Cold Calling

3 Cold Calling Mistakes that Trigger Rejection
12 Handy Tips For Generating Leads Through Cold-Calling

3 Cold Calling Mistakes That Trigger Rejection


Here are 3 common cold calling techniques that you should probably avoid:

Mistake #1: Center the conversation around yourself and what you have to offer

In the old approach, you introduce yourself, explain what you do and suggest a benefit or feature of your product and then you close your eyes and pray that the other person will be interested

Unfortunately, the moment you stop talking you usually hear, "Sorry, I’m busy," or "Sorry, I'm not interested."

You see, you’ve started your cold call by talking about your world and what you have to offer but realistically, most people aren’t all that interested in you. When you talk about your company and your product, it’s just another advertisement to them. You haven’t engaged them, so they often just "turn the page."

Prospects are much more interested in themselves and what’s important to them. So if you start the conversation by focusing on their world, they’re more likely to interact with you.

So instead, talk about an issue or problem they may need solving. Focus on them rather than on what you have to offer. And see where it takes you.

Mistake #2: Be confident they should buy your product or service.

In the old cold calling mindset, you’re taught to focus on the sale and be completely confident that what you’re offering is something the other person should buy.

The problem with this approach is that you haven’t asked them to determine this along with you. So think about it – in the old mindset, you’re really deciding for someone else what’s good for them. I know this isn’t intended but that’s exactly what comes across to your prospects.

So rather than being full of confidence and enthusiasm, stop for a minute and think about the other individual. Relax into a real conversation instead of moving into a persuasive strategy or sales pitch. Put yourself in their shoes and invite them to explore along with you whether what you have to offer is a match for them.

Others really can distinguish the difference. You’re inviting them to see if you might be able to help them solve a problem. This makes for a much better connection right at the beginning and you’ll get that immediate rejection reaction much less.

Mistake #3: When someone brings up an objection, try to overcome it.

You know, one of the reasons cold calling is so difficult, is that sometimes you may not be very familiar with the other person and their business. When you make that first call, you don’t know very much about their issues, problems, budget and time constraints.

Chances are, not everyone is going to benefit by your product or service.

So realistically, your company or product isn’t going to be a match for everyone and yet, when someone brings up an objection ("we don’t have the budget for that," etc.), the old cold calling mindset trains you to "overcome," "bypass" or "override."

But when you do that, you put the other person on the defensive. Something they’ve said is being dismissed and here’s where rejection can happen very suddenly.

So it’s much better to listen to their concerns and continue to explore whether what you’re offering makes sense for them. There are some wonderful phrases you can use that validate their viewpoint without closing the conversation.

These are just 3 common mistakes.  See if you can shift away from those old self-sabotaging mindsets. When you do, you’ll notice that people will engage with you much more and the immediate rejection you’ve grown so accustomed to, will happen much less.
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12 Handy Tips For Generating Leads Through Cold-Calling


Cold calling can be a great way to generate quality leads. You get to speak to the gatekeepers and stakeholders and you get a great insight into their requirements and influences but cold calling is an art-form. It can be daunting, it’s always a lot of work and you always need to make a good impression. So you need to do it right. Following are some tips which will help you do just that:

1) Record Everything: Always write down all details of every phone call. Write down any names and titles you learn. Not just the name of the person you’re trying to contact. The receptionist's name can be a vital name to remember as they are often gatekeepers. Write down when you called and when you said you'd call back.

2) Use A Database Or Spreadsheet To Record Everything: You’ll never manage by hand and Excel spreadsheets aren’t user friendly in the long term. If you’re prepared to invest in a real CRM (Customer Relationship Management) tool, that’s a great idea.

3) Always Call Back When You Said You Would: Don’t let them down. They may not even remember that you committed to calling back but if they do and you don’t meet your commitment, you’ll lose valuable credibility and respect and wherever possible, work to their schedule. You're here to help them, not make things harder.

TIP FOR COPYWRITERS: If you’re an advertising copywriter or web site copywriter, ask to speak to the Marketing Manager (or if the person who answers the phone says they don't have a marketing manager, ask for "the person who looks after your advertising & web site" - all businesses have that person - it's generally one of the owners).

4) Always Try To Get On With The Gatekeepers: Receptionists and personal assistants have great influence and quite often do more of the real work and decision making than the person you’re trying to contact! Make friends with them and you’ve got a foot in the door. (But don’t waste their time or crawl – they get a lot of that!)

5) Keep It Short ‘n Sweet: When you do get to speak with someone, keep it short 'n sweet unless they want to talk a lot. The purpose of the phone call is to get their attention, let them know you're there, get their name and contact details and assess whether they have any requirement for your services.

TIP FOR COPYWRITERS: If you’re an advertising copywriter or web site copywriter, you might have called about brochure writing and then find out they need web writing.)

6) DON’T HARD SELL!!! Don’t pressure people or make it hard for them to get off the phone. Tell them what you do and that you'd like to send them an email with a link to your web site with samples and testimonials (or with an attachment containing samples), then leave them to it.

7) Follow Up With An Email: If you have permission, always send a follow-up email – and do so immediately. Be specific in your subject line.

TIP FOR COPYWRITERS: If you’re an advertising copywriter or web site copywriter, use the words "advertising copywriting" or “web site copywriting” in the subject. Most people don't get many emails with this in the subject line, so it'll be distinctive and probably won’t be snuffed by their spam filter if they have one.)

Address the email to them (e.g. "Hi Joe"), keep the email short and sweet. Include only the essential info, make it easy to read and conversational, make the important words or phrases bold as they'll probably only skim it. Include a link to your web site, reference the day and date you talked on the phone (and thank them for that time), mention any names you acquired (e.g. receptionist's name, especially if the receptionist gave you an email address but you didn't actually get to speak to the decision maker), tell them that you'd like to follow up in a few weeks (assuming the conversation indicated that this would be a good idea).

8) Follow Up With Another Call: If the lead looks promising, make sure you follow up and when you do, always mention the day and date of the original call, as well as the fact that you sent an email. Give a quick summary of who you are and what you do and say that you're just calling to make sure they received the email. Most of the time, you’ll find the lead will talk to you about your services, if only to remind themselves of what you do!

9) Don’t Expect To Make Too Many Calls: On a really good day, you could make 80 cold calls. Most days, though, you should be very pleased to average around 40. You’ll spend a lot of time playing telephone tag.

10) Don’t Leave A Message: Unless you absolutely have to (or you’ve just about given up on the lead), don’t leave messages. Most people have trouble returning phone calls from people they know and like; returning phone calls from someone who’s trying to sell them something isn’t high on their list of priorities.

11) Don’t Expect To Qualify Too Many Leads: Depending on your business, if you get one good lead a day, you're probably doing very well.

12) Don’t Expect Immediate Conversion: Unfortunately, most leads take a long time to come to fruition (up to 2 years). So you have to be prepared to be patient.

Good luck and happy calling!