The BEST Cold Calling Tip Ever...

Cold calling is one of the most common and frequently used sales processes across the globe. Every day millions of calls are made to cold prospects with the hope of generating new sales opportunities. It's no secret that sales people and businesses are divided at the moment as to what the future holds for cold calling, but regardless of that right now it is still very much an effective method for creating sales opportunities.

What we now have is the huge advantage of social media to enhance those cold calls. We can now research the business and even the prospect we need to speak to before we even dial the number. We can build the foundations of a relationship, build trust and accelerate the sales process by utilising social media.

Cold calling has been proven time and time again to be a reliable and consistent result achieving method.

So what is the BEST cold calling tip......?

There are a lot of great tips out there for cold calling. Before I get to what I think the BEST tip ever is, here are some of the many great tips out there right now:

Prepare for the call

Prepare the important questions you need to ask that customer. Prepare any information you can find out about your customer before you call them. The internet has made that information very accessible, and it will help save you asking unnecessary questions leaving you time to focus on important questions. Have any relevant product/service information that you will need, as much as you can you want to avoid having to get back to the customer with information on your products and services. This will also save you going off track and asking unnecessary questions.

Practice your calls

Whether in front of a mirror, with a colleague or one of your friends, it is of huge value to practice your calls and pitches. Like an actor will rehearse their lines, it is important you can "flow" smoothly when calling clients. It's also a great way to gain confidence in what you're saying so you then sound confident and happy when you do phone customers. Practice really does make perfect and the only way that you'll grow your confidence and ability in cold calling is through practice, both on the phone and off the phone.

Aim to advance and progress

Always aim to advance the call, which ever way suits your business. Whether it's getting relevant contact details, arranging an appointment or call back, all the way to actually making the sale! Every call should be given the same focus to gain some form of advancement from that initial contact. And push yourself, how far can you get along the sales process from each call? We all want to make less calls, and by making more quality and focused calls, this could really help. I can't count the amount of calls I've heard where sales people fall at hurdles, or even worse, they do really good, but don't achieve anything from the call!

Don't forget your ABC!

Always Be Closing is a very good technique for cold calling and one that is often missed by sales people. How many times during a call or sales pitch do you actually ask for the sale? For some people it is done a lot earlier on in the process. When you are making your calls, always think about how and when you can close the deal. Don't be scared to ask for business, in fact just don't forget in general to ask for the business at all! There is nothing wrong with saying "based on what we've discussed, are you ready to progress"? or something along that line. Half of your challenge is getting them on the phone in the first place, the other half is not letting them off the phone unless you've got the sale! Once you let them off the phone it becomes instantly more challenging to move it forward as that excitement and buzz will soon be forgotten.

The gatekeeper is your friend

Most sales people fear or dislike the gatekeeper. Often they are the one who block you from getting through to your prospect! It may be difficult at times, but by being nice to the gatekeeper you may open many more opportunities! Not only are they the quickest way to your target decision maker, they are also a great source of information. The gatekeepers usually have the most knowledge on how that company works, who does what, and will be a better aid to your quest. That being said, they can also stop your quest! Get them on side, take some time to get to know them and the business from their perspective.

There is often more than 1 decision maker

There are now very few businesses that have just 1 key decision maker. You will find staff of all positions and seniority having buying power so any one that you speak too could be valuable. This even counts for the gatekeeper! Make sure you get as much information out of anyone you speak to as possible. Whether you can do business directly with that person, or with their network, somewhere will be the opportunity to do business.

There are lots more tricks and tips that can help make cold calling as productive as possible. I'd highly recommend reading books, blogs, listening to podcasts and watching videos that will be packed with valuable tips and experience.

However the one tip that I think rules them all......

This one tip that I think will have a far greater impact.....

The one tip I think every sales person should have displayed on their desks..........

One simple and easy tip that will make cold calling more enjoyable and rewarding....

This tip can be done by ANY sales person......

You don't need years of experience or qualification.......

The best cold calling tip ever (in my opinion) quite simply is.....

Smile and Dial!

It is the easiest tip which will deliver the biggest result. It's something every single sales person making cold calls can do and something that will have a massive impact on the success of your call. You can try all the sales tricks in the book, but if you sound miserable and robotic you will struggle to build trust and rapport and so win the business. By smiling you impact the call in so many ways.

Here are some of the reasons "Smile and Dial" can have a positive impact on your sales:

Smiling has a positive effect on the sound of your voice

When you smile, the soft palate at the back of your mouth raises and makes the sound waves more fluid. For anyone who (like me) likes to sing in the shower, you know that the wider you open your mouth and the more teeth you show, the better tone you get! The same applies on the phone. Smiling helps your voice to sound friendly, warm, and receptive. Some telemarketing companies are so convinced of the value of smiling when talking on the phone that they install mirrors above telemarketers' desks to remind them to smile! There's a good idea for sales managers out there!

To get an answer to a question, just pick up the phone

What ever you are doing, there will be something that will require a phone call, and yet so many people are scared to call someone. This is largely influenced by social media and emails taking away the necessity to phone someone. People suddenly just want to hide behind their computer screen, scared of rejection or awkward conversation. The reality is, to get an instant answer, to sort something out quickly, to actually have a proper conversation with someone, a phone call is often the most effective solution! So just smile and dial.

You'll enjoy it more and so will they

If you're smiling, you're happy. If you're happy, the people around you are happy. If you're smiling on the phone the people on the other end will be far more receptive. If you're enjoying making the call then there will be a much greater chance that they will enjoy receiving the call. There is nothing worse than a sales person reading a script and sounding like they don't want to be talking to you really! Smiling on the phone and enjoying what you're doing will have a huge impact on the effectiveness of the call.

You won't sound like a robot

You can hear it now "Hi my name is Dan and I am calling from..." said in a single tone robotic voice! My head is down facing the table, I'm reading from a script and I'm just trying to get through my call numbers. Does that really seem like the best way to engage someone on a cold call? Compare that to someone sitting up right or walking around, smiling away and creating a far more engaging conversation. People buy from people so smile on the phone and sound like a human!

It's a very simple tip, one that may seem too simple. The reality is that it's one only used by the minority and so the impact it could make if more do it is huge. If you're making cold calls, as challenging as they may be, as much as you may not want to make them, stop, re focus, pick up the phone and smile and dial!

What do you think? Smile and Dial is a great cold calling tip, but what other cold calling tips have worked for you? Please write them in the comments box and let's collate a list of as many tips as possible!

I hope you found this blog helpful and informative! If you enjoyed this post please do click LIKE and click SHARE to share it with your network, thank you.

If you enjoyed this post please take time to read some of my other recent posts.

The 10 Things That Will NEVER Change In Sales

How To Make Cold Calling Fun!

Successful Salespeople SELL With Why...

The 10 Films You MUST Watch If You Work In Sales!

About the author: Daniel Disney is the Founder and Owner of The Daily Sales. With 15+ years successful sales and sales management experience, Daniel writes regular blogs on Sales, Traditional Selling, Social Selling, Sales Management and Personal Branding. With an overall social audience of over 140,000 followers and content reaching 7,000,000+ every month Daniel is one of the leading influencers in the sales industry. Daniel is available for Keynote Speaking, Sales Training, Sales Coaching, Social Media Consulting and Influencer Advertising. Check out his profile for more information.

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