The Cold Calling Code
The Cold Calling Code
Tips for leaders and reps. Cold calling is one of the few activities in go-to-market that remains a constant regardless of company stage of scale.
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Covered today:
Cold calling tips for leaders and reps.
More on GTM for your eardrums.
More on GTM for your eyeballs.
Startup to watch.
Hottest GTM jobs of the week.
GTM industry events.
Cold Calling Code for Both Leaders and Reps
Cold calling is one of the few activities in go-to-market that remains a constant regardless of company stage of scale.
For startups, cold calling is often a lifeline for growth. For larger companies, cold calling is a beating drum in the overall orchestra.
According to Salesforce's State of Sales report, over 50% of high-performing sales teams continue to rely on outbound strategies, including cold calling, as a key part of their approach. This trend is consistent across both small businesses and large enterprises.
This notion is echoed when speaking with go-to-market leaders.
“Surprisingly, cold calling is not dead. It's still the best way to really drive your message home. For example, in the last year or two, I kept receiving calls from the same salesperson. Out of the 50 calls I get daily, I answered about five or six a week, often by accident. This salesperson managed to catch me at the right moments - like when I was in the car with my kids or had a meeting cancel unexpectedly. His persistence paid off because each time he reached me, he made an impressive pitch in those crucial first 30 seconds. His approach was so effective that I ended up buying the software, which we now use to enhance our own cold calling efforts.
- David Greenberger (Vice President, Head of North America at CHEQ)
The value is there for companies of all stages. Below are five cold calling tips for both sales leaders and sales reps - let’s get into it.
Tips for sales leaders
1. Set clear expectations. Establish minimum viable activity metrics, such as 150-200 cold calls per week, to ensure consistent engagement without overwhelming your reps. The magic formula is finding the activity metrics that balances both quality with quantity.
2. Cultivate a cold calling culture and lead by example. Normalize rejection as a step toward success. Rejection is a data point that provides feedback so you can iterate. Lead by example - when leaders actively engage in cold calling, it reinforces its importance to the team. Anyone who has made a cold call can certainly agree that it’s not only a humbling exercise, but a great feedback loop from your ICP.
3. Equip your team with the right tools (and training!). Invest in platforms and tools that streamline cold calling efforts. For example, consolidating standalone tools into one platform and parallel dialers.
4. Motivate with gamification and incentives. Create healthy competition within your team using leaderboards and contests. Reward both the quantity of calls and the quality of engagements.
5. Align cold calling with broader sales strategies. Integrate cold calling into a multi-channel outreach strategy, ensuring consistency across all touchpoints, including email campaigns and social selling.
Tips for sales reps
1. Tackle cold calling first thing in the morning. Make cold calling your first task of the day when connect rates are highest. Use tactics like the "10 dials, no pee" rule to overcome reluctance and build momentum.
2. Perfect your opener. Avoid generic openers. Instead, lead with a context-specific statement that shows you’ve done your research. Example opener:
“Hey [Prospect], I just finished reading your latest report on [specific topic]. This is a cold call, but it’s well-researched. Can I get 30 seconds to tell you why I called?”
3. Focus on the problem, not the product. When pitching, emphasize the specific problem your product solves rather than its features.
4. Handle objections by agreeing then asking a trap question. When faced with objections, agree with the prospect first to lower their defenses. Then, ask a "trap question" that subtly highlights a gap in their current solution. Example objection handling:
“Prospect: "We’re already working with [Competitor]."
You: "Great choice, [Competitor] is solid. That must mean you're not dealing with [specific problem your solution addresses], right?"
5. Integrate cold calling with email outreach. Use a multi-touch approach by following up cold calls with personalized emails.
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👂 More for your eardrums
The GTM Podcast - subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you listen.
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Andrew Johnston is currently the Head of Sales at Superhuman, where he leads the go-to-market strategy as part of the executive team. Previously, he built the Mid-Market and PLS motion at Scale AI and led the global sales team at SendGrid following its acquisition by Twilio and its IPO.
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🚀 Startup to watch
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See more top GTM jobs on the GTMfund Job Board.
If you’re looking to hire incredible startup talent, reach out to our search firm partner as a resource: Integrity Power Search (IPS). They are also available to support candidates looking for their next startup opportunity.
🗓️ GTM industry events
Upcoming go-to-market events you won’t want to miss:
Catalyst 2024: August 14 -16 (Chicago, IL)
Live Book Summary on the Cold Calling Manuscript: August 14 (Online)
SaaSOpen: September 5 - 6 (NYC)
SaaStr Annual: September 9 - 12 (Bay Area, CA)
GTMfund Dinner: September 17 (Boston, MA)
INBOUND: September 18 - 20 (Boston, MA)
GTMfund Annual Retreat: October 4 - 6 (San Diego, CA)
GTM Summit: October 14 - 16 (Austin, TX)
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