Let’s start with the basics. What is the difference between cold calling and sales lead? While cold calling is a cold contact established by an SDR or a full cycle Account Executive, the sales lead is already warm thanks to marketing.
The sales lead is a potential customer who has already shown some interest in our product and has provided us with information so that we can contact them through an inbound marketing campaign. Therefore, they are no longer 100% cold leads and it means that we have to prepare even better for his contact through the channel that they have provided us.
In cold calling, we have to warm our lead and make our outreach as natural as possible. There are 3 ways to launch yourself in any market, then other possibilities open up depending on the country. Which one we choose and how we face this outreach, that is always our question.
- Phone
You do not face a quick response by email. In most cases there is no response to that email, a 10% response rate is considered good.
Pros of sending an email:
- You keep your hopes up longer, as you believe that there are possibilities when sometimes there are no more.
- It can be used as a first touchpoint to warm the lead, so you won’t be a stranger when you contact them through another channel.
Cons of sending an email:
- You don’t get a quick answer.
- Depending on the wording, it may not be clear or be too extensive, so your buyer persona will not finish reading the email.
Emails can be the start of your cadence, but you’ll need to use other channels so that the prospect advances through the buying process. The most recognized SDRs recommend a subject of 2-3 words and a content of 3 lines maximum.
Why?
It is unlikely that you’ll close any sales through email. What they do recommend is to write a personalized email, where it is perceived that you have been investigating and that you know a lot about their company and role.
Salesperson with no LinkedIn – no easy life! In the old days, salespeople had to visit their target companies in person and knock on their doors to find out about them, with all the ignorance that this practice implies regarding the type of company and its organisation.
Luckily, that is history, and today we can be detailed in our outreach and refine our efforts toward the type of customer we are looking for. LinkedIn is a place where we find information on people and companies, and it is one more way to contact them.
Pros of LinkedIn:
- Quick access to information.
- Direct and fast outreach to our leads.
Cons of LinkedIn:
- There are hundreds of sales reps just like you trying to achieve the same objective!
You have to stand out from the crowd. Your profile must be consistent with the message you want to send on LinkedIn, as your image is your company’s brand. One of your tasks is to follow posts and relevant people on LinkedIn and publish relevant information to your field – show that you are an expert!
Like email, LinkedIn does not give you a quick response but it should be part of a cadence.
Both with email and LinkedIn you can be creative and send videos and voice memos that make your message more unique.
Phone
The most relevant tool is the phone. It is more intimidating because you can make mistakes or not be very bright at first. However, it is the most effective channel – it allows us to interact directly with our potential client and obtain relevant information.
Pros of the phone:
- Speed of response.
- You manage to find out more information about your potential client, both about the company and about what resonates with your potential buyer.
Cons of the phone:
- The lead may not pick up the phone.
- That you are not very fluent and some calls may not go well (you can always try again 😊).
Before calling you should prepare yourself: research the company and the buyer thoroughly, take a sincere interest in their business and their achievements – you want to help them do better.
It is important to show confidence and be respectful, it is not the aggressive salesperson who closes the most meetings, but the one who is capable of understanding and generating trust. And this is not achieved by intimidating them (for example, the SDR who contacts you saying that you are breaking a regulation and that you are going to get a fine, but their SaaS offers you salvation…).
Through outbound sales, you reach specific and desirable clients. It is absolutely necessary to open the market, since inbound Marketing strategies, content, campaigns, etc., are always somewhat slower.
We have shared with you some tips to have a higher impact, the next step is to measure to learn and improve them. What do we measure?
- The results
- Activity (number of companies contacted and new prospected)
- The conversion of your calls into meetings
- The quality of the meetings
These metrics will give you the key to continuing with your strategy, improve, and iterate. Each industry, due to its market, cycle, and sales ticket, will have its own metrics, so the first thing to do is understand them.
Find out more tips for SDRs. These are the 8 top tips from the top performers in the industry.
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