Selling Basics-Cold Calling-12 Tips For Success

If you are in Outside Sales, effective cold calling is absolutely essential for your success. In my first article on Selling Basics, I outlined some of the reasons why many sales people are less effective than they should be when it comes to cold calling. Here are 12 tips to avoid those pitfalls and to succeed:

1. Prospect, prospect, prospect: Effective cold calling starts with effective prospecting. You need to know your products and the benefits your products provide and then you need to target your prospecting to those most likely to invest in your products.
2. Create and constantly update your Prospect List: Whether you are a novice seller or a seasoned seller, sales is a game of numbers. The more prospects you call on, the more you will sell. It's really that simple!
3. Know the difference between a Qualified Prospect and a Suspect: A Qualified Prospect has the Authority To Make A Decision, A Need For Your Product, and The Ability To Pay. Suspects lack one of these key criteria. Avoid Suspects!
4. Develop a plan for the day: You are more likely to actually do something when you make a plan and write it down. Try it for a few weeks!
5. Start early: Start executing your call plan early in the day. The sooner you make that very first cold call, the more calls you will make that day.
6. Rapport, Credibility, and Trust: The cold call is where you start to establish these key components to a successful relationship and good relationships are critical to successful selling. Be prepared, be calm, and engage people in honest conversation. Your main goal is to simply get an appointment.
7. Focus, Follow Up, and Follow Through: I call these the "3 F's." Stay focused, follow up on what you promise a client or prospect, and follow through with the sales and service process.
8. Don't fear rejection: You are looking for prospects with open minds. To find these prospects, you are going to encounter more closed minds than open minds. Don't take it personally when you encounter a closed mind (they may have a good reason for it!). Wish that person a good day and move on!
9. In Person? By Phone? Social Media? Which is the best method of initial contact: The answer is all of the above. You need to do what works best for you in terms of getting you in front of a prospect. Ultimately, the most effective selling is done in person, but the most effective way of getting that in-person meeting will vary from prospect to prospect.
10. Target your cold calling geographically: When you are out making in-person cold calls, plan those calls geographically to be the most productive with your time.
11. Remember the "Left-Right" rule: When you finish a cold call, don't just rush to your car. Look around the area. There may be one or more other prospects nearby. Call on them! Remember that it's ultimately a game of numbers.
12. PBDA--Prospecting By Driving Around: When you are on your way from one call to another, look for other prospects to call on along the way.

I'll leave you with a few final thoughts. Although your main goal is to simply get your first appointment, sometimes the cold call will turn into a fact-finding, needs-analysis, or even closing call. It happens! Especially when you work the numbers. Be prepared to educate the prospect, discover their needs, discuss ideas and then make the closing appointment as soon as possible. Also, some prospects and clients will see you in person, but won't do it with an appointment. Be prepared to work with these prospects as well.

Your most productive time as a professional outside sales person is when you are delivering a prepared presentation in front of a qualified prospect. Prospecting and cold calling are the critical first steps in getting to this stage of the sales process.

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