Increase Sales Tip - Make Those Cold Calls Hot Sales Leads
Cold calling is viewed by some as cold leads or acts of desperation. However, for many small business owners to sales professionals, their prospects, usually the decision makers, do not attend the standard networking events. So how do you connect with these decision makers, just give them a call?
Cold calling can either be by phone or in person. Regardless of the how, there are two reasons why sales people are reluctant to cold call.
Reason Number One You are talking to a stranger. Your childhood conditioning of Do Not Talk To Strangers is still in your subconscious. Those parental warnings of what happens to little boys or little girls who talk to strangers is still actively present in your subconscious mental schema or thoughts. As a child, I still remember my parents telling me about the “boogy man.”
Reason Number Two You are going to where you are not invited. Again, parental concern about your safety as a young child has conditioned you against going to places you do not know. I do not know about your childhood, but in my neighborhood we actually had an old house, somewhat run down that all the children were told to stay away because of bad things.
Just take a moment to think why scary movies are soooo scary? They are taking our subconscious back to two big No Nos. These types of movies actually reaffirm what our parents told us years ago.
So how do we make those cold calls hot sales leads? These 3 cold calling strategies have worked with my clients and myself.
Number One – Create a goal and commit it to writing. By having a cold calling goal of 1 to 4 cold calling actions, will help you begin to turn those cold calls into hot sales leads. Look to your marketing plan and sales plan within your overall strategic plan. Then identify an area where you can make several cold calls without having to drive a lot of miles in between. Remember, your journey begins with that first step. Cold calling is no different.
Number Two – Look within yourself to your own attitudes Your attitudes directly determine your results. Some say that our attitudes are habits of thought. What are your thoughts are cold calling? If you think it will not work, it probably will not work. As Henry Ford once said If you think you can or your think you can’t either way you are right.
Number Three - Improve your self leadership skills. Since people buy from people they trust, do you convey such trust within those first 10 critical seconds. Are you authentic from your handshake to your eye contact? How are your active listening skills or empathy skills? What about your other core values such as gratitude and respect?
These 3 cold calling techniques can make those cold calls into hot sales. One final question: If most people dislike to cold call, then how much business is out there waiting for those who understand that cold calling can deliver the goal to increase sales?
Would you like to increase your sales? Then, you may find Simply Speaking, Increase Sales By.. a combination e book and e workbook, of interest at http://www.processspecialist.com/sales-training-book.htm where marketing, selling and planning skills are explored and leveraged to increase sales.
Call me, Leanne Hoagland-Smith, The Business Coach, at 219.759.5601 or visit at http://www.processspecialist.com to explore everything from how my solutions double results to articles and resources including the Simply Speaking series.
Tags: business coach, cold calling, cold calling technqiue, e book, goal, Increase sales, self leadership skill