How to Effectively...Cold Call Leads

 

How To Effectively Cold Call Leads
By: Dave Cole 


As network marketers we do a major part of our 
business by calling leads. For a person just starting out 
this can be rather intimidating and too often a person 
doesn't know how to "open" up a call, gets a lot of 
rejection, and then decides this isn't for me. 

Today I'd like to give you the opening that I have been 
using with good success. It's short, to the point, friendly, 
yet business like. 

I find out in a matter of seconds whether the person on 
the other end of the line is worth spending my time with, 
and generally I find out quickly if this is a person who 
is a serious candidate or not. 

Too often we have a tendency to "chase" after our leads, 
somehow "hoping" they will sign up. Let's talk a bit about that 
first. 

To make any kind of call a success, you must first and 
foremost have an attitude. You've got have posture. 
You've got to have confidence in yourself and in your 
product and your presentation. 

You get confidence in your product by using it! How simple 
is that. If you can't get enthusiastic about what you have 
to offer, be it the opportunity or the product, then do yourself 
a big favor and find something you can get excited about. 

Studies have shown that around 60% of all sales are made 
because the presenter was enthusiastic about their product. 

Next, you've got have a confidence in yourself. You can't be 
scared or un-sure of yourself and expect to get results. 

A few people just naturally have confidence in themselves, 
for the rest of us, confidence comes with practice and 
experience. 

I've went through thousands of leads. I've got thousands of 
rejections. I've tried lots of different scripts to find out what 
works best for me. I practiced every one of them before 
I got on the phone. 

The thing is, if you're going to call 10 people and get 10 
rejections, and you're afraid of losing your dignity, either 
you get over it quickly, or find another business to be in. 

Every network marketer out there gets far more no's than 
they get a yes. 

Every call I make, I look at it as a learning experience. I 
look at it as a game. I'm a hunter.....a head hunter. I look 
for people who are interested in becoming a part of my 
opportunity. 

I have fun calling people. But there are days when I just 
don't have that good feeling about myself, so I don't 
call. I wait until I do. I wait until the time is right for me 
and I have that confidence in me. 

Before I make a single call, I have a list of qualifications 
a person must meet. If the person doesn't have those 
qualifications, then I'm not going to waste my time. I 
certainly do not ever try to"drag any person" into the 
business. 

If I do that, then chances are that person won't do anything 
anyway, so why bother. I don't need a person in my organization 
who does nothing but bother me. I'll spend as much time with 
anyone who proves to me they are working, but it's best 
to pre-qualify your prospects and save you a lot of time 
later on. 

What do I look for in a prospect? They must be respective 
of me and what I'm saying. I'm a professional, my time 
is valuable, and I have an incredible life changing opportunity 
to offer. A person who interrupts, or is rude, or who 
doesn't have the consideration to turn down the TV or 
radio behind them, is most likely not who I am looking for. 

A person who has a difficult time talking, or who just says 
very little is not who I am looking for. I'm looking for 
folks who have confidence, who can listen then express 
an opinion. A person who isn't afraid to ask questions. 

I'm looking for someone who is alive. 

I'm also looking for someone who has the vision for their 
future and the financial means to meet the start up fees and 
then do what it takes to build their business. 

So let's give Perry Prospect a call. 

Perry is a generic lead I've purchased from a lead company. 
They supposedly have answered an ad for a work at home 
opportunity. 

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Ring, Ring Ring. 

"Hi, is Perry home?" 

"Great, may I speak with him please?" 

"Hi Perry, how are you doing today?" (put some friendliness 
in your voice, act genuine and like you care) 

"Perry, I'm in a really neat business...I help pets and 
help people live longer and healthier lives." 

"Perry, I'm calling today to find out if you would like to 
learn more about how you can make some good money 
from your home helping pets and other folks like yourself 
live longer and healtheir lives?" 

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At this point I will either get a no or yes. If a person gives 
me a no, I've spent about 15 seconds of my time to find 
out everything I need to know about this lead. 

A no answer means one thing.... I call the next number. 
I don't take it personal. It just wasn't the right time in that 
person's life. 


I get a yes, then I'll do two things: start the relationship 
and start the interview. Remember, this person has so far 
showed me they are respectful by listening, but they 
have not yet proven they are worthwile candidates for 
my business. 

Next question is: "Perry, is this a good time for you to chat?" 

No, then we set a time, yes and we go on. 

By asking them that, I've shown that person that I respect 
them and their life. 

"Perry, do you have any pets?" 

This is a great icebreaker. It gets the person to open up to 
me by talking about a non-threatening subject and a fun subject. 
I do a lot of listening here. The object is to get the person to 
trust you. Trust comes when a person feels like you care 
about them. And I truly do care about the health of their pets, 
so this is not just a ploy or tactic. 

And it's the rare bird who will join your opportunity if they 
don't trust and have some level of confidence in you. 

I'm also finding out how the communication abilities this 
person has. If someone says to me "I have a cat." Then shuts 
up, the person probably doesn't have the communication 
skills needed to be a success. 

I'm learning whether this is a person I want to work with 
or not. Did you get that! I'm in control, I'm looking for 
someone special, not just anybody. You've got to prove to 
me you're the right person for me. Thats called posture. 

I'm not afraid to let this lead go, I'm not afraid to not 
sign them up. I'm not looking for just any old body. If 
Perry doesn't sign no biggie, I've got 100 more prospects to
call. 

I've always got more leads to call than I've got time. 


Finding the right people for your organization is also what's 
called money in the bank. 

As we continue to chat, I'll ask them how much money 
they have to comfortably invest at this time. If it's not enough, 
and if the person is interested in the opportunity, then 
I'll suggest they purchase the products and get a start that 
way. 

Remember: even tho a person is not right for your opportunity, 
your fallback position is: get them on the products. 

If that doesn't work, then your next position is, ask them 
if they know anyone who is interested. 

Calling generic leads can be fun, it definitely is a learning 
experience, and sometimes it can be depressing. But 
don't ever give up. You never know, that diamond 
may be just a phone call away. 

Also remember, your initial call is not to get that person 
to join. Your objectives are: 

1. Find out if this is a person for you. 
2. Start the relationship building process 
3. Find out what their "hot buttons" are, what motivates them 
4. Get them to look at your web site, or send them info on 
your opportunity. 

Ask the person when they will look at your information. Then 
set up a specific date and time to follow up. 

Good luck and have fun. 


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Dave Cole
Prosperity: The Choice Is Yours
Copyright © 2002

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