Cold Calling Assessment

Have you ever been at the receiving end of a cold call where the caller asked you "Is this a bad time?" It's a common phrase that many salespeople use to show that they respect your time. It also gives you a great excuse to get them off the phone. "Yes, it is. Can you call back later?"

Especially when cold calling, "the tools of our trade as sellers are words," says cold calling expert Leslie Buterin. "As we catch our cold calling rhythm the words flow seemingly effortlessly as do our results. Life the 'veil of thought' and you will see that a successful cold calling rhythm rests on a rock solid base of sophisticated thoughts."

So what can you do to re-evaluate your script and enhance it with sophisticated thoughts?

Buterin suggests you take a few minutes, find something you can write fast with, and write down all of your "cold calling scripted words" that pop into your head. Do not analyze or evaluate them yet - just write. Later, you can figure out the impact of the words. Capture it all without feeling a responsibility to evaluate a thing.

Then when you are ready to come back with objectivity, put on your "extraordinary sales professional" hat and determine which words serve your purpose and which ones don't.

Buterin suggests that, as you make changes to your scripts, you make use of this cold calling tip - think about the changes and really give thought to the pros and cons of each change. Brainstorm with other sales professionals, friends, even family members. Ask them, "What are the thoughts you think when you hear these words on the phone?" Implement the changes that serve you best. Repeat as needed.

Leslie Buterin is the founder of Top Dog Consulting and the author of Secrets to Scheduling the Executive-Level Sales Call. She works with sales professionals, teaching them how to access and sell to high-level decision-makers. Keep up to date with Leslie on her blog, Cold Calling Executives.