What is the Cold Calling Success Formula in India [2022]

Organizations worldwide have used Cold Calling for centuries as a sales tactic. Though it has been in practice for years, the way organizations, prospects and unqualified leads see it varies from country to country. In the present day and age, one could argue that Cold Calling is no longer necessary. Many critics have asked for a ban on this tactic. However, Cold Calling is and will never be out of fashion.

In India, telephone callers make hundreds of calls daily to sell something online. Unfortunately, they face harsh reactions. Most audiences hang up on these callers. And more than 99% of these calls never reach the C suite executives. So, what is the cold calling success formula in India in 2022? How can one leverage this age-old tactic and close some business? We will find that out.

Some Common Cold Calling Questions Answered

Before we jump into more pertinent questions regarding Cold Calling, I want to take this opportunity to discuss some of the most common questions people ask regarding this topic. I will try to cover as many questions here as possible.

What is Cold Calling

Cold-calling is when a person calls an unqualified lead on the telephone without knowing them or via a physical visit, without a prior appointment. It is an act of solicitation to sell something, either a product or a service. Cold-calling is when the other party has not explicitly asked for information from you. Nonetheless, you reach out to them anyway.

What is Cold Calling: Examples

You are busy working, and suddenly you receive a call. The caller wishes you a good morning and waits for your response. The moment you respond, the caller says something like this. Sir, you have a pre-approved loan offer of INR 5 lakhs (6,000 USD) against your car. Would you like to go for it?. You never asked anyone to call you or requested such a call. Nonetheless, you got one!

Another known cold calling example in India is when you get a call randomly from a General Insurance company or a Financial Institution. The call informs you about the latest special offer just for you. They tell you that if you buy the product/service the same day, they will give you a hefty discount.

Lastly, imagine yourself at your office as a business owner. You have dozens of people who walk into your office or request an appointment on the spot. They are either sales or business development reps. They have something to offer you right away to make you buy something.

What is Cold Calling vs Warm Calling

The main difference between the two is about a known link or a context. For example, say I am surfing the internet. I see an ad about a new car launched in my city. I click the ad that takes me to their website offer page. I see a form, and I fill it with all my details, requesting a callback from the sales team of the car company. When a sales associate calls me on my phone to discuss that particular offer, it is called Warm Calling.

In short, these leads are not unqualified. They are qualified. The prospect has some idea about your product/service/company. Moreover, they are expecting a call from you. In such cases, associates can exclude the company introduction and directly start with the sales pitch. There is a higher chance of conversion in such calls viz-a-viz Cold Calling.

Why Is It Called Cold Calling

The answer is simple. The unqualified lead may become a qualified lead. On the other side of the table, the unqualified lead may give a cold response to the call or not. It is like throwing the net in the water to catch fish. Often, you are unaware if there are any fish in the lake or not in the first place. Plus, it is a fortified outbound sales tactic, hence cold.

What is Cold Calling in BPO

BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) has become notoriously famous across the world. Most are also aware that there are plenty of these establishments in Asia (read India, Pakistan & the Philippines). 

There are two types of BPO operations – Inbound and Outbound. In an outbound tactic, your team leader assigns you some leads or data. You call these unqualified leads and make a sales pitch to them. The company gives you a script on what to say and how to close.

What is Cold Calling in HR

Have you ever received a call from human resources of other companies asking if you are interested in a job? Ever got such calls without you requesting for such calls? It is called Cold Calling in HR. 

Just as sales or business development associates have a target to bring revenue or sell units, HR professionals have a target to close the recruitment goals they are assigned. Once they shortlist candidates, they hand these candidates to the respecting hiring managers. Or HR might take the first interview and shortlist candidates for round 2.

Why Cold Calling is So Important

There is no doubt that despite a poor stat across this tactic, cold-calling is relevant and crucial. Imagine you are a sales professional with no funnel to show. Ten days of the month are gone, and you are sitting on a big 0. To uncover new leads, you do physical cold visits or telephone calls. For every 100 calls you make, you shortlist 1-2 as qualified leads. Then you fix an appointment to discuss further or close the deal.

What Is The Difference Between Cold Calling and Telemarketing

Cold-calling is a part of Tele-marketing and not the other way around. In short, if a company uses a Tele-marketing strategy to convert prospects into paying customers, cold calling is one of the tactics they use. 

Break down the word Tele and Marketing. Companies use this strategy to primarily reach out to those prospects who have responded to their marketing efforts. For example, when a prospective customer has filled a form online or showed interest on the social media page.

To summarize, telemarketing is more about warm calling. But do not get confused here. How come cold calling is part of an overall warm-calling strategy? Don’t look at it that way. Here is an example to clarify this point. You have identified the buyer persona for your products. You also get warm prospects that match your buyer persona.

Now, you could also reach out to more people within that persona and go for an outbound tactic, a.k.a, cold calling. At the end of the day, when you report your findings to the management, you present the “telemarketing” results with a section on unbound sales calls.

Is Cold Calling Legal and Ethical

At the beginning of this article, I mentioned that outlook toward cold-calling varies from country to country. So, whether it is legal also depends on companies in different cultures. Some companies have strict rules and regulations on solicitation. 

For example, you have registered for the “do not disturb” facility with your telecom provider. No one should disturb you. Telecallers are banned or restricted from calling these prospects.

Cold-calling is not illegal. Some countries have no rules, some have moderate regulations, and some have strict rules. Companies are to comply with the local laws where they operate. Should they fail to do so, the government may take punitive action against them. Alternatively, prospects may also file complaints against these companies.

Whether cold calling is ethical or not is a subjective matter. Companies may argue that their cold-calling data suggest a high success rate. They may believe people still entertain them. It is the best way to at least introduce the products and services to the target audience.

Prospects, on the other hand, may say that cold-calling is harassment. They get tens of unwanted calls daily for products or services that are irrelevant to them. They may experience a breach of privacy when explicitly asked not to be called, yet they do get called.

What is the success rate of cold calling

Organizations engage in heavy cold-calling. It is due to a low success rate of 0.01-3%. In short, a cold caller must make at least 100 calls for a conversion of 3%. Also, only professional and expert cold callers achieve this success rate. For an average joe, 1% conversion is a bonus.

What Skills Do You Need for Cold Calling

If you are considering a career in inside sales, hone your skills first. Learn to communicate well. It includes speech, diction and grammar. No prospect wants to hear unclear sentences or poor grammar, especially when calling a stranger.

Learn to stay calm and positive during your cold-calling sessions. You may face severe rejections during your cold-calling sessions. People may yell or abuse you. Yet, you must go on as if nothing happened!

Another skill you need to work on is clever thinking. You could argue this is so generic. But in cold-calling, it is a huge asset. The ability to get past the receptionist or the security guard is a skill.

The ability to give on-point answers to prospects is a skill. I am not talking about being cocky or arrogant. It will not get your anywhere. If you are shortlisting profiles for cold calling, you need to learn to research your prospects before you call them. It helps in a higher success ratio.

What is the Cold Calling Success Formula in India [2022]

In India, cold calling is a way of life. It may sound funny, but it is true. We get unwanted calls daily, and the number is increasing every day. On the other hand, there is a new army of callers recruited each day in companies. It means more and more calls. There is no respite!

How can one taste success in such a competitive, noisy environment? How can one stand out and make a difference when cold calling is so infamous in the country?

Call Only Relevant Prospects

You might say that is impractical advice. In the enormous database of prospects, how can one shortlist those who are relevant? The whole point of cold calling people is to find out relevance! That is true! But again, this should be your company’s responsibility to do some serious research before they hand over a file to you for cold-calling. Unfortunately, most companies only buy data from other companies.

Another way to find out relevance before your call is to do some homework on the person you are calling. Most times, you will only receive a phone number. In such cases, you can run these numbers on apps like TrueCaller and get the name. Once you have the same, you can run on the internet to see if you can pinpoint one person.

Call to Educate and Not Close

Cold callers call with a single-point objective – to close deals. Such a mindset tends to come across as insensitive and aggressive. These callers tend to talk more and listen less. How many times have you received a call where the caller has asked you to buy something immediately? Almost always.

If you focus on educating and informing your unqualified lead, you tend to become more personable and relatable. Prospective leads see you as someone trying to solve their problems or at least understand them. They see you as humans and not robots programmed to read prescribed scripts!

Always Ask If It Is Ok To Talk

I get offended when a random caller calls me and starts directly with a script. I may be busy, or I may not be available to talk. Why not ask if it ok to speak for a few minutes? This way, you create a dialogue early on. 

Leads are more than willing to entertain and listen to such callers. So, next time use the words “Hi, I am Raj from xxx. Is this a good time to speak with you?” I do that all the time, even with my family and friends!

Talk About Them and Not You

Cold callers have this uncanny and absurd habit of self-praising. They talk about their products/services or their companies. Well, let me break it to you. It is not about you. It is and will always be about them. 

Your entire conversion should revolve around trying to understand the potential customer and resolve their problems. Identify the gap and address the gap. Tell your lead as to how you can make their life easier.

Conclusion

Cold-calling will never go obsolete as it is a human-to-human interaction. Whether the other human wants to listen to you is up to you. By making small changes regularly, cold callers can achieve their targets sooner. Companies need to spend considerably on training associates before they hit the floor.

If done right, cold-calling can help companies spread the word about their products and services. It can help them create a meaningful brand that cares for their customers.

Take My Udemy Courses

Have you seen my Sales & Business Development Courses on Udemy?

Click Here
Discounts!