Let’s take a minute to talk about the fundamentals of designing cold calls as a part of outbound marketing campaigns. Lots of people nowadays say cold calling is dead, which I think is just a cheap tactic to get headlines. There are certain aspects of cold calling that are dead, however. Things like making a call in which you have no idea of what to say, with a rote voicemail template, leaves you with a slim chance of getting a call back.
I like to use cold calls in a more specific way. I use them as just one part of a broader multi-touch campaign including emails and other means of contact, and I like to be specific. If I’m going to have a sequence of 50 people I’m calling, I’ll have my four to six sentences prepared on exactly what I’m going to say. You could say something more specific – like a case study – but as long as it’s benefits focused and to the point, you’re on the right track. The goal with these calls is to create some type of interest, to be specific, and to be consistent.
Unorganized voicemails are a rampant problem. People make calls simply to fill a quota and leave voicemails without having any idea of what they’re going to say. Plan your script ahead of time, use it consistently throughout a sequence, and you’ll be able to measure it’s effectiveness. Otherwise you can’t be sure just how good your messaging actually is.
Specificity is the key. You might not get call backs, as they’re pretty tough to get. But if you’re specific you have something you can measure, and you can see what types of results you’re getting.
