Introduction

Making cold calls is and has always been one of the trickiest tasks, no matter how experienced an agent might be. Keeping prospective customers on the line without hanging up is already challenging, and it is twice as hard to pique their interest in a particular product. 

So, what should you prepare before making a cold call? Our guide will detail all the critical steps to help you guarantee 100% success. Keep scrolling to learn more.

An Overview of Cold Calls and Their Roles

Cold calling, referring to the act of contacting a person who has never expressed prior interest in the product, has long been a staple of sales and marketing strategies. 

Traditional phone calls are often associated with cold calls. However, other communication channels like emails, video conferencing, and even social media messaging have also been widely used for cold outreach. 

While their effectiveness remains in debates, cold calls are considered a significant part of various aspects of business. The common goal is to:

• Generate qualified leads: Identifying potential customers who might be interested in the product is a crucial aspect of sales. Cold calls are one of the shortest ways to achieve this goal, as businesses effectively reach new audiences and initiate conversations.
• Building relationships: Skilled cold calling helps establish rapport with potential customers, which lays the groundwork for future interactions and turns prospects into loyal clients.
• Market research: Businesses consider it a valuable tool for gathering insights into customer needs, preferences, and market trends. From here, products and services can be refined accordingly.

Benefits aside, this marketing form has also faced equal challenges. Its rather intrusive nature can be perceived by customers as unwelcome and disruptive, especially when made at inconvenient times or to people not open to unsolicited contact from strangers. 

Furthermore, the generic, robotic scripts also feel quite alienating, which might diminish the success rates of these cold calls compared to other customer outreaches.

What Should You Prepare Before Making A Cold Call?

1. Do Some Research Pre-Call

Do some research beforehand. (Image source: Flickr). 

Many customers have complained to us about salespeople who contacted them all of a sudden with some “fantastic offers.” And these offers, unfortunately, are not even the closest to what consumers want. Worse, the products have never been distributed in the neighborhood in the first place! 

To avoid such awkward and embarrassing situations, conduct thorough research before reaching out to your prospects. Once you know everything there is to know about this person, it would be easier to offer them what they need and keep them interested. No more wasting time on dead-end leads.

2. Write A Script First

Making several calls within hours with different prospective customers is undeniably stressful, especially for beginners with barely any prior experience. 

That explains why a calling script would be helpful, no matter your expertise. It contains all the most important information, with extra tips and details to handle rude, demanding customers. Specifically, a good script will give you:

• Clear steps on what to do 
• Inclusive answers to the most commonly asked questions
• Responses to rejections

Furthermore, if you get distracted, the script will instantly send you back on the right track.

Note: 

Having a script ready does not mean you must read everything word by word. Customers will likely hang up due to your robotic tone or even assume those are pre-recorded messages! 

Instead, you should use the script as a checklist for what to mention and what not during the call. Feel free to change the script depending on the circumstances. 

3. Find The Right Time for The Call

People’s disdain for cold calls mostly results from bad timing. For some reason, many salespeople prefer to call early in the morning; perhaps they assume it would be wiser to contact customers before they get busy with work. But in fact, new sales offers in the early mornings are never welcomed. 

Instead, you should analyze customers’ call records to determine when they will likely pick up their phone. Something as simple as scheduling your call at the right time can significantly improve your overall performance!

StringeeX, one of the market’s leading programmable contact centers, can be your great assistant here. 

Customers’ previous chat logs or call records from multiple channels can easily be monitored on one interface. Agents can rely on this data to find the right time to contact and, even better, adjust their sales pitch strategies based on the outcomes of previous cold calls. 

4. Use The Right Strategies

a. Prepare for Rejections and Objections

Prepare for their disinterest or even downright rejection. (Image source: Pxhere). 

Compared to several years ago, customers are now much more selective when it comes to cold calls and marketing. Hence, hearing a “No” from them has become the norm. 

To seal the deal, you must prepare for the possibility of sales objections right from the start. You should spend some time researching and compiling some of the most common rejections to the product you are pitching for, such as: 

• “I don’t want it right now.”
• “I don’t have the money for it.”
• “I already have something similar at home.”

Then, list out some good responses you can think of to each of these specific objections in the script. The changes they bring about can be quite incredible.

b. Do Not Start With The Sales Pitch

A common mistake by many sales reps and agents is to present the offer right away without listening to the other person’s opinion. Sometimes, you may get lucky, as the product is exactly what customers want at that very moment. However, agents cannot rely on “luck” for long. 

If you call someone and immediately start ranting about an excellent product, they will likely say a polite “thanks” and end that conversation right then and there.

However, the results would be very different when you take the time to learn about what customers need and then tailor your offer to that specific need before starting the sales pitch. 

Since the product aligns with their expectations (or at least seems so), customers will stay until the end of the pitch. Needless to say, your conversion rates will get increasingly better. 

c. Avoid Monologue

Endless talking is another common mistake; some agents believe the more they keep it going, the more persuaded the person will be. 

The truth is quite the opposite. If you just talk to yourself without giving clients a chance to cut in or even ask questions, they will think you are just another pushy rep and hang up immediately. Plus, unless there is lots of free room in their schedule, nobody has time to put up with minutes-long ranting from strangers.

d. Leave A Voicemail

Another reason customers refuse to answer cold calls: they are suspicious of unknown numbers. If you just ignore their wariness and keep dialing, you will lose that client for good; in the worst-case scenario, they might even have your number blocked. 

Hence, we suggest leaving a simple voicemail that clearly states your name, business, reason for contact, and phone number. It should be short and straightforward, about 20 to 30 seconds. You can even prepare a script beforehand to avoid wasting time on unnecessary information. 

If done right, chances are the person will call back very shortly.

Extra Tips to Get Good Results

Use open-ended questions to invite them to further discussion (Image source: Flickr). 

• Have a quota spreadsheet to track your performance by month, week, day, or even hour. 
• Ask open-ended questions starting with “Why,” “How,” “When,” and “Where.” Avoid questions that may result in one-word answers, such as “Do you like to hear my offer?”
• When a huge event occurs in the client’s business (e.g., new promotions), use that trigger event to get their attention. Show them how your service can assist them during this important transition.
• For those working from sales call centers or as independent contractors, we suggest using local numbers to increase the chance of customers picking up. 

Conclusion

What should you prepare before making a cold call? 

Long story short, a good script, thorough pre-call research, and active listening to customers’ needs are the keys to success. You should also compile some of the most common rejections and prepare different response alternatives to each scenario.