Cold calling: a great opportunity to learn to sell
What is a cold call anyway? Calling someone you don't know for the first time and trying to gain interest, make an appointment, and/or make a sale. It can take place on the phone or face-to-face.
See if this sounds familiar "Hello, my name is Jeffrey, and I'm from the Acme Copier Co. I'd like to speak to the person in charge of office equipm Please don't hang up!" (Sound of phone slamming.)
Or this (walk into the office) "Hello, my name is Jeffrey, and I'm from the Acme Copier Co. I'd like to speak to the person in charge of office equipment." The gatekeeper responds with one of the following:
Do you have an appointment?
Can I tell him what this is in reference to?
Mr. Jones doesn't see anyone without an appointment.
Just leave your literature and if he's interested he'll call you.
Didn't you see the "no soliciting" sign on the door?
He's not interested.
Then the salesperson does some feeble verbal dance that the gatekeeper has heard a million times to try to obtain information or make an appointment, and usually leaves without anything. This is the way more than 90% of cold calls end.
The cold call and its companion, rejection, is the cause of more frustration, failure, quitting and reluctance to perform than any other aspect of sales. In the old days one would've said cold calling separates the men from the boys. My feeling is that it separates the experienced from the rookie, the savvy from the student, the "want to get rejected" from the "want to make a sale."
"Let's see, I get rejected 99 out of 100 times, let's keep trying that." Duh.
Those salespeople mistakenly dubbed as "call reluctant" are just unprepared. They have limited belief, limited training, and limited confidence. Being call reluctant is not a problem; it's a symptom. And most of those who are reluctant will fail.
At best, cold calls are controversial and paradoxical. They are the hardest sale to make, and management presents them as the best way to sell for the new salesperson the one least capable of making them. Chalk up another managerial victory for the Dilbert principle. Add to that the fact that for the most part cold calls are rude and start the salesperson off from a deficit position.
Here's a better way to view the cold call. A cold call is not a place to make sales. A cold call is an opportunity to learn to sell.
If you view the cold call as a place to learn, you'll look at rejection as a challenge to get better, rather than a personal affront.
For the mature salesperson, my three-word definition of a cold call is: waste of time. You're intruding on others. You're interrupting people's work patterns. They already have a supplier for what you sell. They can live without you. And if you are successful in getting 10 out of 100 to take an interest, and two make an appointment with you, and one buys, keep in mind that the other 90 are pissed off.
If you can understand the principles above, you're ready to begin the cold-call strategy below.
The key to succeeding at the cold call is building a belief system. The more belief you have, and the better stated it is, the more convinced you are that what you sell will help others, and the easier time you will have making cold calls. Here are the four basic beliefs you must have before you can start the cold-call process:
I believe my company is the best.
I believe my products or services are the best.
I believe I am the best.
I believe that when my customer buys, they will be better off.
Cold calling will test these beliefs right away, especially when you start getting rejected. Let's look at the real benefit of the cold call. Since all salespeople seek to improve their selling skills, the cold call presents a great opportunity to learn to sell. It is actually a lousy opportunity to make a sale. In terms of percentages, it has the lowest rate of success. In terms of degree of difficulty, it is the hardest. In terms of intelligent ways to sell, it is the dumbest.
The four secrets to succeeding at a cold call are:
Be ready.
Be creative.
Be fast.
Have fun.
If you can be all of those, you have a shot at it. Most salespeople make the fatal mistakes of not being creative and not having enough fun. While you're struggling to learn sales, be creative and have a blast.
The old "get out there and do it" doesn't work anymore. You must combine training and self-confidence with the spirit of adventure and the willingness to take "no" for an answer while still trying for a "yes."
Next week I'll share the point-by-point areas of sales knowledge you can master by making lots of cold calls and experiencing the joy of rejection.
Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of "The Sales Bible," and "Customer Satisfaction is Worthless, Customer Loyalty is Priceless." President of Charlotte-based Buy Gitomer, he gives seminars, runs annual sales meetings, and conducts training programs on selling and customer service. Inquiries should be faxed to the WBJ at (48-22) 646-0576 or e-mailed to salesman@gitomer.com.
