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Building Cold Calling Confidence
The biggest fear in selling is by far the cold call. Salespeople hate calling on people they don't know so they convince themselves that it's a waste of time and effort to do it. But, I think anyone who has been around long enough would agree, while not the perfect way to gain new clients, it has its place. The problem is that far too often salespeople talk themselves out of calling on prospects because they let their fear take over. What is it about cold calling that makes normally brave men and women tremble with fear?
Well, for starters, it's a lonely game. Ever notice how much easier it is to go cold calling in pairs. You go in, you get shot down, and then you leave and make a joke to your partner on the way out. When the same thing happens when you're on your own, you begin to doubt yourself, your company, your products. Then you have all the time to your next appointment to think about how dreadful this job is. This is not the state that you should be in to sell effectively and there are some ways to get your head straight and keep confidence high.
For one, remember it's nothing personal. Wait, I know you've heard that and you think "It feels personal to me!". Well, that's absolutely true. Everyone has a right to take it personally, but just realize that nobody can possibly make a judgement on you as a person in 3 seconds. I don't think you could possibly offend someone that quickly (Although I know people that come close!). Second, keep in mind that sales is part numbers and part conversion of qualified prospects into customers. At the cold calling stage, they aren't even prospects, they're suspects. Realize that your goal isn't to do any selling that day most likely. Your job is to take that large list of people and put them into 3 categories. Either they are hot prospects, prospects that aren't ready yet, or they are not qualified. If you look at your job as to just categorize them then you realize that it's less about selling and more about intelligence gathering.
Finally, don't get down on yourself. Sales is and always will be a numbers game. While you might convert a very small percentage of people into appointments and eventual sales, just remember that there is always room for improvement. And let's face it, time spent meeting people and making an impression on people is better than time spent in the office. So don't let the fear of cold calling keep you from reaching higher sales success!
Jim Dunne is a sales and trainer who coaches clients on effective sales prospecting techniques and strategy. He runs a website at http://www.prospecting-secrets.com which offers free resources to sales professionals and managers.
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