How come cold-calling scares so many people?
Whether you're facing thee prospect of calling on on someone to inquire about a job opening or you're looking to sell them your products/services to, the prospect of calling a complete stranger could be very daunting.
Fear of rejection? Nervous what you're going to say? Easily irritated by the people who try to prevent you from getting through from your intended target?
It doesn't have to be a terrifying experience!
Start by researching the person you are going to call. Learn as much about them as you can.
Know where they graduated from school, what jobs they held in the past, what professional trade associations they belong to, etc.
Then, understand how their role fits into the overall strategic plan of the organization.
What products and services do they manage. What brands, products, services does her/his team oversee?
Ask the really big question: "What challenges keep them up at night?"
Then find people that worked for them, worked in their organization, worked for them in the past, or know them through professional networking circles.
The ideal goal would be to ask for a personal introduction if someone that you know knows them.
The next step in the process entails figuring out how you can provide solutions to the key business challenges that they face.
Once you have completed your research, you are ready to write a call script which you will rehearse before you call, so you feel comfortable calling them.
Your script will follow this structure:
INTRO:
Hello Ms. [Last Name] My name is [xxx]. I see that your organization is facing the following challenges:
CHALLENGE ONE
CHALLENGE TWO
CHALLENGE THREE
I'm in a unique position to help you because of my background in:
SKILL ONE
SKILL TWO
SKILL THREE
I would like to schedule some time to meet with you in the next week or two, to discuss your current challenges and how I can provide you with a set of solutions.
This may sound overly simplistic, but it works! The single most important aspect of this approach is to create a compelling message based on providing a set of unique solutions to their biggest challenges.
Check out these great Cold-Calling resources:
Cold-calling tips
Your first cold-call article
Cold-calling "How-to's"
Cold call cheat sheet of great practices.
Fear of rejection? Nervous what you're going to say? Easily irritated by the people who try to prevent you from getting through from your intended target?
It doesn't have to be a terrifying experience!
Start by researching the person you are going to call. Learn as much about them as you can.
Know where they graduated from school, what jobs they held in the past, what professional trade associations they belong to, etc.
Then, understand how their role fits into the overall strategic plan of the organization.
What products and services do they manage. What brands, products, services does her/his team oversee?
Ask the really big question: "What challenges keep them up at night?"
Then find people that worked for them, worked in their organization, worked for them in the past, or know them through professional networking circles.
The ideal goal would be to ask for a personal introduction if someone that you know knows them.
The next step in the process entails figuring out how you can provide solutions to the key business challenges that they face.
Once you have completed your research, you are ready to write a call script which you will rehearse before you call, so you feel comfortable calling them.
Your script will follow this structure:
INTRO:
Hello Ms. [Last Name] My name is [xxx]. I see that your organization is facing the following challenges:
CHALLENGE ONE
CHALLENGE TWO
CHALLENGE THREE
I'm in a unique position to help you because of my background in:
SKILL ONE
SKILL TWO
SKILL THREE
I would like to schedule some time to meet with you in the next week or two, to discuss your current challenges and how I can provide you with a set of solutions.
This may sound overly simplistic, but it works! The single most important aspect of this approach is to create a compelling message based on providing a set of unique solutions to their biggest challenges.
Check out these great Cold-Calling resources:
Cold-calling tips
Your first cold-call article
Cold-calling "How-to's"
Cold call cheat sheet of great practices.
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