highlyinadvisable

SaLeS dEvELoPmEnT rEpReSeNtAtiVe

Best cold-calling icebreakers

I started in retail, where I constantly had face-to-face interactions with people who did business with me. I was able to quickly relate and illustrate my humanity. I was able to easily get a conversation started, and I was quickly able to not only make sales but establish genuine connections and help other people.

On the phone, I'm struggling. I don't have a script so I don't sound like I'm reading. I try to get straight to the point and sound professional. I personally would prefer if people state their business when they call me first. I'm not just going to open up to someone about my day if I don't know who they are. On the flipside, I also don't want to sound like a cardboard box, because that's most certainly not who I am either.

My call volume is not insubstantial for lack of an autodialer (60-90 honest dials a day). What are things I can do to get people to engage and (hopefully) take a meeting? Do I act surprised when they pick up? Do I use more casual language? Do I open with some kind of industry joke? Should I be more aggressive?

📞 Cold Calling

☁️ Software Tech

👨‍🌾 SDR

17

32 comments

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funcoupons

WR Officer

17

👑

Some people might disagree with me here, but I don't do small talk on a cold call. It's awkward and nobody likes it. I ask them if I'm calling at a bad time, and if not I get right into why I'm calling. Project confidence, be the expert, and respect their time. Once you start talking it's a good idea to mirror to quickly create rapport and have them get their guard down - if they're a slow, quiet talker do not continue on in a fast paced booming voice.

someoneinsales

Tycoon

2

Director of Sales

Couldn't agree more. Get to the point ask for a minute of their time and then slay them with you value prop!

You can small talk in the first meeting.

SaaSam

Politicker

2

Account Executive

Exactly, nobody gives a shit what your weather is like. I do hit them upfront with something confirming it's a cold call before asking if it's a bad time though.

Kinonez

Celebrated Contributor

3

War Room Enthusiast

I agree, I go straight to the point of why I'm calling and why I can help, interested? Yes, No? Thank you for your time, next prospect.

sav

Valued Contributor

1

Account Executive (Enterprise)

I agree with almost everything except I don’t ask if it’s a good time as it adds an unnecessary out IMO. This day in age, if you’re answering a number that’s not in your contacts with I’m assuming you have nothing better to do. 😂

funcoupons

WR Officer

2

👑

It’s a psychological trick to get them to say no. Once the first no is out, it’s generally smooth sailing from there. ;)

BmajoR

Arsonist

8

Account Executive

Be honest, be concise, and be consultative. Do you really care how their day's going? You're lying if you say yes.

Tell them who you are, why you're calling, and as @funcoupons stated, you can try using a permission based opener to see if it gets you more listening time. When you show them you are considerate of their needs (in this case their time), they will be more receptive to your offer of help.

NoSuperhero

Politicker

1

BDR LEAD

This is my approach, I say how are you mainly because that's how I've saying hello for like 22 years, back when I learned English in Dallas tx, Hi how are you, how y'all doing, how is it going. and so on. And get to the point after 1 second of good and continue with a conversation.

Incognito

WR Officer

4

Master of Disaster

Been using this lately, stolen from the WR archives on cold calling:

" look i know you have one or two of me already that you're happy with and another 10 of me bothering you every day for business that you wish would die in a fire"

Also, "would you be opposed to looking at options for (insert problem solver here)"?

CuriousFox

WR Officer

3

🦊

Be clear, concise, and get to the point. You can build a relationship later.

IAR

2

Account Executive

Straight to the point, no bullshit and sound confident and professional ( I sell a great product so why not )

detectivegibbles

Politicker

2

Sales Director

I love @funcoupons approach. A different way to say this that triggers a cadence break is something along the line of: “Hey (prospect), I’ve got 2 minutes before my next meeting. Have a second to chat about (insert whatever you sell without saying I’m trying to sell you this)? I’ve seen variations of this work continuously. Something about honoring their time up front and breaking the norm of a typical sales call seems to work well.

Do.it.for.the.checks

Politicker

2

Account Executive

Depends alot on your personality. I'm incredibly blunt and business focused person.

So I go with "Hi, its Name with Company. Yes this a cold call but I was looking at your website and you look very similar to companies we call ideal. My goal here is to have a brief conversation about your operations. Do you have a minute to talk?"

Then go into what you do for individuals in their roles. Don't ask open ended questions. Tell them what business problems you solve and how you will make their lives easier.

The something like "I'd be naive to hope this an initiative you are actively engaged in, but is it something you'd like to accomplish in the near future?"

Again this works for my personality type (not that charismatic, but I'm very business savy) and the fact I'm aware that there's zero chance of a fast sale. 6 to 9 months is fast in my space

TheNegotiator

Arsonist

2

VP of Sales

“Have you heard of us?” . Call, introduce yourself, mention where you’re calling from, and then ask. . Only works if you’re not like 200% normalized and mainstream. But having the confidence to ask, and if you use the right tone they start thinking “wait.. should I have heard about these guys, wtf who are they?!” And that sickening sense of intrigue makes them stay on the phone and wait for you to tell them. Once you have more attention than they ever gave their kids, you can do whatever you want with it.

RedLightning

Politicker

1

Mid-Market AE

Try this (keep in mind it'll take some time to get comfortable with it):

"Hey Prospect, my name is @highlyinadvisable . This is a sales call related to company name. Do you want to take it?"

Do not say why you're calling or where you're calling from yet. It gives you an avenue to try again another time and won't get them to register any emails you're sending.

One of two things is going to happen - 1) they hang up on you. They're rejecting the concept of a cold call at that moment, so even if you had the greatest pitch ever this person would still not book something with you.

2) They'll be a bit shaken for lack of a better term by how transparent and different this is and not hang up on you but say something like "it depends, what do you do?" What's different about this is their mind is activated and they're actively engaged/thinking rather than reacting to a cold call and thinking of a way off the phone.

Scenario 1 weirdly doesn't happen as often as you'd think with this approach. Now that they're open to a sales call and you have their attention, you need to deliver a tight pitch/reason why you're calling. Giving context for your pitch always helps. Context and relevance is king.

End your pitch with a question and you'll have a conversation going.

Good luck

funcoupons

WR Officer

4

👑

I respectfully disagree with this approach - don't give prospects an easy out to say no before you've even hit them with why they should be talking to you. This approach is also very salesy. Nobody truly wants to take a sales call with a stranger. By asking permission to talk, you're putting yourself on a lower level than the prospect. Remember you are at the same level. You're calling them to see if you can help them and their organization, there's no need to beg for their time and attention.

Also don't ever go into a call expecting a prospect to hang up on you. If you're getting hung up on more than once in a blue moon, there's an issue with your approach.

RedLightning

Politicker

1

Mid-Market AE

It's worked for me, but to each their own. There's no silver bullet.

Quick edit: when scenario one happens you can roll back with "can I tell you why I called you before you decide to end the call" It's simlar to a roll back you'd go with for a "is this a bad time."

Personally, I could never get "is this a bad time" to click for me

funcoupons

WR Officer

0

👑

I love "is this a bad time" haha. I very rarely ever get anyone saying yes, and if so it's very easy to say "no problem, when will you have a moment?" Usually they say well I'm busy but have a minute, and then you have permission to pitch plus their patterns have been interrupted and the first "no" is out of the way.

TheNegotiator

Arsonist

0

VP of Sales

@Red try “do you have a moment for me?” and say it with a tone like “it’s totally ok if you don’t” . Not out of fear or being timid but the implication is it now isn’t, you can be damn sure I’m going to call back again later . Using that approach is courteous, confident, confirms that this IS in-fact a good time to pitch them, AND you have the added benefit that only the rudest of the rude will say no. Once they’ve committed to it being a good time, they’ve also committed to the social obligation of having to pay attention to what you say. . If it is a bad time, abort the pitch immediately, switch gears confidently to “hey, no worries at all, when should I call back?” and then shut up. Make them commit to a time, tell them you’ll call them then and then do it. And if they don’t pick up. Call every day until the world stops turning, you’ll get them.

TheNegotiator

Arsonist

0

VP of Sales

Yeah, disrespectfully disagree. You have to have MAD big-dick energy to use this opener (and I do) but it’s still not foolproof. Especially as your decision-makers get more sophisticated. You use this on the C-suite you’ll never close again, because you’ll never get past the cold call.

sav

Valued Contributor

1

Account Executive (Enterprise)

You definitely want to be concise. Think about if a sales person calls you, if they don’t peak your interest in 5-10 seconds, they are out. The structure that’s worked for me is super simple:

1. State your name and company
2. Confirm you’ve reached your contact
3. Ask them how you can earn their business then listen. (Silence is key)

Some will disagree with this process as there’s not a lot of “salesmanship”, but I’ve found you can curate prospect lists with simple questions like this. If you can do this all in under 10 seconds, you’ve already set yourself apart from the other 20 salespeople they’ve talked with today. I’ve found people appreciate the candor and will either open up or tell me to pound sand. Either way I can gather information for next week’s calls or not waste my time.

TheRealPezDog

Notable Contributor

1

Account Manager

Try to be yourself, if a joke is there- crack it. If you DO get that meeting make it a zoom or Teams call because it sounds like face to face is where you shine. Other than that I would be respectful and try to get right to the point. Good luck out there!

ThePinoyPine

1

BDR

What's been working for me is after introducing myself I say, "How are you?" If they say fine I make quick chit chat and then go on. If they say, "Who? Calling from where?" I say, "I know that I am calling you out of the blue, I was takinga look at your LinkedIn and was really impressed with xyz. Can I get 30 seconds?"

TheDuchess

Opinionated

1

Sales Enablement Queen

Your instincts are worth listening to - if you would prefer that people state their business when they call you, how can you make sure you're doing that when you dial?

A great book I found useful is 'Problem Prospecting?' which has some really valuable frameworks for cold calling, and goes something like this:

'Hey Name,
This is X from Company. We've not spoken before, and this is a cold call, but I noticed Y about you/your company and I was wondering if you have 30 seconds for me to explain why I'm calling you in particular - and then if it makes sense we can continue the conversation from there, and if not we can part ways. Sound fair?'

From here, they'll either give you time to speak, or you'll get a no straight up. Use the 30 seconds to demonstrate research & value, and if the conversation is still flowing at this point, stick to your word: 'Hey I know I only asked for 30 seconds but it sounds like there's an overlap here - do you have a moment to keep going or do you have 15 mins later this week to continue the conversation?'

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