If you own a phone, chances are that you have received at least one sales call in your life and like most people, your initial response is one of dread over having to converse with a salesperson about a product you don’t really need, but believe it or not, cold calling is still considered one of the most effective way to increase sales for companies. There are however techniques certain companies use that make the process more effective and engage their potential customers. If you don’t want to be a traditional salesperson who people avoid, this article is perfect for you. Here are a few tricks and tips you can use to get better at cold calling.
Know Who You are Talking to
Usually, the company you are working for provides a database of numbers of potential clients that you can use to find out about the person on the other line. The first thing to do when making a call is to know who you are calling to sell your product. If you know the name and occupation, incorporate that into the conversation. It puts the other person at ease if they think you know them. It adds an element of familiarity that is more likely to get the customer to stay on the call and potentially buy your product/service.
Be Direct and Concise
No one wants to hear a long winding pitch about a product/service that they do not necessarily need and will forget about the moment the call ends. This is exactly why you need to be direct about your agenda (why you are calling) and give out information that is relevant and make the product/service sound attractive. The specialists at Saleshive.com recommend you have a script at hand to avoid unnecessary conversation that might make the call less effective. This will help you stay focused and get through the calls at a much faster rate.
Be Smart about when you Call
You need to be strategic about when you reach out to a potential customer. According to research, there is a good and a bad time to make your calls. Calling people on a Friday afternoon, for example, is less effective as it is the end of the week. It is also imperative that you act on a lead as soon as it has been generated as it makes the potential customer more likely to be receptive to the call.
Get Used to Rejection
No matter how good your conversation skills are, chances are that you will have to face a higher percentage of rejection as compared to other sales techniques. This does not mean that you are not good at your job. The key lesson to take away from this is to embrace rejection and keep at it.
Cold calling may not be everyone’s favorite task to perform yet there is no denying that they have proven to be an effective marketing and sales technique. The purpose of cold calls is to create awareness about your product/service and get other people (potential customers) talking about it so even if you don’t make a sale, know that you have done your job by getting the word out.