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Posts tagged cold calling small businesses
How to Cold Call Your Way to a Mobile App Sales Appointment
Nov 12th
A lot of people consider cold calling to be frightening, pointless, or both. But believe it or not, cold calling remains a cost effective way of generating revenue, even in the cutting edge mobile tech world.
For those that are scared to get started, it’s usually a matter of not knowing how to make cold calling work. If this is you, we’ve got a few tips that can make the cold calling process a lot easier. Follow these tips, and you’ll be able to find an increasing number of sales amid all of those depressing hang-ups.
How to open
One of the most effective ways to start is to ask people if they have a moment to chat. Small business owners are incredibly pressed for time, and you need to respect that. If they say they don’t have time to talk, ask what part of the day is usually quieter. Don’t do what most unsuccessful salespeople do and try to “bowl over” the prospect:
“Hi there my name is Jack Jackson I’m calling about APPS you wouldn’t believe how great they are you can do EVERYTHING they’re going to take your business into the future and generate a million dollars$$$ in sales right away can I put your purchase through on a major credit card right now?”
…
*click*
Desperation is a very unpleasant cologne. Don’t be so hungry for a sale that you make it all about you. Instead, the call is all about your prospect, and his or her needs.
“What? The goal isn’t to make a sale?”
Nope.
So, what’s the goal?
To learn about the prospect. You need to get them talking about their problems. You’re trying to see what their issues are so that you can figure out if your offering can help them. Thus, the goal is to ask a few questions that quickly get prospects talking about the things that matter to them the most. Then, you can find the fit between the benefits of your product and the problems that the prospect is having.
Use a flexible style
To figure out how to get a prospect to open up, you need to be very attentive and try to figure out your prospect’s preferred style. Some people are laid back, some are serious; some are rushed, and others want to take things slowly. Match your prospect’s preferred style, so that they’re comfortable continuing the conversation and become more receptive to the interaction.
Ask for the appointment
If you’ve had a brief chat and the prospect has some interest in hearing more, ask for an appointment. It’s that simple. Try to schedule it for a time of day and day of week that is fairly quiet, so that your prospect isn’t inconvenienced by the meeting, and might even look forward to a little break.
Confirming or canceling?
Don’t call to confirm – too often, it comes off as an invitation for a cancellation. Instead, leave a voicemail after the close of business, or send a confirmation message. If they want to put off the meeting, suggest a video call as a compromise.
Always improve
Hone your script based on what is effective in your experience – don’t just repeat the same thing forever. A continually evolving script is a continually improving script, and the results will show in your conversion rate.
Good luck out there!
How to Earn Mobile App Sales Through Cold Calling (It’s Not So Bad!)
Jul 6th
We’re surprised that you even clicked on this post, given how most people feel about cold calling. They don’t want to make the calls, they don’t want to get the calls, and they wish the calls would just go away. And they would go away, except for one minor detail:
They work!
Yep. That’s why cold calling still exists. It’s an effective way to reach new prospects and to increase sales. Once you’ve accepted the reality, the healing can begin, and you can consider incorporating cold calling into your sales approach. And using the tips and steps below, you can make sure it isn’t a big waste of time.
Research
It’s important not to use a “volume approach” in which you call everyone on a list with no preparation and get hangups 99.9% of the time. A more effective method is to do a bit of research on the person you’re calling so that you can have some familiarity with their business.
That way, you’re not just using a canned pitch. Instead, you’re relating to prospects and you stand a much better chance of making a connection. If you show that you took the time to understand something about the world your lead lives in, you improve your odds of success. Obviously, this doesn’t mean 100% conversions, but the increase over taking shots in the dark is meaningful.
Listen
Don’t talk so dang much! The goal is not just to sell, sell, sell. Instead, you want to hear the prospect’s concerns. Your first order of business after getting someone talking is to take time and understand what his or her interests are. The only talking you should be doing in the first phase of the conversation is to ask questions. That way, you can figure out how your product might solve a person’s problems. Once you’ve done that, you can focus your pitch in a much more effective way.
Take notes
Don’t let all the details fly by. Take notes as you talk so that when you do follow-up calls, you’ll have something to jog your memory with. You will be making a lot of calls and it will become difficult to remember each person you spoke to. With a few short notes, you can always have a bit of guidance. If a prospect has to repeat him or herself, you’ve probably taken a major hit to your credibility, so you need to avoid that at all costs. Also, notes let your team members pick up the ball if you are away from the office or you need some support.
Use referrals
Referrals are great, and social networks let you “create your own” to some extent. Before you call someone, check out LinkedIn to see if you have any mutual contacts, interests, or other facts in common. This is sometimes a useful thing to mention to create a bit of familiarity or to loosen up a conversation.
With these tips, cold calling becomes less about selling to uninterested strangers and more about getting to know people, which is a lot more fun. Focus on that approach, and your cold calling efforts will be more profitable and more enjoyable.
Also make sure to check out Bizness CRM — which makes “selling to small businesses easy.”
