On a recent business trip I was visiting customers and prospects within the automation distribution, OEM, and end user markets. I was traveling with our outside sales rep in and around Indianapolis when I was curious about if cold calling is still a thing in B2B.
With a few of our B2B meeting appointments being cancelled last minute, we decided to replace the initial customer line up with some more spontaneous meetings aka cold calling.
Having a secret passion for cold calling on prospects, I realized during that trip that cold calls can be considered the champions league of sales. Only the cream of the crop of sales people will successfully handle this masterful sales approach.
Cold calling is a practice often used by sales managers and business developers to get in touch with your ideal (future) customer unannounced. This can involve making a spontaneous phone call to a company you always wanted to work with or emailing a generic sales or info email address to get a referral. As the name speaks for itself, such leads are cold and you have no touchpoint to this potential customer (yet).
In our case, we recently knocked on our prospects’ door without a scheduled meeting and asked to see our contacts of interest. But let’s get back to the very beginning to find out if cold calls can still be a success in times or CRMs, LinkedIn, and data privacy.
First and foremost, it is crucial to know your ideal customer profile. This will not only make you realize USPs for your product but also show you the strengths and weaknesses for each of the customer segments you may or may not already work with.
Just as if you were to create a grocery list for your favorite recipe, you need to know precisely:
Once you have given the above some thought? It is time to roll up and say hello to your new customers. Be mindful and don’t think too much about your first impression, it is the most important to show yourself from your best side, don’t make yourself hyper-nervous and be pumped about making new connections.
When traveling I like to browse the web for keywords in the area that match my customer profiles. In my case it could be UL508(A), control panels, pump duplexers, automation, controls, robots or pumps. Search engines will then get you an array of results that you can further pursue.
The next step is making a short list of companies that you deem as possibly fitting to your customer portfolio. This short list you should review and analyze by researching staff members on their websites, LinkedIn, local news, Facebook, or other business intelligence tools you may already use.
Following your mini-research, you just roll up to the company of your choice, and your initial point of contact will be a receptionist.
Always smile when talking to the receptionist as they can be your best friend but also the best gatekeepers companies can have. Kindly give them an introduction, drop off a little goodie for them (such as a pen, cookie, Starbucks gift card) and ask for their help to see if they can either refer you to a point of contact you have found or guide you to who they think is appropriate to talk to. This way you signal you need their help. Most times receptionists just love to help you out since it is the nature of their job.
Finally, you either get in front of a person to present your sales pitch, or you drop off collaterals and follow up.
In case your point of contact is not available, it is of major importance to always ask for their contact information, business card, or someone else that may be available at that time. This is what I found was most successful for me.
Cold calls can be successful especially if you are in an unchartered sales territory and you may have some time to spare. I love throwing in one or two sales calls between meetings if I am in a certain town or state because it also gives you credibility rolling up to company B and saying “Hey, I was just in the area because we do business with company A.”
Now company B may be a competitor and trying to catch up with company A and will therefore give you time to serve them some competitive advantage.
Another big asset can be you showing up for them and educating your prospects on a new, trending topic which allows them to trade their time for another competitive edge.
Cold calling can open doors to accounts that may be less digitally versed and have built themselves a strong, regional name without having the need for pushing their boundaries.
My favorite thing still is the surprise moment since little to no people suspect a cold call these days and it allows you to add a personal touch to your potential new customers vs just having a LinkedIn conversation or email exchange.
In my career I easily walked into 100+ unknown accounts due to the growth stage of the automation company I was with. My favorite experiences include a purchase order I got within 20 minutes of walking out of an account I have never met before (thank you Ronnie with Automation Enclosures LLC in Evansville, IN) or a grand new distributor I was able to get in touch with that was the most likeminded company I dealt with (cheers to Graybrooke Technologies, LLC in Winston-Salem, NC)
Although cold calling may not always work perfectly fine, I found that if I have 1 in 3 cold calls that works, that my 33% success rate brings me personal joy. This doesn’t mean that the other 2 prospects banned me from their premises but simply the time may not have been right to start a chat.
Even if my person of interest is not available, having their business card or even the receptionist’s name gives you reason to follow up.
Staying positive, joyful and professional can help to cope with less successful cold calling days, but always remember:
If people don’t travel to see you, you got to go see them.
Leave a comment to share what you think about cold calling as a sales tactic.