When your prospect says, ‘I don’t have time,’ it is a very decent way of conveying that you are not worth his time or listening to you is not his priority. It is very common for a client to feel that a cold call is a waste of his time, even if you promise to complete it in three minutes or five minutes. So, how do you respond to such a situation?
Prove the Worthiness
Do not begin by elaborating on your company’s foundation history or how the developer got the product’s idea. Your starting line should be how effective the product is for the client. If you begin the phone call saying that your product could cut their digital marketing costs by 20%, the client would obviously have time for your call. If you could create a value for your product as early as possible during the cold call, the prospect’s chances of committing to the call are higher.
Here are the best methods to prove your call’s worthiness.
Early-Stage Management
If your prospect says he does not have time, acknowledge the fact that he is busy and request three minutes. While requesting this, make sure to keep your voice more confident.
Use these three minutes to pitch the priority points. How to pitch the priority points without knowing what the prospect thinks as a priority?
Ask what his priority is, or share the most common priority for people in his industry, like ‘Most successful brands in this sector have predicaments with… Does your company face the same problem? If yes, move on to pitch the main advantage of using your product to solve the said problem. If not, do not just hang up the phone. He might not be your ideal prospect, but ask follow-up questions to analyze whether you can tailor your product’s value proposition to suit the needs.
It is not wise to stick to your script like a monologue. You ought to engage your customers, ask questions about their goals and priorities to showcase that you are offering a tailor-made service. Such an individualistic approach will gain better commitment.
Last-Stage Management
Once you have triggered their commitment, it might not be the same throughout the call or sales funnel. The customer might find the communication moving out of his core requirements and might say that he does not have time, almost towards the end of your call. This situation arises when you have a potential customer looking for a similar product or solution, but you have failed to showcase it as a viable solution for their problem. This problem arises because of two reasons.
You failed to pitch the product perfectly for their requirements. It need not be about what you spoke or the answers you gave. It could be as simple as using an international number, not sounding professional, and more. Do you know that 60% of the customers prefer calling businesses via their phone number? If you do not have your business phone number listed on your website, you might lose credibility. Your personal phone number is not a good way to promote your business.
Some agents tend to oversell. It will, for sure, attract customers when you say that your payroll system will reduce the staff hours required by 80%. However, along the sales funnel, he will understand that your product cannot offer the expected outcome. Thus, it becomes hard to convince the customer to settle for less. It is not about gaining the attention of everyone who picks your call. It would help if you were double-sure that you are spending time exchanging emails, offering product demos, and explaining the product to a potential customer, who is more likely to buy your product.
Even then, there are chances to revive the deal. Ask openly about what made them backtrack. In most cases, the customers would be polite to offer any excuse unrelated to you. However, you ought to demonstrate that you are accountable for the deal’s breakdown and ask their help to understand how it went wrong. Such a vulnerable talk can allow the prospet to share his problem. If you could solve that problem, it would increase the trust in your brand.
In most cases, people do not change their minds. It is best to learn what went wrong and be mindful during your next cold call. If you go behind the same customer trying to revive the deal relentlessly, it will look too bombarding.
The Secret to Cold Calling Success
The cold callers should not sell the product, but its benefits. It should make the customer want to buy the product. You ought to create value for your product by showcasing it as a solution for their priority problem. If you are a B2B business, it is harder to get the key decision-maker to speak with you. You will always get through secretaries, who are not a suitable prospect for you to intrigue their excitement with your product’s value. The best way to deal with it is by promoting social media communication and sharing your business phone number. It is important to make each conversation count, and some pre-call activities like social media communication or exciting ad campaigns would be beneficial.
In the end, it is not possible to sell to every customer you call. Most of the prospects might not find your product or pitch sufficient. It is no use spending time dealing with dead leads again and again, with the same strategy. You can formulate a new strategy or pitch, revisit the dead leads or move on with prospective clients. Some companies even use AI-powered platforms to identify prospective clients automatically. It is best to combine modern technologies with your cold calling skills to improve the success rate.
