What is a ‘Cold Call’ in Sales? – Why is It Still Important for Businesses?

Is the term ‘cold call’ still sounds confusing? We bet it won’t be anymore when you give this interesting write-up a good read. A cold call is when someone calls a stranger on the phone and tries to sell them something or get more information about them. Remember that it is one of the most common and effective ways to market your business. Of course, the purpose is to make the prospect interested in your company’s product or service. Still, sounds too technical? Don’t worry all your confusion will be sorted out as you march to the end of this blog post. So, you don’t have to type ‘what is a cold call’ again in the Google Search bar. 

Everything You Need to Know About a ‘Cold Call’ in Sales 

Here’s everything you should know about cold calls and how they differ from warm calls. 

A cold call is a sales call to someone you don’t know or have no prior relationship with. They are generally more effective than warm calls because they allow you to make an impression on the person talking with you. On the other hand, a warm call is when the receiver already knows whom they’re going to be speaking with. 

Initiating a Cold Call 

You don’t need any special skills or training to cold call. In fact, many salespeople of the call center use their existing relationships at work or in their industry to make calls on behalf of the company they represent.

A cold call aims to get the prospect interested in your company and your products/services. Plus, to set up an appointment or discovery meeting down the road. 

Such calls are often made by salespeople from a call center services provider who don’t have access to a lead generation system like email marketing or social media campaigns. They are usually considered when it’s necessary to move forward quickly with very specific results. 

Making Cold Call Effective

Do your homework right to make sure your cold call is a success. Perform a good Google search on the prospects to find out about their interests and more. You can also use social media for such purposes, like going through the prospects’ Facebook profiles, Instagram pages, and more. 

Find information about the company or organization that your prospect works for. How he describes himself? Is there any information about their products or services available online? Do you know anyone who works there already? If so, ask them for some ideas about how to approach this person with respect to your offer. 

Social media is a great place to find out about your prospect before making a cold call or telemarketing call. Try to figure out where they live or which sports they are interested in, so you can first engage in a friendly conversation. This will help build trust and make them more likely to respond positively when making the actual cold call.

How To Make a Cold Call

The first step in making any cold call is to prepare yourself mentally and physically before you even pick up your phone (or walk into a room). This means taking a few moments before heading out or walking into an office building so that your mind is clear and ready for the business. Avoid distractions while you are on a call with the prospect. Devoting full attention to the receiver will also allow you to learn a point or two about him you can use while pitching an offer. Hence cut off using your social media and be very attentive to what the receiver speaks and how he responds to what you are saying. 

One of the reasons why most people don’t enjoy making cold calls is that it feels unnatural to contact strangers and try to sell them something. But trained agents of a good call center are equipped with the right skills to initiate and close these calls professionally. 

Tips for Making Effective Cold Calls

You must be prepared to face anything that could happen when you are on a call with the prospect. Here’s how you can prepare yourself for the cold calls: 

Identify your prospect’s pain points – This should be easy because once someone agrees with your idea or product, they’ll tell you exactly where they’re struggling with their current situation (or lack thereof). Then ask questions like “What did I miss?” or “What would help?”

Identify how you can solve their problem – Once again, this should come naturally after identifying the pain points above and then asking questions like “Is there anything else I can help you with?”

Take Away

The good news is that cold calls can be a very effective way to make sales. Cold calls are an important part of the sales process, but most salespeople tend to dread making them because they know it’s easy for prospects to say “no” over the phone. But there are ways to make cold calls more effective, which will help you get more responses and close more deals.

The key is to make the call in a way that makes sense for your business—and remember, it’s not just about finding prospects and calling them out of the blue. You need to do your research about who they are and their needs before making a cold call so you can engage them on terms they’ll find more comfortable than “I have this product that might help you!”

All in all, we hope you have enjoyed reading this interesting blog post on cold calls. Furthermore, please comment if you feel we have skipped including something about the topic.