Cold Calling is NOT Dead in 2022

Cold Calling is NOT Dead in 2018. . . and I can prove it. 

 

Gone are the days of rifling through the Yellow Pages, frantically dialing number after number in hopes of hitting your quota. 35% answer rate, 15% on appointments, 5% conversions. This used to work, but not anymore. 

 

It kills me to see salespeople still using sleazy 20th-century tactics in a 21st-century world. They get hangups left and right and decide cold calling isn’t for them. And in their infinite wisdom, they decide it isn’t for anybody. . . ever. And there it goes, the baby with the bathwater.

 

 

What Works and What Doesn’t Work in Cold Calling?

Here’s the thing. Some are calling it ‘smart calling’ and some call it ‘tele-targeting’. Call it what you want, but don’t call it dead — especially when you’ve tailored your strategies and tactics to make sense in today’s world.

 

What exactly does that mean? Well, call me with some canned script and you’ll be hearing that dial-tone faster than you ever thought possible. Am I your ideal customer? Will your product or service make me bigger, faster, smarter, stronger, or in some way line my pockets with cash money?

 

If you can’t answer these questions with an emphatic “Yes! Yes! Yes!” then you’re not ready to pick up the phone. Seriously, it’s 2018. Personal and targeted is the name of the game.

 

Now, do it right and your pipeline will be bursting at the seams with qualified buyers. There’s no denying that a well-planned call campaign is the fastest and most cost-effective way to make new deals.

 

Here’s a handful of quick-tips that’ll work wonders for you. I’ll cover these and other tips in more detail in an upcoming article, but you can start working them into your campaigns immediately.

 

Get a Better List

Square one: buyer persona. Define your buyer persona, or target customer/client to the ‘T.’ What industry are they in? Where are they located? What are their pain points? Their challenges and opportunities? Put this in writing, and if they don’t make the list, they don’t make the list.

 

Ditch the Pitch

Sure you can spout about your offer till you’re blue in the face. But don’t! We’re in the age of relationship selling. So first build rapport and gain your prospect’s trust. Then, only when it’s appropriate, present your product or service with confidence, knowing it will make their life better.

 

Focus on your Pipeline

Don’t be desperate. They’ll smell it a mile away. Sometimes you’ll make the sale on the first touch, but more often than not the sales cycle takes weeks, months, or sometimes even years. Trust the process, and focus on the long-game by building your pipeline.

 

 

Do your Homework!

So you’ve got a tailored list and you’ve fine-tuned your approach. Now it’s time for some old-fashioned sleuthing to learn about your prospect before you dial. LinkedIn is a great resource here, but Facebook, Twitter, and other online platforms are fair game too.

 

Forget the Sales Mantras of Yore

Let go of those hackneyed ideas that a call campaign is a numbers game, because it’s not. Neither should you “Always be Closing” or resorting to manipulation tactics to seal the deal. You’re better than that.

 

Remember the Payoff

You’re not only sharpening your sales chops, you’re becoming a more confident communicator and even learning creative problem-solving skills that’ll serve you in all areas of life. Oh right, and let’s not forget about the money.

 

Now, if you’re going to market and hoping to pitch Fortune 500 companies, then realize the rules are a bit different. We’ll cover this in an upcoming article, but for now just remember the “who” matters. That is, you can’t just pitch anyone. You need face-to-face appointments with C-Level executives. It’s a tall order to be sure, and it’s exactly what we do at C-Level Partners.

 

We’ve got 15+ years of experience dialing C-Suite leaders of small-to-fortune-500 execs. We know the culture and decision-making process of organizations, and we know the key nuances of these executives which allows us to schedule appointments fast. And we don’t have any time-based commitments, as you only pay for performance.

 

Our global team of BDP’s are well-equipped with the experience and expertise to capture the technical buyers and economic decision makers for your product or service.

 

So if you’re looking for a tailored go-to-market solution, I invite you to get in touch with us today. Otherwise, keep an eye out for more articles on how to stay sharp in a competitive world.  

 

Until next time. . .

 

Johnny-Lee Reinoso