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Cold-calling is an effective strategy for new advisors just starting to build their client base, or any advisor looking to grow their existing book of business.
While cold-calling alone might help you convert a few prospects into clients, there are extra steps you can take to maximize its effectiveness. Check out our top cold-calling tips below to take your cold-calling strategy to the next level:
1. Know your ideal client
Too many advisors try to be “generalists” who help everybody. But this isn’t an effective sales strategy. Instead, you should identify a ideal client-type which you prefer to work with. Then, only work with clients that fit your ideal client-type!
For example, which advisor would a heart surgeon living in Los Angeles prefer to work with: one who specializes in working with medical professionals in metropolitan areas, or a generalist who works with “everybody”?
By focusing on a niche market you decrease your potential client pool but increase your marketability!
Take these steps to know your ideal client:
Once you hone in on your ideal client, it will make cold-calling easier. You can focus calls on determining if someone meets your ideal client profile.
2. Research, research, research
Invest time into doing some research on the people on your call list. Doing research is as simple as googling someone’s name, or looking them up on LinkedIn.
Finding information about someone’s career, interests, or alma mater gives you common ground to connect on during the call. Even better, simply having some insight about the prospect will help you go into the call feeling confident!
3. Make a cold call a warm(er) call
While researching a prospect, finding their email can be valuable. You can use a prospect's email to warm up a cold call! This will often make your call much more effective. A short email letting the prospect know that you're going to be calling to introduce yourself works great!
4. Ask questions
Rather than focusing the call on explaining what you do, spend a majority of the call learning about the prospect. Remember tip number one? This is your opportunity to screen the prospect against your ideal client persona. Ask lots of questions so you can learn more about the client, find common ground to connect on, and identify how you can offer them value.
It all boils down to how you approach the call. Rather than thinking of it as a sales call, think of it as a discovery call. Your goal is to learn more about the prospect and see if your services are a good fit for them.
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5. Keep it short, simple, and to the point
Did you know that the brain can only hold on to 20-30 seconds of information at time? Focus on keeping your questions and responses brief and to the point. If a potential client is interested, they’ll ask you to elaborate or provide additional information. Take this as an opportunity to set a meeting.
6. Keep good records
Keeping good records is essential to getting the most out of your cold-calling efforts. This means keeping track of who you call, when you call them, and what you discuss. The easiest way to do this is by using a customer relationship management software (CRM). CRM automates the process so that you spend less time tracking and more time making quality phone calls!