MY ARTICLES
IN-DEPTH
ARTICLES
- WHAT IS COLD CALLING?
- TURN YOUR VEHICLE INTO A BILLBOARD
- HOW TO INCREASE OUR PRICES?
- WHAT IS A BRAND EXTENSION?
- WHAT IS THE BRAND IMAGE?
- WHAT IS CAUSE MARKETING?
- WHY DO YOU NEED A SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY?
- WHY HAVE A CMS?
- HOW TO RESTART OUR ADVERTISING ACTIVITIES?
- THINGS TO REVIEW DURING THE CURRENT CRISIS!
- REMOTE WORK AND ITS IMPACT ON OUR OPERATIONS
- MARKETING IS A BATTLE
- WHY DON'T I TAKE COMMISSION ONLY MANDATES?
- HOW TO MARKET TEST A NEW PRODUCT OR IDEA?
- EXECUTION - WHY DO GOOD STRATEGIES SOMETIMES MISS THE TARGET?
- AN ENTREPRENEURIAL EVENING AND EXCELLENT BUSINESS IDEAS
- HOW TO NETWORK THE RIGHT WAY?
- IS NEGATIVE PUBLICITY ALWAYS NEGATIVE?
- WHAT IS THE SUCCESS RATE FOR START-UPS?
- WHAT SHOULD YOUR MARKETING BUDGET BE?
- PRICING STRATEGY: PRICE SKIMMING!
- PRICING STRATEGY: GIVING YOUR PRODUCT/SERVICE FOR FREE
- SHOULD WE COMPARE OURSELVES?
- WHAT SHOULD WE MEASURE WHEN WE EVALUATE OUR MARKETING EFFORTS?
- WHAT IS THE VALUE OF A CUSTOMER?
- DOES CONTENT MARKETING WORK?
- WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A BRAND, BRANDING, A PERSONAL BRAND AND A COMPANY/PRODUCT NAME?
- WHAT IS GROWTH HACKING?
- HOW MANY « P » CAN BE FOUND IN THE MARKETING MIX?
- THE CUSTOMER VALUE CHAIN
- HOW CAN YOU PROTECT YOUR UNIQUE PRODUCT OR SERVICE?
- CONFERENCE ON FINANCING - MAY 2, 2017
- WHAT IS DRIP PRICING?
- WHICH AMOUNT SHOULD YOU CHOOSE FOR YOUR PRICES?
- DETERMINING YOUR HOURLY RATE BASED ON THE VALUE YOU THINK YOU HAVE
- IS LOWERING YOUR PRICES A GOOD IDEA?
- TO OFFER OR NOT TO OFFER FINANCING?
- HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF AGAINST EXCHANGE RATE RISKS
- WHEN IS A GOOD TIME TO INCREASE YOUR PRICES?
- DEMAND BASED PRICING
- WHAT IS A LOSS LEADER?
- HOW TO ORGANIZE A DRAW THE RIGHT WAY?
- HOW TO HAVE REMOTE EMPLOYEES
- IS IT GOOD TO BE FIRST IN A MARKET?
- THE THREE TYPES OF CUSTOMERS
- EXPORTING TO MEXICO - QUERETARO REGION
- DEFINING BUSINESS SUCCESS
- ARE YOU USING REBATES? WATCH OUT FOR THESE
- IS THE CUSTOMER ALWAYS RIGHT?
- EXPORTS AND QUEBEC COMPANIES
- COWORKING SPACES
- YOUR PLACE OF BUSINESS AND INTERNET
- WHY IS SOCIAL MEDIA IMPORTANT FOR YOUR BUSINESS?
- HOW TO USE FREEBIES
- WHAT IS THE MAGICAL FORMULA FOR HAVING SUCCESS IN BUSINESS?
- DO YOU HAVE EXPERIENCE IN MY FIELD?
- WHEN CAN WE STOP OUR MARKETING?
- WHAT IS A CALL TO ACTION?
- WE ARE ALL SALESPEOPLE; HERE'S HOW TO GET THERE
- HOW CAN MARKETING AND SALES COLLABORATE?
- HOW TO SELL MORE TO YOUR EXISTING CLIENTS
- WHAT IS CROSS-MARKETING?
- WHY SHOULD I SEGMENT?
- WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MANAGING YOUR COMPANY'S IMAGE?
- HOW TO CHARGE FOR YOUR PRODUCTS / SERVICES?
- HOW TO DEFINE YOUR PRICING STRATEGY: PRICE POSITIONING
- HOW TO DEFINE YOUR PRICING STRATEGY: MARKET PRICING
- WHAT PRICE SHOULD YOU SELL AT? - COST-BASED PRICING
- WHAT IS A PRODUCT?
- HOW TO MARKET YOUR NEW BUSINESS?
- IS BUYING A FRANCHISE A GOOD WAY TO START A BUSINESS?
- HOW SOCIAL MEDIA HAS CHANGED WORD-OF-MOUTH
- HOW SOCIAL MEDIA HAS CHANGED PUBLIC RELATIONS
- WHAT IS BRANDING?
- WHY INCREASING SALES IS NOT THE SOLUTION
- HOW TO SELECT YOUR COMPANY NAME?
- WHY HAVING A WEBSITE IS ONLY THE BEGINNING?
- WHAT IS MARKETING?
- HOW TO MAXIMIZE THE VALUE OF YOUR SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP BUSINESS
- WHY SELLING IN MEXICO?
- LOW COST MARKETING INITIATIVES
- WHY IS PRODUCT DIFFERENCIATION IMPORTANT?
- hOW TO PRESENT OUR COMPANY
- WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MARKETING AND PUBLICITY?
- 50% OF YOUR ADVERTISING BUDGET DOES NOT PRODUCE AS MUCH AS THE REST
- RIGHT SELL AND OVER DELIVER
WHAT IS COLD CALLING?
If your business sells to other businesses (B2B) or if the products/services you are selling have a high price point, this approach might be for you. Cold calling options exist for companies that have lower prices, but I have no experience with these. My professional experience using this technique consists in the sale of:

The only experience I have with mass cold calling is as a potential customer and it is usually not a positive one. So, I try to avoid using what I do not like myself.
What are cold calls? They are unsolicited calls to potential buyers of your products and services. Does this technique work? Absolutely. Is it difficult? Absolutely. But because of its difficulty, few people use it, and its effectiveness is thus increased. Furthermore, I will share some tips to improve your productivity.
To start, here are a few things that need to be validated for this technique to be effective.
The first is whether this technique is for your business. If your sales are low priced, this technique may not be for you, at least not as we define it here. Other advertising strategies may be better suited for your products/services. Also, if your field is filled with this sale technic, avoid this approach. I get called 2-4 times a month by financial advisers who offer me a free assessment of my portfolio. Do I need another call? No. This is what has given this approach a bad reputation: doing high volume, impersonalized approach when the technique is used by low-cost products (newspaper subscriptions have been the ones who have used this approach for years), undiversified, (sellers for financial advisers who offer the same sales pitch; a 'free' assessment of my portfolio) or sometimes free (the number of times I get called to give my opinion on a survey).
The other point is to clearly define who is buying your product or service. If you are selling to businesses, ask yourself;
Sometimes the decision-maker, the person responsible for what you sell, and the person to contact are different people in a company. If the price of your product or service exceeds the budget of the manager of the department impacted by what you are selling, he/she will not technically make the decision but could be the person who will gather the information to present internally and obtain the necessary budget to complete the purchase. If the company has a procurement center and you sell software, your contact might be the head of IT and the person who ultimately makes the purchase is the buyer. Depending on the organization, sometimes this is just a formality. Sometimes it is more complex like with some large companies. Why not go straight to the top? You need to know the company and the structure well before making this decision. I have had positive and negative results using this strategy. For some companies, receiving a proposal from the boss can be a good way to get things moving. For others, they may feel bypassed. Finding answers to his questions is an important part of your thinking process at this stage.
And if your clients are professionals, you have to define who they are;
Subsequently, it is necessary to obtain or develop a list. Several companies sell such lists. Do not go for quantity at the expense of quality. A good, up-to-date list with the names of the decision-makers is worth much more than an outdated list with more prospects, where you will spend a lot of your time qualifying the information. You could use social media to build this list. LinkedIn could be a good resource if you have developed a good network on this platform. Because to "see" people, LinkedIn allows you to see the information of your connections and their connections. After that, it gets more difficult. Some contacts will appear, others will not. Use the LinkedIn "search" function. It can help you find business decision-makers or professionals matching your criteria. There are also professional associations that offer directories. This is the case for notaries, lawyers, dentists, psychologists, translators, etc.
Thereafter, I recommend developing a certain script. I do not think reading a text is the best way to approach a potential client, but having a guideline is a good idea. For my part, I always follow these points:
For the last point, people have different opinions on how to treat this request. For some, this answer is a disguised "no". It is perceived as buying time or saying no politely. But sometimes the needs are not yet identified. Your offer will then help move the project forward within the company. It all depends on what stage of the decision-making you are arriving at. I always fulfill the commitments made during the conversation. I call back at the prescribed time, I follow up by email or mail (less frequent, but there are still companies that operate with paper), etc. Remember: the potential customer does not know you. The non-verbal is thus especially important. If you do what you promise, the buyer will be able to see that you are serious. I once landed a contract of over $ 150,000.00 because the buyer told me I was the only one who had followed up. An interesting fact to know, over 80% of sales are made after the fifth contact.
Have your communication tools ready BEFORE you start your cold calling. Your corporate presentation is not ready? Do not start making calls. What will happen if there is a request for information? You will have to develop the presentation in a rush while your potential client cools off. Think of:
Then you must start calling. There is an important balance between enthusiasm and productivity. If one of the important keys to success is volume, being mechanical without passion is counterproductive. So, if you find yourself repeating the same things without enthusiasm, take a break. As a reference, professional salespeople can make up to a few hundred calls per day. But this is only an indication. Several factors cause this volume to vary. And as an entrepreneur, you have other activities to take care of. But, if you think your day is complete after five calls, you should persist.
There is also the organization of your week which is important. Cold calls are usually made in the afternoon, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday. No calls on Monday. Everyone is coming back from the weekend with emergencies to deal with. On Friday, I had mixed success; for some companies, people have more time and are more receptive to listen to you. For others, such as the construction industry, are busy doing open houses. Fridays are not a good time to talk to them. Others leave early for the weekend. So, Friday is to be determined.
There is a way to warm up your leads. This involves contacting a prospect after another action was made; sending a letter, an email, filling out an online questionnaire, etc. Here we have a warmer prospect who knows a little about us. This technique is more productive and leads to a better conversion rate than just cold calling. But there are some costs associated with this. If you can afford them, you would increase your productivity. I very much like this technique. It gives you a good start and the person on the other end of the phone has a sense of who you are and what you are selling.
If you have any questions or comments, do not hesitate in contacting me.
Stéphane Elmaleh-Riel, B.Ed., MBA
Marketing consultant




