While once an integral part of many B2B startups’ marketing strategies, Cold calling has recently fallen out of favor. However, there are still many instances where it can be a valuable tool for acquiring leads.
The most obvious instance is when the cold call was initiated by someone referred to you by another contact or customer. In this case, you know that the person on the other end has a preexisting interest in your product and might already have done business with you.
These calls tend to produce more sales-ready leads than ones made without any previous contacts or references because they usually take less time to make and are much less likely to result in dead ends.
Cold calling provides a centralized way for prospects to find out more information about your product or service without having to spend hours browsing through social media sites like LinkedIn and Facebook.
Cold calling also allows you to reach customers who may not have been exposed to your brand yet, leading them down the path of becoming a customer one day!
Keep in mind; the most successful cold calls are with the customers who just bought what you offer.
Cold-calling can benefit B2B startups because it’s often your only avenue for outreach or generating awareness when more conventional marketing channels like direct mail campaigns, email blasts, and banner ads aren’t available due to cost considerations.
It’s also an insight into how your competitors might distribute their goods if they were in your position. However, the most successful cold calls are made by people who have already pasted themselves (as apparent potential partners) through one or more avenues of communication with a customer on your prospect list, either by referral from an existing client or contact at another company.
Contacting people can be an effective way to learn what they are interested in and build connections that will lead to future collaboration. But it also requires time and persistence, so you need a big belief in your ideas and motivation for wearing down potential customers or partners.
And it doesn’t work for all types of businesses; some companies depend on more targeted marketing like paid advertising, SEO, or content creation (e.g., blog) because they’ve already built up a lot of credibility with their audience. They only contact potential customers when there is something relevant they want those customers to know about their product offering.
When the financial belt has been tightened, cold calling in B2B startups can be beneficial because it opens the door to potential clients, and when done correctly, it is time-saving. Its scalability across geography and industry lines also makes it very attractive for startups with flexibility as a strategy.
Why Do People In The Tech Industry Have A Hard Time With Cold Calling?
Cold calling is not a new concept, but it’s one that many people in the tech industry have a hard time with. The reason for this can be traced back to how you’re raised and what your social circle is like.
Many people who grow up in the tech industry are introverts who prefer to spend their day coding rather than talking on the phone. As such, they don’t always know when or how to make those calls.
The more they do “cold calling,” the better technique they get at it. You need discipline and persistence. For starters, try following up with prospects within 24 hours of your initial contact attempt so that you don’t seem pushy or demanding when you make your 2nd contact attempt.
This also allows for any misunderstandings from miscommunication (e.g., by email) to be dealt with promptly before there is too much delay on either side, whether that’s on your part or theirs).
Callers must read the recipient of the cold call, think up a sound-bite that can entice them to take these callers’ phone calls.
The first 15 seconds of a cold call determine if the caller gets put on hold, ditched, or has their concerns met with positive support by whatever company’s representative chooses to answer that particular call.
Successful cold callers know exactly what they want in one sentence and then go for it without wasting any time hemming or hawing about themselves or how their business will make money for their customers.
How To Make B2B Cold Calls Easier For Those In The Tech Industry
Cold calling is a time-consuming and challenging task. However, this can be more true for those in the tech industry. What are some tips to make cold calls easier?
To have a compelling call, you need to prepare beforehand with your script and what you’re looking for from the conversation.
It’s important not to waste any of your potential leads’ time, so it’s best to know what they might want before making that first call.
If you give them exactly what they’re looking for without dragging on too long, then chances are pretty good that they’ll buy from you!
Cold calls are often seen as the most challenging marketing tactic to pull off, but they can be just as successful if you know what you’re doing.
To make a cold call easier for those in the tech industry, it is necessary to know their business and what makes them unique. This way, you have something to ask them about before talking with the receptionist or whoever answers your call.
It also doesn’t hurt to mention where you heard of them from, so they’re not immediately skeptical when they get a phone call out of nowhere; this may take some convincing on your part, especially if that’s true.
The Benefits Of Using A CRM System For Your B2B Cold Calling Efforts
Cold calling can be a great way to reach out to new prospects, but it’s hard work, and you have to spend hours researching and dialing numbers just for a few minutes of conversation.
Wouldn’t you prefer if those first five calls could lead directly into the next 10? A CRM system is the best tool because it saves time by keeping track of your conversations and showing you who has said “yes” or “no” in previous interactions with them.
It also shows you what they’re currently interested in so that when you call back, you know how best to pitch your product or service. Cold calling doesn’t need to be such an uphill battle when using a CRM system!
The Benefits of Using a CRM
1) Improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your day-to-day activities
2) Ineffective communicators
3) Greater success rates
4) Tracking conversations across various touchpoints
5) Shows which prospects have been contacted and who has not yet been contacted
6) Tracks activity
7) Improves team communication
8) Forecast predictions
9) Gains valuable insights about buyers
10). Saves time by using information gathered about a company
11). Helps in generating smoother interactions
CRM for cold calling is a tool that boosts agent performance, improves sales pipelines, and provides accurate reporting.
The system tracks customer interactions and automates updating contact information and analyzing success rates to help agents respond more efficiently.
Because CRM helps agents stay on top of the activities at hand, they can spend less time searching for information and building rapport with prospects in different stages of the buying cycle.
It’s possible to track conversations between an agent and prospects or contacts through one centralized location that includes all communication records exchanged through phone calls, emails, meeting invites, or other sources.
This integration allows companies to deliver faster service to customers as they’re able because their employees start a conversation knowing exactly where it ended and learn what information to provide.
Who Does The Cold Calling In A SaaS Startup?
The cold-calling role at a SaaS startup is one that often gets overlooked, but that doesn’t mean it’s not essential. Cold calling is the first step to any successful sales process.
It’s important to note that Remote Work and a virtual office are two different things. Because you’re in charge of managing your remote workforce, no designated individual will take the time to call potential clients as part of your workflow.
Many SaaS startup employees work from home or in coffee shops, which means they are not physically working out of an office with other workers.
If someone can’t find space nearby for business-related activities on their schedule, the chances are that person won’t care for the company enough to make it through the initial stages when the dirt needs to be moved to win new customers.
Therefore, who does the cold calling in a SaaS startup highly depends on its organizational culture.
Most organizations use some form of cold calling, and it’s often distributed throughout the company, with certain people pursuing new prospects to identify potential leads. In contrast, others talk to existing clients about renewing their contracts or developing more business for them.
The marketing team might also be in charge of most cold calls if you have a marketing department. And some companies have one person who does all the cold calling just because they’re good at it!
Why Is Cold Calling Done By Sales Professionals?
Sales professionals do cold calling to determine if there is a fit for their company’s service.
We often see different types of cold calls, and it’s important to remember that this practice is not always bad.
Selling information about products or services can be a part of a good business strategy, and providing helpful customer service can make life more enjoyable for those who need help.
In these cases, cold emails or phone call messages should never include pressure tactics but instead, offer all the necessary information upfront before succumbing to selling anything at all.
A note of caution, though; many companies want an immediate purchase and will do anything they can, including high-pressure tactics to convince consumers into buying from them immediately over another company offering similar deals.
Is B2B Cold Calling Illegal In Dubai?
In Dubai, B2B cold calling is legal. There is no explicit legal standing for this, but cold calling can often be seen as violating privacy, spamming, and bothering uninvited people.
There is no legislation in Dubai specifically against B2B Cold Calling. However, Articles 18 and 21 of the Federal Law No. (14) of 2008 on cybercrime cover Computer Crimes and Electronic Commerce Crimes.
If cold-calling is seen as an invasion of privacy or spamming, it could fall under these articles.
Furthermore, Article 27 prohibits using information systems to publish false and offensive material or infringe intellectual property rights when profit cannot be shown.
Finally, Article 38 penalizes those who violate users’ access security by tampering with their details such that they bear responsibility for unauthorized disclosure.
Conclusion
Cold calling is an effective way to generate leads and build a pipeline, but it can be difficult for entrepreneurs in the tech industry.
Don’t give up if you’re in the tech industry and find a cold calling to be difficult! It may seem like a daunting task at first, but there are ways for you to make it easier.
For example, consider using email instead of phone calls or follow-up with prospects after they meet with your team members out in the field.
The key is knowing your target customer and their needs to have a better understanding of what they want from you.
A cold call is an essential tool for B2B startups. Cold calling can be done from home, in the office, or anywhere with a phone and internet connection.
It’s much easier to make those calls when you have a plan of action. Making your cold calls even more successful will take some practice, but it pays off with new leads that result in increased sales revenue.
Glossary
Inbound leads are sales calls from a potential customer offering sales prospect. These people provide their personal information and request information from a sales rep about what the company offers, which is collected by the sales team and stored in databases.
A sales cycle, also referred to as a customer lifecycle or a prospect journey, is the process through which a potential client becomes aware of your company; this can be from social selling, cold emailing, lead generation, and cold outreach using successful cold calling. Ultimately end up learning more about you and consider buying what you are selling.
A cold calling campaign is a sales promotion where the customer is contacted via the telephone with a sales pitch, usually to learn more about a particular product. A sales professional prefers to use a cold calling script. Many businesses choose to use hard calling services instead of spending time and money on developing a cold calling strategy.
The cold calling process is where a cold caller calls businesses or individuals to pitch their product or service. A salesperson will use a learned cold calling technique to persuade a B2B prospect.
B2B Lead Generation generates non-personal data that connects a sales representative with potential customers. This type of marketing starts with assessing the sales opportunity of the business’ needs and providing them with free information via various resources before moving to outbound calls to try to sell them on a service. On many occasions, a sales manager would be employed to train a salesperson with various cold calling tips for how to best use the list of B2B sales phone numbers.
Inbound marketing is a form of marketing that includes organic search engine optimization, blogging, and social media. It’s called inbound because it focuses on pulling customers to a business’s website instead of the other way around, like using a sales dialer or B2C telemarketing.
