Cold Calling

Hi all, I am new to this site and am very excited to see what kind of feedback and discussions take place. I am going to start by asking what I think to be a fairly simple question. I have been in sales for about 7 years now. I started in Auto and worked my way to technology sales. I am now the Director for a small Mortgage Technology company and recently had a Sales Executive quote me the following. I am curious to see what responses people would suggest. Here is what the rep stated to me after I asked each of them to pick 10 accounts they were going to really focus on trying to get business from. Keep in mind this rep has been in sales at the company I came to for over 10 years. Sorry for the long diatribe, but I am simply amazed at this.

The reps comments are below:
Of course you do realize that for me and all other reps I would not expect much business from this. The Average close ratio for a cold call is 1.6%, making cold calls a tremendous waste of time…think of it personally, when was the last time you bought a big ticket item when someone called you or out of the yellow pages? I am not pointing out anything new, we are all aware that the most successful method to increase sales is by referral…which by the ways has a close ratio of 36.5%...and with our reputation, the number of companies and individuals that know us this should be the most profitable way to grow…

One big problem however, none of us is good at getting referrals. It goes a lot deeper than simply asking for a referral…we all know why people do not like giving out other peoples names…the biggest reason is their concern about the way we, the sales people, will contact these people and what effect this will have on their relationship. So we have to work on techniques that increases our clients comfort level.

So what is the solution, I would suggest that we find some sales tool that helps build our skills and most importantly our confidences in this area. I recently received from a friend of mine a 5 disc set by John Costigan called “What to Say and How to Say it” I have listened to the disc and feel there is a lot of good information that can be related directly to Brooks Systems not only in the referral area but in all aspects of the sales process, the one draw back I saw was that this and most other sales tools are based on face to face meetings not over the phone however for referrals it wouldn’t matter.

I am not suggesting you buy these for the sales people. What I am suggesting is that you buy one for yourself learn it and then teach it. If we could add 30% to our customer base by referrals what would that do to our bottom line…a lot more then we will get from cold calls."

The reps comments lead me to believe that he/she is not very skilled with cold calling or referrals. Enough said.

Quote:

Originally Posted by AZBroker

The reps comments lead me to believe that he/she is not very skilled with cold calling or referrals. Enough said.

I don't think that's the answer Heal23 was looking for.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mikey

I don't think that's the answer Heal23 was looking for.

I think the reps answer is correct which was: "I would suggest that we find some sales tool that helps build our skills and most importantly our confidences in this area".

Heal:

You have spirited sales people. However you need to be sure that they are not being a negative poison within your environment.

I have some sticking points with your sales persons statements. This person quotes a close percentage with respect to cold calls. There are so many variables at play a low percentage of closes from cold calling just show that this is a area of the companies sales game that can be increased.

Cold calling is something that MANY sales people are resistant to. However it is a great way to sharpen their game and bring in new clietns. Also, when you get new clients (which is hard to do) you get MORE referrals!

Next, data- Sales data is something which is very close to my heart! Sales data I KNOW can make all the difference. When you are cold calling it can feel like a blind stab in the dark. Sales data can provide quit a bit of light into the room. You'll be able to isolate your market and contact people in a position to purchase. Your people will experience an increase in sales and their confidence will soar!

The rep states that most people don't purchase over the phone. This is not entirely true! When you are calling people who your services (or software) will benefit in a competitive market (mortgage brokering) a skilled sales person who knows their concerns and what attracts them should be able to gain their attention.

Possibly you could work with some of your sales staff to say you're going to experiment by working with a small group of staff, provide them with well thought sales data, work closely with them, have them cold calling a few days a week and see how their sales go up. You may find that many other of your staff begin peaking interested in participating in the cold calling group. Keep the sales numbers posted publicly.

This could be an interesting contest!

I hope this helps and please let me know if I can be of any assistance!

Lance

You might like this thread Heal23 - Cold Calling Doesn't Work?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heal23

and recently had a Sales Executive quote me the following.

You need a new Sales Executive.................

Cold calling sucks and I hate the way it makes me feel...................

Its like fighting, i shake and feel sick until the bell rings.........

	#1
Heal23	Cold Calling Hi all, I am new to this site and am very excited to see what kind of feedback and discussions take place. I am going to start by asking what I think to be a fairly simple question. I have been in sales for about 7 years now. I started in Auto and worked my way to technology sales. I am now the Director for a small Mortgage Technology company and recently had a Sales Executive quote me the following. I am curious to see what responses people would suggest. Here is what the rep stated to me after I asked each of them to pick 10 accounts they were going to really focus on trying to get business from. Keep in mind this rep has been in sales at the company I came to for over 10 years. Sorry for the long diatribe, but I am simply amazed at this. The reps comments are below: Of course you do realize that for me and all other reps I would not expect much business from this. The Average close ratio for a cold call is 1.6%, making cold calls a tremendous waste of time…think of it personally, when was the last time you bought a big ticket item when someone called you or out of the yellow pages? I am not pointing out anything new, we are all aware that the most successful method to increase sales is by referral…which by the ways has a close ratio of 36.5%...and with our reputation, the number of companies and individuals that know us this should be the most profitable way to grow… One big problem however, none of us is good at getting referrals. It goes a lot deeper than simply asking for a referral…we all know why people do not like giving out other peoples names…the biggest reason is their concern about the way we, the sales people, will contact these people and what effect this will have on their relationship. So we have to work on techniques that increases our clients comfort level. So what is the solution, I would suggest that we find some sales tool that helps build our skills and most importantly our confidences in this area. I recently received from a friend of mine a 5 disc set by John Costigan called “What to Say and How to Say it” I have listened to the disc and feel there is a lot of good information that can be related directly to Brooks Systems not only in the referral area but in all aspects of the sales process, the one draw back I saw was that this and most other sales tools are based on face to face meetings not over the phone however for referrals it wouldn’t matter. I am not suggesting you buy these for the sales people. What I am suggesting is that you buy one for yourself learn it and then teach it. If we could add 30% to our customer base by referrals what would that do to our bottom line…a lot more then we will get from cold calls."

	#2
AZBroker	The reps comments lead me to believe that he/she is not very skilled with cold calling or referrals. Enough said.

	#5
Lance_Best	Heal: You have spirited sales people. However you need to be sure that they are not being a negative poison within your environment. I have some sticking points with your sales persons statements. This person quotes a close percentage with respect to cold calls. There are so many variables at play a low percentage of closes from cold calling just show that this is a area of the companies sales game that can be increased. Cold calling is something that MANY sales people are resistant to. However it is a great way to sharpen their game and bring in new clietns. Also, when you get new clients (which is hard to do) you get MORE referrals! Next, data- Sales data is something which is very close to my heart! Sales data I KNOW can make all the difference. When you are cold calling it can feel like a blind stab in the dark. Sales data can provide quit a bit of light into the room. You'll be able to isolate your market and contact people in a position to purchase. Your people will experience an increase in sales and their confidence will soar! The rep states that most people don't purchase over the phone. This is not entirely true! When you are calling people who your services (or software) will benefit in a competitive market (mortgage brokering) a skilled sales person who knows their concerns and what attracts them should be able to gain their attention. Possibly you could work with some of your sales staff to say you're going to experiment by working with a small group of staff, provide them with well thought sales data, work closely with them, have them cold calling a few days a week and see how their sales go up. You may find that many other of your staff begin peaking interested in participating in the cold calling group. Keep the sales numbers posted publicly. This could be an interesting contest! I hope this helps and please let me know if I can be of any assistance! Lance __________________ Lance Best (Data Consultant) Professional Lists Inc. www.professional-lists.com

	#6
Jolly Roger	You might like this thread Heal23 - Cold Calling Doesn't Work? __________________ "The beatings will continue until morale improves."