How to increase your chances for success when reaching out cold
Cold outreach is tough. It’s a rare type of sales pro that actually wants to do it, and most people sound annoyed when you call them. I mean, it makes sense—you have no relationship with this person (at least not yet), and a lot of sales outreach is, let’s face it, obnoxious.
But when done right, cold outreach can be an excellent tool to generate sales. Cold outreach can help get you beyond your existing audience and connect with high-value prospects in your space.
These initiatives can lead to more closed deals. But when you don’t embrace cold calling best practices your cold outreach will most likely be ignored. Bad news.
The good news is that there are ways to improve your chances of success with cold outreach. And in this post, I’m going to show you how to do exactly that.
1. Talk about the prospect
The last thing you need to do is ruin your chances by talking about yourself and how amazing your company is. Remember, this prospect probably has no idea who you are. If they don’t quickly understand WHY you’ve reached out, they won’t stick around for the rest of your pitch.
Start with a short and friendly introduction about you and your company. Then move on to the prospect and figure out if and how you can help them. Talk about how your product can help them and their company achieve specific results by offering examples of other brands who’ve had similar success.
That's where having strong case studies comes in handy.
At Close, we helped Cloosiv ditch the spreadsheets and automate their pipeline. With a few simple tweaks to their sales process and the adoption of Close CRM, they were able to increase their business by 1400%!
ChartMogul needed a platform that could serve as a single source of truth for its team. That's where Close came in. By centralizing the company's sales and marketing efforts, and using powerful features like built-in calling and Smart Views, ChartMogul was able to quadruple their ARPU.
Printavo, a small startup in the bootstrap phase, was forced to rely on cheap, clunky software due to budget constraints. Close CRM offered them a powerful solution, while keeping costs low during their growth stage.
One major piece that is often overlooked is researching the company you’re trying to get in touch with before picking up the phone or pressing send. You have to know what the prospect needs even before THEY know it. That might sound weird, but it’s a competitive market and tons of other companies are reaching out as well.
Standing out takes research and going the extra mile to understand the prospect. On the other hand, don't overdo your research and assume you have all the answers (more on that in a bit).
2. Add value immediately
We’ve all been there—we get super excited about our product, and we forget to communicate immediate value in what we are trying to offer.
Adding value means delivering something that helps your prospect solve an immediate problem or be more successful in the long run. Providing value not only helps you stand out but can also enhance your reputation among potential clients.
While in most sales interactions, adding value means offering short-term discounts in order to meet quota, value can take many forms—from sending a case study with actionable advice to helping solve a problem.
If you put effort into offering value, you will never run out of ways to communicate with prospects.
3. Research. Research. Research.
Researching before reaching out can make a whole lot of difference. By understanding the company and the individual you’re trying to communicate with, you can set up a better conversation.
If you were going to talk to somebody in person, you wouldn’t want to call them by the wrong name because you didn’t do your homework. Don’t let being behind a computer or a phone lead to a lower-quality discussion.
No two prospects are the same, and you shouldn't treat them that way.
Taking the time and effort to create a more customized experience from the first point of contact is key.
So what's the best way to get to know your prospect?
Asking meaningful questions, and actually listening. It's one of the fundamental skills of sales that very few people have really mastered.
This skill is so important, that we've written a whole bunch of blog posts on the topic. I recommend bookmarking these:
- → Want to close more deals? This is the 1 question you need to ask
- → 13 killer B2B sales questions to close more deals
- → 42 B2B qualifying questions to ask sales prospects
- → Buyer refuses to answer your questions? Do this!
- → 3 questions to ask yourself before making that sales call
With a better understanding of the prospect, you’ll provide a better experience and lay a foundation for a better relationship.
4. Offer a product demo
Product demos are great for converting prospects into customers.
In your initial cold email outreach, offer to set up a product demo. During the demo, your prospect will be able to see how your product can meet their needs, and you’ll be able to address their specific product-related concerns and pain points. This will help you get one step closer to closing that deal.
Hey, have you heard about our super cool AI tool for writing cold emails? It can whip up some killer email templates in no time for your outreach efforts. Check it out!
5. Don’t be pushy
Yes, you know what I’m talking about—those salespeople who are more interested in pushing their product than helping you get what you need. We all know that nobody wants to deal with that type of person … so you certainly don’t want to be THAT person.
There’s a thin line between confident and pushy.
You want to be confident. You don’t want to be pushy.
You have to find a balance between getting your message across and not pushing a prospect away by being too aggressive. I'm a huge proponent of a strong follow-up, but there's an art to getting it right and doing it well.
Conclusion
The truth is that cold outreach is tough business.
But remember to be human! Be honest about who you are and what you have to bring to the table.
On the other end, your prospects are waiting for someone who will make their job easier—show them how you can be that person.
Want more advice on getting more customers with cold outreach? Get a free copy of my book Your Growth Hacks Aren't Working!
