How do you make a conversation with prospects personal and engaging? This is a crucial question for any cold caller who wants to build rapport, trust, and interest with their potential customers. In this article, you will learn some practical tips and techniques to improve your cold calling skills and make your conversations more memorable and effective.
Before you pick up the phone, do some research on your prospects. Find out their name, title, industry, company, and any relevant information that can help you tailor your message and show that you care. Use social media, websites, blogs, or other sources to learn about their pain points, goals, challenges, and interests. This will help you craft a personalized opening, ask relevant questions, and offer value.
My cold calling involves visiting the prospective client in person, at their office. Researching online can give you ideas on conversation starters. "I saw that you have been in business xx years. That's amazing! How do you stay successful?" Or it could be a reaction to the office atmosphere. "Wow, it smells amazing in here!" Or "Love the music you are playing. It creates the perfect atmosphere." From there it makes it easy to get them talking and sharing information. This makes you more memorable and less threatening.
In my experience I have been successful using sports team connections and alumni to there colleges. I also what to know about there family. We are all similar in many ways that just are on different paths. The more relatable the better the connection to earn there trust and business.
One of the simplest and most powerful ways to make a conversation personal is to use your prospect's name. People love hearing their own name, and it shows that you are paying attention and respect them. Use their name at the beginning and end of the call, and occasionally throughout the conversation. But don't overdo it, or you might sound creepy or robotic. A good rule of thumb is to use their name three to five times during a call.
No one likes to talk to a cold, dull, or rude caller. You want to make a good impression and create a positive atmosphere for your conversation. To do that, you need to be friendly and positive. Smile when you talk, as it will reflect in your voice and tone. Use a warm and enthusiastic greeting, and thank them for their time. Compliment them on something you learned from your research, or express genuine interest in their work or industry. Avoid negative words or phrases, and focus on the benefits and solutions you can offer.
One of the most important skills for any cold caller is to listen actively. This means not only hearing what your prospect says, but also understanding, acknowledging, and responding to it. Listening actively shows that you are genuinely interested in their needs and opinions, and that you value their input. It also helps you uncover their pain points, motivations, and objections, and tailor your pitch accordingly. To listen actively, you need to avoid interrupting, use verbal and non-verbal cues to show that you are following along, ask open-ended questions, summarize and clarify what they say, and provide feedback and empathy.
1) I clear up in the first few seconds that the person I'm reaching out to doesn't know me. Then... 2) I give my name and why I'm calling. "Look, I know you dislike these calls but let me tell why I'm reaching out. I noticed ___ or I'm helping your peers with ____. Then... 3) Is this something that your organization is struggling with too? Then... 4) I stop talking and listen. Listening to how they respond will determine where the conversations goes next.
Another way to make a conversation engaging is to tell stories. Stories are powerful tools to capture attention, convey emotion, and illustrate your points. They can also help you build credibility, trust, and rapport with your prospects. You can use stories to share your own experiences, success stories of your customers, or case studies of your products or services. Make sure your stories are relevant, concise, and compelling, and that they highlight the value and benefits you can offer to your prospects.
Telling stories really helps the prospect connect the dots between their own business problem and the solution you are offering. Making a story relatable and ensuring it contains metrics for success from a previous, similar sized client is important. If I am speaking to an SMB, I am going to use a case study about a past SMB client in a similar situation of similar size so my prospect won't write off the data with "Oh, I am too small so your case study about this enterprise level client doesn't apply to me."
The last step of any cold call is to end with a call to action. This is where you ask your prospect to take the next step in the sales process, whether it is booking a meeting, scheduling a demo, sending a proposal, or signing a contract. Ending with a call to action is essential to move the conversation forward and close the deal. To do that, you need to summarize the key points of your conversation, restate the value and benefits you can offer, and propose a clear and specific action. You also need to overcome any objections or concerns they might have, and confirm their agreement and commitment.
Simply show interest in the human… more interest than the opportunity they represent. It’s says I need to add more characters to meet the minimum, but my point should be simple and obvious to figure out. :)