Let’s face it, cold calling isn’t popular. Customers complain; people find cold-callers irritating. A recent article in The Telegraph even gave advice on how to ‘outwit’ the cold caller! It’s no wonder salespeople aren’t keen on doing it anymore; it’s repetitive and tough to get through to the right person.
“Cold calling is dead” can be a popular excuse for salespeople not to bother. But cold calling can still work. It just depends on how you approach it. Starting out with a defeatist attitude certainly won’t help. Here are a few tips to improve your cold calling process:
1. Know your market and find the right data to hook in your target audience.
2. Give a good reason for your call: an upcoming webinar or seminar, a change in legislation that they need to be aware of, something that will make it worth their while and give you an edge over just trying to sell.
3. Don’t necessarily stick to a sales script. Work on your message, make sure your personality comes across and be more conversational in order to win over the person you’re calling.
4. Don’t try to sell straight away. Set smaller goals such as getting an appointment, you can hard-sell in a meeting later on.
5. Be persistent but know when to stop.
Do your sales team still do cold calling? What works for you?
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