TAKING THE ‘COLD’ OUT OF COLD CALLING

The sting of cold calling can be so painful!  We’ve all been told it’s a numbers game, but that just doesn’t seem to ease the pain.  Whether it be by phone or face-to-face, cold calling can be difficult, especially for those who are new to sales.  

Why the challenge?  First, you are confronting someone who most likely has no idea who you are or what you are selling.  Second, you are not in control.  You basically are an uninvited guest who is ‘intruding’ on someone’s time.

Then, for some, there is the psychological aspect of feeling that you are pushing things on people.  You might be overly concerned about what the other person is going to think about you.  Perhaps you feel that you are bothering them, and the list can go on and on.

So, let’s first discuss in greater detail how we might develop (or have developed) this fear of cold calling.  Then, more importantly, we will also go over some ideas on how we can eliminate it!

PERCEPTION

Perception plays a very big part in selling.  When comes to getting over the fear of cold calling there are two perceptions we must focus on.  The first is the perception we have of ourselves.  The second is how we think others perceive us.  These two perceptions will be directly related to our performance in sales.  For example, if you think others will dislike you if you approach them about your product, that perception is going to slow or even stop you from approaching new prospects.  The reason is obvious – no one really wants to be disliked!  But, if we perceive that we will be disliked, who wants to confront more people so more people will dislike us?  We must keep in mind that a perception is just that, a ‘perception’.  A perception may be either true or false.  But if we believe it, it becomes true in our minds and we react accordingly.

If you are challenged with thoughts like this, the first thing to do is write down on a piece of paper what the negative perceptions are that go through your mind.  Once that is completed, we need to try to reason logically on how this type of thinking will sabotage our success.  Is it logical to think that everyone we talk to is going to dislike us?  They will forget about us a lot quicker than we will them.  True, some people may be bothered by our attempts to contact them, but what is the other side of the coin?  Sit back in the bleachers and never play the game?! 

When it comes to how others might ‘perceive’ my persistence in cold calling, I often think of the President of the United States.  Some years ago, the President came through our town during an annual festival.   The roads are blocked off for miles and miles.  There was a two-hour traffic back up because of his visit.  Do you think he is sitting back in that bulletproof limousine thinking, “Those poor people.  They’re going to get home late, pick up their kids from school late, miss appointments, and it’s all because of me”?  Not hardly!  So the next time you’re bothered by an irrational perception that makes you feel that others may be bothered by your cold calling, think of the President.  It’s not going to bother him and it shouldn’t bother you!

BELIEF

Another reason that some have such a challenge with cold calling is because they lack a positive belief in their product or service.  Granted, you have to believe in yourself and your ability to sell (which comes under our perception category) but a belief in your product or service is a must also.   I’ve consulted with many people and have helped them to see the need to stop selling what they are presently selling and find something else to sell.  Why?  Because they need to really believe in or be truly passionate and excited about their product in order to sell it.  You have to ‘buy’ it first!

The more passion, excitement and belief that you have, the easier it is going to be to cold call.  It’s very difficult to convince someone to buy your product if you haven’t bought it (either mentally or physically) first.  Additionally, if you know there is a prospective client that you would like to reach and you are having a very hard time doing so, your passion many times will be equivalent to the effort and amount of attempts you make in trying to contact them.  You simply won’t give up.  I have a tremendous passion for what I do, and that is directly related to the amount of drive and persistence that I have.  I have literally made hundreds of attempts to contact just one company.  Without a strong belief in your product, you’ll fizzle out in no time.

OLD PROGRAMMING

If we stop and think about the basics of cold calling, we discover it’s usually the quickest way to drum up business.  Cold calling is referred to as ‘getting back to the basics’.  When all else fails, go back to the basics.  When business is slow, most people tell you to do what?  “Cold call.  Knock on doors.  Go out there and get the business!” 

Often, this can create a very negative association to cold calling.  If you are new to sales, think about the times when you had to cold call.  Was it easy and the most fun you’ve ever had?  I would think not.  It was tough.  You are trying to build a clientele, your income is low or maybe even nonexistent, and you may not have much experience.  It just all seems negative, negative, negative.  We actually begin to create negative associations to cold calling.  The reason is that the circumstances in which we are having to cold call under appear negative.  No clientele, little or no income, and so on.  Subconsciously, we now link cold calling to negatives - low income, no client base and other negatives that we might perceive.

This negative association will usually stick with us for years.  Now, let’s say we finally get a client base and our income increases.  We will probably be less prone to go out and cold call.  (Some businesses are based on solely on one-time sales, so cold calling is a major part of their business – we are not talking to about them.)  So we choose to just work on our present client base and we seem to make a living doing that.  Let’s add some factors in now.  We purchase or want to purchase a new home and we need to increase our income.  What we are presently making won’t cut it.  Or perhaps things are slow and we are thinking, “What am I going to do to increase my income?”  This little voice in the back of our head says, “Cold call!” “No, not that!” you answer back.  Now all of the subconscious negative associations that you created years ago when you first started cold calling floods back into your mind.  And the downward spiral of cold calling begins once again.  The old programming from the past has caught up to us.  I am sure it’s happened to you and I know it’s happened to me.

In working with sales people who include cold calling as a means to create more sales, I have found that when things are financially strong for them they dramatically slow down or quit cold calling completely.  Wrong move.  Now we are creating an additional association that says, “When things are good, I don’t have to cold call.”  This has programmed us subconsciously into thinking that when things are not going well for us, we have to cold call.  No wonder many people hate to cold call!  So, how do we break this pattern?

The easiest way to do this is to make cold calling a ‘way of life’, an integral part of your sales career.  Cold call when things are slow, but MAKE SURE YOU ALSO COLD CALL WHEN THINGS ARE GOING VERY WELL.  By continuing to cold call when you’re doing well, you are eliminating that negative association of only cold calling when things are slow or when we are not making enough money.

It’s also very important to pay strict attention to what you say to yourself (verbally or non-verbally) when you get a ‘no’ after a cold call. Is what you say always negative?  Do you walk as if you have your tail between your legs?  Do you sulk and say things like, “he was a jerk anyway”?  It’s this negative self-talk and our immediate reaction to the ‘no’ that programs us and determines our mental attitude for the next call.  If that last person would have bought from you, he/she would have been your best friend!  If you have to ‘lie’ to yourself that “no” doesn’t bother you, then do so!  Tell yourself “Move on, off to the next one.”  Sooner or later, your conditioning will change from negative to positive.

We have all heard that the more ‘no’s’ we get, the closer we are to a ‘yes’.  That’s all great and true, but if we don’t understand that and more importantly believe that, it will do us no good.  Nothing will change!  I hear managers trying to help their associates that have a fear of cold calling by telling them that the more no’s they get, it just means you are that much closer to a yes.  Let’s think about this logically.  If you have a real challenge with cold calling, do you really think that someone telling you, “the more no’s you get, the closer you are to a yes”, is going to cause a great revelation in your thinking and eliminate your fear of cold calling?  No!

So, the next time you are confronted with the challenge of cold calling, stop.  Take some time and analyze what we have just been going over.  Study yourself.  Try to identify what is causing you to feel this way and why.  THEN, it will just be a matter of time before you REALLY BELIEVE that every no you get brings you that much closer to a YES!

 (www.garycoxe.com) Gary is enormously popular as a speaker, provides private one-on-one consulting, and numerous programs on sales, motivation, and self-development for the Public, Corporations & the Network Marketing Industry. 1-800-64-POWER