Cold Calling Tips

We can't give you random "tips". They wont do you any good.
Record one of your calls and post that, or maybe post your script.

If your getting no answer on 90% of your dials, you have a shit list
OR ... you need to change the time you call them. B2C does great
around 9/10 am till 2/3 pm and picks up again around 5/6pm to 7/8pm.

People tend to ignore 800# they don't recognize. They also tend to ignore
"Private". If you call from a phone that shows your real name, THAT
will give you the best results. The next best thing is to get your provider
to show initials, yours or your companies, the results will be approximately
the same.

My guess, based on what I read from your post...is that you don't know
anything about sales. If that's true, I suggest picking up a few books,
reading them and applying what you read.

Learning sales via "trial by fire" is tough - but also (IMHO) the best way.
If you don't know the basics, no "tip" anyone shares will be helpful to you
because you don't have the foundation to understand what the tip is for,
or even how to use it properly.

The offline section has a TON of posts about sales ... you don't need
to find posts specific to alarm systems... you need to find posts on
how to open, warm up, tie down, rebut, close, etc.

Creating a high quality product is one of the best ways to gain the trust of consumer.

Create a good impression for the first time buyers so that they could share it with others.

Know your target market and work on how to make them your potential buyers.

200 calls on a new venture is nothing. You need to be calling at least 1,000 a week if that's the only role you're doing.

Find out more if the list is $hit, take the advice below and change your CID.

There are many factors that make great cold calling campaign, here are mine

1. Scripts
2. Mindset
3. VOIP technology
4. Timing and tracking
5. Click to call software
6. Number of calls to get the below
6.1 Number of pitches to get the below
6.2 Number of interested to get the below
6.3 Number of deals
7. How targeted is the list
8. Time of day
9. Amount of follow up on the same number
10. Salesman Ship
11. Great product

I'm sure there is more, but considering the 11 factors above which all have there "issues" you need to solve and get right, do you still want to do this? If yes, figure out all the above and press on. Live and breath cold calling and you will win.

I want to share with you some cold calling tips that, in my opinion, are very useful:
- you should be focused on the goal;
- need to research your markets and prospects;
- prepare an opening statement for your call;
- you need to decide what should be present in your opening statement;
- prepare the script for the rest of your call;
- ask for an appointment at a specific time;
- remember that gatekeepers are your allies, not your foes;
- you should do your cold calling early in the morning or late in the afternoon, if it possible;
- be persistent.

OK there's no point in talking about call strategy when he can't even get people on the phone, right?

First thing you need to know are the numbers. No matter who you are, how good you are, on a typical day:

> half the people you call won't be available

and

> half the people who do pick up won't be able to talk right now.

You can improve on this stat with pre-qualification, knowing your market's schedules (no point in calling when they're likely to be out), and asking for information to 'zone in' on the right time to call so that you can call back when they are likely to be available. But that is something you do to build and improve your list as time goes on.

So right now it looks like you're underperforming...IF that "90%" stat you quoted is accurate (I doubt it is exact, though. Probably just seems that way).

How many days have you called, and for how long at each session? (If I find out you sat down once, I'm gonna tell you that's not enough...nor is it representative of what you would experience over repeated attempts, because a sample of ONE is insufficient. Over several days or a week you'll start getting a genuine average. One session alone can be an outlier.)

A local phone # has been demonstrated to outperform a 1800 #.

But starting off knowing your expectations is critical. Otherwise you'll get disappointed and quit. Look what the numbers say: for a newbie, 75% of the time people are not going to be able to talk to you today.

That means the best you can expect, on average (some days are going to be better, some worse; just roll with it) is that you'll be able to speak with one quarter of the people you dial.

With technique, including pre-qualification, you can improve on this figure. But start where you are.

Hey Adam,
You are in a great space IMHO. There is a ton of competition as well. Which isn't a problem if your product is high quality and you are genuine. I don't do the DIY deal though. I do security,fire AND home automation. Where there are also door locks,thermostats,inside and outside cameras and more that customers can control with their smart phone and other internet devices.. Tell us a little more about YOUR DIY system. Is it just door and window sensors? Do you have cameras? Is there a monthly monitoring fee? Is there an up front cost?

Have you tried door to door? That is where the real money is at. Especially in the very beginning until you can get your pipeline filled. Also, get set up with some referral partners. Here are a few things I do to get referral partners set. Get with realtors and insurance agents. They are great partners to have. Homeowners get up to 20% discount if they have a monitored alarm. I also deal with the local builders and new mobile home sales people. For every referral they send my way and gets a system with me I give them $100 cash for every one.. Even customers, for every referral I get and close, I give $100 to the person who gave it to me.

Something else I do to get leads. I have deals with local gun shops that whenever someone buys a new gun, they send them to me to get a free security system and when I close them, I give them $100 gift certificate to that gun shop. And I have about every gun shop in my county now. Also, I will send out fliers and whenever someone gets a system from me,they get a choice of a free fire proof safe or a gift cert for 2 to get their concealed carry permit (I give the class). There are SO many ways to get your pipeline full. A benefit I have is I can give the system away for free, including cameras and smart devices, up to about $1500 worth. All they have to pay is the one time $99 activation and monthly monitoring of $49,$59 or $69 depending on equipment. So it is a very low up front which makes them easy to get rid of.. My advice to you is to get out and knock on doors and get referral partners and blow up your business. If you have any questions, feel free to pm me.