Always remember that prospecting is an integral part of revenue creation for any business especially in these challenging economic times. Many traditional companies have almost forgotten what it means to have to go out and find customers offline. Business was so good that many companies simply waited for customers to show up and buy. With the competitive nature of the new economy, this is no longer the case. It is the company that prospects the best that will survive this economic downturn. One of the most basic ways to prospect for customers is to cold call.

This is a term that many people in sales and marketing hate to hear. Many sales people would rather chew broken glass than cold call for new customers. However, cold calling can prove to be an effective revenue builder when performed in the proper manner.

The fact is that cold calling does not have to be the dreaded activity that many sales and marketing people make it out to be. When you call a targeted list with prepared presentation, and a list of objections the potential customer may have, the process becomes more manageable. Furthermore, having the right list of potential customers make the calls go smoother. The cold calling process is not all cupcakes and ding dongs and will require that you do not take the rejection personal.

It is a waste of time calling someone who has no need for the product or service that your company offers. Your progress with the prospecting method is dependent on how relevant your prospecting leads are to what you bring to the table. Since most people are busy when they are answering the phone it is important to create rapport and get right to the point. Your initial questions and words impact the quality of the conversation. Stay away from closed ended “say no questions.” Understanding how to connect and build rapport with a stranger is essential training to successful prospecting. Having a prepared presentation will help as long as you put in enough practice time with scripts so that your presentation does not sound canned or scripted.

Most people will not readily agree to what you ask them to do without offering some sort of objection. This is why you should anticipate objections and have viable responses that cater to the prospects needs, wants and desires. After spending time on several calls you will notice a consistent pattern of objections from the other end of the phone. Take the recurring objections and create need or desire based response. A great way to view objections is: the prospect has some interest but want the you to provide more value that overcome the objections. Practice on becoming an effective listener with a vocabulary of empowering words.

Prospecting is an integral part of revenue creation for any business. Cold calling can be an effective way for you to prospect. Follow the basic rules of calling to find new customers and increased revenue will be the result. Keep your final goal in mind to assist you through the rejection that with come with cold calling.

By the way, if you want to learn what to say when prospecting to explode your business, be sure to pick up a free copy of The Little Black Book of Scripts