. It’s just the nature of cold-calling.

Don’t get too upset or bent out of shape if someone hangs up on you before they finish their sentence! This is just how things go sometimes.

You might even want to take a minute and breathe deeply between calls to keep yourself calm and collected as well as ready for whatever else might happen during your workday.

If possible, try not to get discouraged by hang-ups; these are just opportunities for others (or other departments) at your company who may not have gotten an answer yet – so don’t feel bad if these calls didn’t go anywhere because someone hung up without saying anything at all!

There’s always hope for another day when new leads will come through with new information about what would interest them best when it comes time for decision-making time again soon enough…

Cold calling isn’t just about making calls; it’s about winning customers through effective engagement. Discover the proven techniques in our guide on how to cold call and win customers to connect, convert, and build lasting relationships with your prospects.

Be Genuine, Authentic, And Courteous In Your Conversations With People- It’s Not About Sales; It’s About Building Real Relationships That Last!

One of the most important aspects of cold calling is the fact that you are reaching out to someone who doesn’t know you. You must understand that it’s not about a sales pitch. It’s about building real relationships that last.

By sharing your personal story, people will feel more connected with you and be more open to what you have to say. Be honest and authentic in all of your conversations, whether they’re with coworkers or customers.

If someone wants to hear all about how proud we are of our new product line, tell them! But if they want advice on how they can get their child into college without debt- don’t give them a sales pitch!

Instead, share your own experiences from when either your parents took out loans for your education or perhaps even when we were in school ourselves (and remember those days).

In addition to sharing information about yourself, try telling stories about others’ successes too it’ll make it easier for potential clients/customers/patients/etc., who might be nervous about working with us because they know “Hey – other people before them were successful too!”

Always Be Prepared For Cold Calling, But Don’t Over Prepare So Much That You Lose Sight Of How Fluid This Process Can Be When Done Properly

You should always be prepared for cold calling, but don’t over-prepare so much that you lose sight of how fluid this process can be when done properly. Thinking it will lead to more anxiety and stress than it’s worth.

Try to keep your initial cold calls simple, with the goal being just to get past the gatekeeper or receptionist and into a conversation with someone who can help you further your sales objectives.

Don’t get caught up in scripting every single word in advance or planning out every step of your investigation or even trying to predict exactly what they will say next during any given call (this has never happened before).

The trick is keeping things simple while simultaneously remaining prepared enough if there is an opportunity for a sale during the call.

Then you’ll know what questions need answering right away without having to waste time searching through notes about past deals or asking around about other people looking for similar solutions (which is almost always unnecessary).

Conclusion

As we’ve seen, cold calling is a fun, exciting, and challenging part of the telemarketing profession.

It can be the most rewarding part of your day when done right, but it can also be painful if you don’t prepare properly or listen carefully enough to what people are saying on the other end of that phone line.

I hope this article has helped you learn how to do both of those things better! If you’ve got any other tips for making sure you do well on calls (or anything else related), please let me know in the comments below so we can all benefit from them too!

FAQs

How can I improve my cold calling success rate?

Enhancing your cold calling success rate involves refining your approach, researching your prospects, and practicing effective communication techniques. Consider using scripts tailored to your target audience and continuously learning from your interactions.

What are some effective cold calling techniques?

Effective cold calling techniques include researching prospects beforehand, personalizing your pitch, addressing pain points, and asking open-ended questions. Building rapport and actively listening can also greatly improve your success.

How can I overcome the fear of cold calling?

Overcoming the fear of cold calling requires practice and mindset shifts. Start with smaller goals, focus on the value you bring, and remind yourself that rejection is a natural part of sales. Embrace rejection as a learning opportunity.

Is cold calling still relevant in the age of digital marketing?

Yes, cold calling remains relevant as it offers direct, personal interactions with potential customers. Combining cold calling with digital marketing strategies can create a holistic approach that engages prospects across different channels.

How do I handle objections during a cold call?

Handling objections involves active listening and empathetic responses. Address objections by providing relevant information, showcasing value, and sharing success stories. Turning objections into opportunities to educate the prospect can also be effective.

Costantine Edward

Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.