Cold-Calling and Sales Prospecting in High-Tech Industry

Before we get too deep into this idea of “cold-calling”, we must acknowledge that the term is rather loosely defined in high-tech industry. In particular, when industrial equipment, such as lasers or photonics, is involved, it is not the actual sales pitch that is delivered during the sales prospecting call. Cold calls create the initial tip of the iceberg. This allows us to set up a conversation, and consequently, kickstart the entire sales process. Due to this, when we talk about all things cold-calling, we realize the term has quotation marks and might come with a long email chain on either supplier or buyer side.

Cold Call Photo by Magnet.me on Unsplash

As things have gone remote in recent years, online interactions through platforms like FindLight have become a primary way for buyers to find products. Being highly reactive to all such sales inquiries is vitally important for maintaining a successful sales pipeline. However, if you truly want to cast a wider sales net, you have to get yourself out there and “cold-call”. Research has shown that cold-calling not only works but is up there with emails as a preferred way of communication with buyers/customers. 

Create the Right Goals before Cold-Calling

First things first, always make sure the person you are cold-calling is someone who might be interested in what you are selling. Once that is squared away, find out what would be of value for them that would warrant spending time with you. You’ll want to convey value proposition within the first few seconds after you introduce yourself. This might be something specific such as a solution to a problem the customer has or keeping them informed on the latest developments in the industry. Pro Tip: scientists and engineers alike love staying up to date on technology developments.

If the call is successful, there will be a lot of the Why questions and answers that you will give them. This will further help you qualify the prospect. We can get into this below as we talk about the value pitch.

The most important thing to keep in mind is to understand that this is just the beginning of the sales process. Your goal is to ensure continuity for the sale process before he hangs up. If you can hold them on the phone, make sure to create a point in the conversation that will carry it past the phone call. Get their email or better offer a time for a sales visit if you are ever in their area. To keep their attention, remind them of the value of the appointment and how there is potentially a problem to be solved.

If you are offering a meeting time or call time, try to give them examples like “How is Friday at 1 pm or next Monday at 2 pm?”. By giving them options then they can make a choice and further the conversation to lead to an appointment scheduled. If you managed to schedule the next appointment, consider it a success!

Prepare your Value-Pitch 

More often than not the cold-calling process is usually to set up an intro for a discovery call of sorts. In some cases, an interested customer will be open to hearing what you have to offer. In the small number of cases when that happens, you want to be ready to deliver an outstanding value pitch that will make the customer want to meet you.

We keep talking about communicating the value of your pitch, but how do you actually do that? The first step is knowing if the customer actually needs something. If you know that, great!  Through this, you can also find out if what you are selling helps the customer or not. What you must find is how the product fits into your potential customer’s world and its value there. That’s why prepping your value pitch truly does go hand-in-hand with researching the customer. 

Sometimes creating value for the buyer can look like asking questions to deeply qualify your prospect. Ask them about their pain points, features they are looking for, and anything else relevant that will help finding out what is relevant to them and their work. Through this conversation, you can really zoom in on what makes them tick. Ask questions like:

• What are they currently using?
• What do they like about it or don’t like?
• In their opinion what improvements they would want if they got a new product?

Conversely, it might feel like you are not using a pitch script. Truthfully, you are using your scripts of questions to create a tailored pitch to the customer in real-time. Through this, you will create something adaptable to their needs and wants. We’ve talked about active listening before in our post on 15 Ways to Improve Sales Performance, this is a great time to use it on the phone. 

Research and Become Personable 

This is especially important for “cold-calling” be it on the phone or on email, because no one makes sales over spam-like emails. If you are going to take the time to cold-call try to make it worth everyone’s time. 

Find ways to show you have researched customers and their business. If you are calling a university or a research institution, a lot of their activities are publicized on their group websites. Make sure you research them beforehand. If your prospect works for a company, things might be a lot more concealed. However, through social media or websites, you might be able to get a glimpse at what is important and useful to their business. Through this, you can tailor emails or phone calls that speak to the company. You will appear relevant and are more likely to get booked for a demo this way. 

One way you can help stay relevant for cold-calling is by setting up google alerts for the company. Through this information, you can find content to use to follow up keeping them in your sales cycle. 

The Follow-Up after Cold-Calling

According to research done by RAIN Group, it takes an average of 8 touches to get an initial meeting (or other conversation) with a new prospect. This means you have to have persistence with your follow-ups. If you spend a lot of time working on your targeting, messaging, and value pitch this could mean fewer follow-ups or touches needed. It is a good reminder to be patient and use relevance to your advantage. Don’t follow up without making sure you have something new or more relevant to say to the customer.

Furthermore, please continue to educate and engage your customers. If you are ever near their offices and are at the point in the relationship where there is genuine consideration occurring, offer up a few times through email or a phone for a demo or live meeting. 

Cold Call Photo by NordWood Themes on Unsplash

Possible Process Flow if They are Busy

Here are a few ways to try and create a relationship on your first cold call without an appointment. 

• Introduce yourself and ask if they are able to talk. They most likely are very busy, so it is a nice thing to ask. If they are, ask if you can call back at a later time. 
• Explain the purpose of your call. This means actually telling them you’ll want to talk for 15-20 minutes about their X problem and how you can solve it through your Y product. 
• Question. Ask them if a specific date would be better to talk for those 15-20 minutes. Try to get an appointment with them in the end. 

Certainly, cold calling is not always how we want to be spending our time. It can help widen the beginning pool of people during your quarters. You never know who might recommend you to the next customer or who might be in the market for a better product.