One myth about cold calling is that it doesn’t work. That’s a real myth.
Cold calling is a technique whereby a salesperson contacts individuals who have not previously expressed an interest in the products or services that are being offered. Cold calling typically refers to phone calls but can also involve drop-in visits, such as with door-to-door salespeople.
The Framework for Cold Calling
Cold calling does work but within the right framework. It does not work if you are making random phone calls or visits to attorney offices. It does not work if you are mindlessly leaving any old message for any old person, and moving on.
It does work if you narrow down a list to the people who would be incredible clients for you. There’s not one on the list who you’re not drooling to get in to see. You have a list of 100-200 people. I would rather see LNCs do a good job with a small group than a bad job with a big group of prospects.
Once you have that narrow group then you have to say something that’s incredibly compelling to these people. Think about these attorneys. They make their living maximizing billable hours or their return on investment if they are working on contingency fee cases.
The discussion with you is not billable. Any time they spend with you is time that they are not making money. If you want to get a piece of that time you have to say something that’s so compelling that this person would knock three other people of their calendar to have a conversation with you.
Is Your Cold Calling Message Effective?
Think about what you’re saying currently when you reach out to these attorneys. Is what you say that compelling?
If it’s not, think about your sales messaging. After you create the message, know what your answers for the objections are. (Because you have to know what your answers for the objections are before you start your outreach.)
People are going to have objections. It’s fair, but you have to know what to do not just to overcome them. You have to know what to do and say in a split second so that you can get to the next step and not be road-blocked.
You need to research the individual, the firm and maybe some of the clients that they service in order to personalize that message for the individual decision maker.
Then you start your outreach. Make the call, send the email and befriend the assistant. This is Direct Outreach. That is the right way to approach somebody you don’t know to ask for either a meeting or a conference call to talk about how you can help them and make their lives better.
Can You Deal with Rejection?
Cold calling is not for everyone. Attorneys’ reactions to calls can range from no interest, annoyance or to intrigue about your services. I have met people who love to cold call and are very skilled at it. Cold calling can be fruitful if you are prepared to go through the effort to research your prospect, to connect and to be persistent.
Get more tips about cold calling by listening to Caryn Kopp, a master at this technique. Watch an informative online training: The Path to the Cash: Will Your Message Get You In the Door? This is part of our Marketing Course. Also see our online marketing course: How to Get All the Clients You Need.