Is Cold Calling Dead? An In-depth Breakdown

A question that I continuously see brought up in the sales industry is if cold calling is dead. The world of sales is always changing. We all know how difficult it is to find new ways to generate leads. And, cold calling might not be cutting it anymore. But, is cold calling truly dead for sales teams? Keep reading to find out if cold calling is dead and how to optimize your lead generation tactics.

What is Cold Calling?

When you think of cold calling, you probably think of picking up the phone and calling a lead to try and convince them to book a meeting, buy your product, or another goal. Often the cold call is one of, if not the first points of contact that you have with that prospect. So, you have to wow them. Both B2B and B2C companies can use cold calling, but it is generally more reputable for B2B companies.  After years and years of taking cold calls, a lot of people have a negative opinion about them. Because of this, in addition to other forms of lead generation being available, a lot of companies are not using cold calling like they used to. 

Well, is Cold Calling Dead?

Cold calling is not necessarily dead. But, it needs to be adapted to fit today’s current market. Due to caller ID, working from home, companies not having a phone, and a plethora of other reasons, the traditional idea of picking up a phone to pitch someone your product is not as popular as it once was. That doesn’t mean you still can’t be successful with a phone call. But, there are more practical ways to discover new leads. 

Cold Email vs Cold Call

The technology that is available today is much better than it was a few years ago, so in a lot of cases there are better options to help you reach out to leads. And, contact information like email addresses can be very easy to find. Sales emails are typically less time consuming for both you and your prospect. And, you can include a lot of beneficial information like charts, use cases, or even a personalized demo. Plus, you can track exactly which emails are opened and by whom, what links they clicked on, and you can follow up a lot easier based on this information. In fact, a CRM can automate a lot of your cold emailing. So, you don’t even have to think about following up. With all of this being said, I want to reiterate that for some companies, cold calling can also be very successful. If you’re not sure which will work the best for your company, here is a great comparison article by Hubspot.

How to Be Successful With Cold Calls

There is still a time and place for cold calling. Although it should not be the only sales tactic that you depend on, it can be a great addition to your other sales tactics. Keep reading to learn how to be successful with your cold call initiatives.

Create a Call List

The first step in cold call sales initiatives is to build a list of phone numbers to call. There are a few different ways that you can generate phone numbers. The most reliable way is to use software, like Zoominfo or Visitor Queue to find phone numbers. Both of these methods are trustworthy, and can generate relevant phone numbers based on companies that would be interested in your software. Of course, you have the option of buying a call list. But, there’s no guarantee that all of the numbers on the list will work, or if all of the companies on the list will be relevant to your business. 

Do Your Research

Just like any other form of lead generation, you’ll need to do your research about the person that you’re going to contact as well as their company. This will help you qualify them as a lead and help you learn about their pain points. Being familiar with who you’re cold calling will give you the upper hand. And will help you build a better relationship. As a result, you’re more likely to get a second meeting. Check out their website, their competitors, and their LinkedIn to better understand how your company will help theirs. Then, you can talk about specific use cases and other information that will help them understand what it would be like to use your product. 

Target New Hires

When companies hire new employees, especially employees that are high up in the company, they often look for new and exciting initiatives. So, this could be the perfect opportunity to sell them your product. This is where you can include your research and talk about their pain points. In addition, if you know that their competitors are using a solution, then explain how their competitors are taking advantage of the product and how much easier their lives are. Like I mentioned before, if you decide to use cold calling in your sales initiatives, you should accompany it with other lead generation and sales tactics. 

Focus on Learning, Not Sales

In your first point of contact with a prospect, there’s a good chance that they are not going to convert. So, instead of spending your time trying to convince them to buy, spend your time discussing their pain points and how you solve them. Again, this is where your research will come in handy. Sales calls have gotten a bad reputation because of sales reps trying to sell too early, instead of educating the prospect. Understanding your sales funnel, as well as your prospect’s company will do your sales initiatives wonders.

Don’t Follow a Script

Now, a script is not a bad idea. Especially when you are new, a script can be a great asset. The problem arises when you read the script word for word. You end up sounding like a robot, and that you may not be very knowledgeable about the product. You should talk naturally, like you’re having a conversation with the prospect. If you build a relationship with them, they will be more likely to book a meeting and hold a genuine conversation with you. 

Embrace Rejection

Let’s face it, you’re going to get more no’s than yes’. This goes for most forms of cold lead generation. But, if you let it get to you, it will show. Lacking confidence or negativity of any sort will greatly impact your sales calls, and not in a good way. It’s very easy to get discouraged, but if you let it show, it will continue. Salespeople need to have a thick skin, and learn how to handle rejection. It’s also important to keep in mind that even if you get a no today, it doesn’t mean that you will get another no in 6 months. The company may not have the budget for a new software now. However, in 6 months they could be scrambling to try and find one. If the company fits into your ideal target audience and you know they would love your product, reach out to them at a later date. So many salespeople will cross a company off of their list with one no, but you shouldn’t always do that. 

How to Generate Leads in 2022 and Beyond

The idea of reaching out to leads and prospects “coldly” is still widely used. And, it will probably always be used. In this digital age, there are a ton of different ways that you can find contact information, and reach out to the prospect. The following are our favorite ways to generate high quality leads that are ready to convert.

Website Visitor Identification

A website visitor identification software, like Visitor Queue, is one of the best ways to generate leads and contact information to help you reach out. We are a B2B lead generation software that can identify the companies that visit your website. In addition to visit information like how they were acquired, pages viewed, and time spent on each page. Plus, we can provide you with contact information including email addresses, phone numbers, and LinkedIn channels. You know that the companies that visit your website are interested in what you have to offer, but only 2% will convert. Find out who the other 98% of your website visitors are, and reach out to them to close the deal. Start your 14-day free trial of Visitor Queue today and stop losing leads.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is one of the best ways that you can find highly relevant prospects, and reach out. Whether you decide to manually reach out, create message ads, or use LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you’ll be sure to generate high quality leads. You have the option to reach out directly on LinkedIn. Or, you can use a tool like Hunter.io to find their email address and then reach out. If it’s in your company’s budget, LinkedIn Sales Navigator is one of the best sales tools out there. You can enter in your ideal target market, industry, and title, and Sales Navigator will return leads that match. But, because Sales Navigator returns such high-quality leads, it can get pretty pricey.

Use a CRM

To manage all of your contact information, you should invest in CRM software. It will not only manage your contacts, but you can also set up automations that will follow up at the right time. You can use the CRM’s analytics to see where leads may be dropping off, so you can optimize your sequence for future leads. Best of all, you can integrate your CRM with Visitor Queue, ZoomInfo, and other software that generate contact information. This way you can send contact information straight to your CRM and follow up. If you’re not sure what CRM will fit your needs, take a look at this list of the best CRMs for sales teams. 

Use a Demo Software

A demo software is one of the best ways to not only generate leads, but to increase your chances of your cold email strategy working. Demo software is relatively new to the industry, but we’re already seeing the success that it can bring to companies. To generate leads, you have the ability to embed the demo right on your website landing pages. The demo will walk your website visitors through how to use your software with popups, video clips, images, and other features. Then, you can include a call to action that will entice them to sign up. You also have the option to send a link to a personalized demo via email. Here, you can add in personalizations like the company’s logo, employees as users, stats, and other key points that will help them envision what it’s like to use your software. This technology has been taking the sales and marketing industry by storm. And, is an amazing way to give prospects a great first impression. To learn more about how to create an interactive demo, check out this article.

Final Words

As you can see, cold calling is not necessarily dead, but it’s no longer one of the main lead generation tactics that sales teams use. Cold calling can still be a great asset to your sales initiatives, and can still lend a helpful hand. But, because cold calling can take a lot of time and doesn’t always yield the best results, it’s helpful to pair your cold calling with other lead generation and follow up techniques. If you have any questions about how Visitor Queue can help you identify your website visitors, don’t hesitate to reach out.