| If you have the sales skills to bring on new business | | | | important - As a sales representative, it is imperative |
| for your company and are able to get to the decision | | | | that you become friendly with the secretary or |
| makers in a company, as a salesman, you have little | | | | assistant of the individual whom you are attempting |
| time to implement a successful first contact with this | | | | to contact. Not many sales representatives do this |
| person. Decision makers are being sold every which | | | | and subsequently lessen their odds of cold-calling |
| way on roughly an hourly basis. Like clock-work, | | | | success tremendously. |
| companies or potential vendors reach out to these | | | | A secretary, most of the time, is a cold-call |
| individuals with all different types of product offerings | | | | themselves and to be able to get to the decision |
| ranging from SEO services to mass email software | | | | maker involves the implementation of a sales cycle. |
| and who knows what else. | | | | Consider this a sales cycle of a sales cycle. A |
| Therefore, as a salesman or saleswoman, you have | | | | secretary or assistant of a decision maker is not |
| to be able to differentiate yourself in a split second | | | | going to embrace you the first phone call or two. |
| upon getting these individuals on the phone. Here are | | | | Instead, use the first two phone calls as a precursor |
| some ways to do so and ensure that your cold-calling | | | | to asking them to make the formal introduction. |
| campaign is a lucrative and fruitful one. How do you | | | | 3. Be mentally prepared to lose the business - When |
| ensure this? Below you will find some explanations | | | | cold-calling, you have to understand that you are |
| and tips in doing so. | | | | "rolling the dice." If you treat each call as if it was the |
| The 7 Second Rule | | | | Super Bowl, you're not going to do well. Allow |
| Cold-calling has what I refer to as a "7 Second Rule." | | | | yourself some room for failure and, when talking to |
| This means that upon cold-calling a new prospect | | | | the prospect, don't let him or her get a get a sense |
| you, as a sales professional, have about 7 seconds to | | | | that you are nervous. Once a prospect sniffs this |
| differentiate yourself from every other company or | | | | out, you don't stand out from the other 100 |
| competing sales individual who is contacting this | | | | companies attempting to sell them and you're not |
| person on a daily basis. | | | | going to start the sales cycle and, subsequently have |
| How is this done? | | | | a chance at driving revenue via this avenue. |
| There are several ways in which a cold-call, from the | | | | Simply stated, take chances with your pitch as if |
| onset, can lend itself to a high success rate and could | | | | everybody is playing it safe, you have to be the one |
| capture the attention of the targeted party. | | | | to attempt different tactics that will lend credibility to |
| 1. Get down to the person's level - People hate being | | | | both yourself and the product or service. |
| sold to. Therefore, as a sales professional, you must | | | | 4. Be mentally prepared for a lot of rejection - When |
| come across as a human being and connect | | | | starting a cold-calling campaign, you must be mentally |
| personally with the individual. How can this be done? | | | | prepared to endure a good amount of harsh |
| First, when cold-calling somebody, act as if it is not a | | | | rejection as not everybody is always welcoming to a |
| cold-call at all and don't have an objective of selling | | | | sales call. If you project one rejection on the |
| the product. Instead, you should have an objective | | | | prospects whom you're going to call, and |
| of establishing a relationship to begin the sales cycle. | | | | subsequently expect rejection, your campaign and |
| 2. Understand that the secretary is very, very | | | | pitch will not be on target. |