Cold Calling Quickies

Go in with the mindset that the primary objective is to get an opportunity for a next step rather than believing you are going to conquer the world on the initial call. It is all about discovering more about the distributor and what may exist in the future.
1. Be creative but professional in your approach. There are too many salespeople who are simply affirming the “stereotypical” salesperson when they cold call.
2. The first words out of their mouth should not be “Hi, my name is.” Instead approach with “Could you please tell me.”

Do research on the prospect up front. Internet, other people, D&B reports. This is a must if salespeople are going to achieve the next step. People are to busy today to simply have another un-informed salesperson “drop in” on them and call it a cold call.

Design an opening statement so that you have an idea of where you will go and what you will do. Never use the “is this a good time?” line. Remember that is, do and are all lead to a closed ended yes or no response and will do nothing to generate discovery or further information.

Avoid the traditional “How are you today,” that is a dead give away that you are not comfortable with cold calling or what you are about to say.

LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN and did I mention LISTEN! Don’t go in focusing on the “pitch.” Go in with the mind of discovery. That means formulating 5 to 7 great questions that you will have to help create a conversation framework. If the conversation goes in a different direction, don’t freak out! Instead listen and determine a logical next step rather than just spewing some statement.

Use a reference to their distributorship to confirm what you may know and demonstrate you have done your homework and are knowledgeable sales professional. “It’s my understanding that.” is a great entry point. “Let me ask you a couple of questions.” At all cost avoid going into the traditional “pitch and roll” in which the salesperson “shows up and throws up” all the information about Mannington and then has no where to go in the call because they did all the talking. Remember: DISCOVERY!

Have a mental outline ready to go from the minute you walk into the call. When speaking about Mannington, be prepared to focus on impact to the customer rather than the features and benefits of your product and relationship. Remember that in every interaction, the customer is asking the question over and over in their mind: “So what does this mean or do for my distributorship or business?”

Create targeted actions and next directed steps and never leave the prospecting call without knowing and confirming what that will be. Be specific.

When confronted with a gatekeeper that will not budge remember these lines: “Could you please help me.”, “Would you please let them know that I’m here and that our conversation will only be about two minutes.”

Do not be sappy with gatekeepers or the first person that you meet. They know salespeople and have been trained with radar to detect them. Be sincere and don’t simply hand them a bunch of trinkets and call it a good cold call. You are after information and with the right questions, listening and response; you will get exactly what you came for and be equipped with what you need to return again for another step in the process. BONUS: Don’t give up and make sure that you have done the best possible qualification of the distributor that is possible! It generally takes 5 to 7 interactions in some form before someone understands why you are there and what you will mean to them!