Selling doesn’t stop when a sale is closed. That’s just the beginning of your relationship with a new customer. Providing quality delivery, offering upsells to a customer’s existing purchase, and getting renewals of subscriptions can all help you grow accounts.
Hunter salespeople are known to focus on the ‘win.’ They’re determined, motivated, and hungry for the sale. Given a choice between prospecting and checking in on existing accounts, prospecting will win every time.
This short-term focus can damage customer relationships and leave money on the table. Lean into the power of farmer-type salespeople and their natural inclination to nurture relationships and grow accounts.
Implement a Post-Purchase Communication Plan
Ask your sales reps to take twenty minutes after they close a new sale to activate follow-up reminders in your CRM. Check-ins should take place at regular intervals. Well-timed communications will lead to easier additional sales.
Use check-ins to:
Confirm the customer has received the product
Answer any questions your customers have
Ask for feedback, shares, and reviews
Recognize customer anniversaries and achievements
Offer renewal promotions
Hire your next farmer salesperson with Peak. Get in touch with our team and we’ll tap into our global network of talent to find you the perfect fit.
The B2B cold call is still hot in 2024. Savvy sales leaders are paying attention. They are upping their cold-calling game and preparing to start the year strong.
In this blog, you’ll find 20 of our best cold-calling tips for 2024. You’ll also find four mistakes to avoid. This will help you stay ahead of your competition. It will also help you serve more customers and grow your business.
Does cold calling work for B2B businesses?
Yes! We work with thousands of sales professionals and companies across the globe. We’ve seen cold-calling strategies work time and time again. There’s no way to replace human-to-human connections when starting the B2B sales process. If your business scenario looks bleak regarding cold calling, there’s more of the market for you to capture. Check out our blog on key cold-calling statistics for 2024. Learn how cold-calling best practices and cold emailing can improve your sales strategy.
1. Know your product.
Every sales representative’s initial and ongoing sales training should include extensive education in the product they are selling. They should understand the product’s features and the key benefits that make buyers say, “This is for me!” Don’t start cold calls if you lack the product expertise to back up your pitch!
2. Pre-process rejection.
During cold-calling, you’ll encounter unsuccessful calls. You’ll get hung up on and be rejected. Set your expectations according to reality before your next round of cold calls. Even the best cold-callers face rejection. The difference is that they have processed the impact of that rejection beforehand.
3. Build resilience.
Want to develop a positive attitude in sales? Then practice and repetition are your friends! The only way to build resilience is to keep showing up. You need to cold-call and push through disappointments. Cold-calling resilience is something inside salespeople are exceptionally skilled at.
4. Practice your pitch.
Cold calling scripts can be helpful to get you started, but you don’t want to sound like a reading robot on the phone. Practice your pitch so that you are familiar enough to adapt it to each prospect for optimal results. Making that successful call is all about how well you connect the pitch to the customer’s needs.
5. Consider this the beginning of a customer relationship.
How you initiate a cold call reflects the potential of a future customer base. If you’re pushy and rush the prospect, their initial impression is not likely to lead to a first meeting. These high-pressure sales can lead to negative responses. For example, regret, frustration, and undermining of the customer success story. Aim to create a positive response by building rapport and trust.
6. Take your prospect’s emotional temperature.
When you make that first call, read your prospects’ verbal cues to see how they feel. The problem you can help them with may or may not be top of mind for them. Tapping into some empathy can help you connect. It can also help you decide if scheduling a follow-up call would be more appropriate.
7. Stay flexible.
When making B2B cold calls, don’t stick to a script or formula too rigidly. Remain flexible and remember to use multiple approaches. Each prospective client is unique. When you can accommodate their needs early on, they will feel more comfortable with you. They will also feel more understood, setting the stage for future calls.
8. Respect the prospect.
Reflect back to your prospect what they share with you. If you speak over them, ignore hesitation in their voice, or carry on with your strategy without fully honoring what they’re sharing — you aren’t likely to see success in your cold-calling efforts.
9. Be cordial.
Even if someone seems annoyed about getting a cold sales call, you can invite them into a genuine conversation. Use the right tone. It is your job to ensure that prospects get the solutions they need.
10. Actively Listen.
Assuming you have adequately qualified your prospects, the person you are on the phone with has the exact problem you can solve. Actively listening will reveal the nuances of how you can help your prospect. Personalized selling on a cold call improves your chances of closing the sale. Success in closing the sale depends on the conversation’s quality, not the amount of talk time.
11. Connect human-to-human.
No one wants to feel like just a number! Take a moment on your cold call to connect with your prospect. No need to waste time on small talk. Just remember you’re talking to another human. They have their own interests and decision-making processes.
12. Focus on your prospect’s pain points.
Great B2B cold calls start with affirming that your prospect is in the market for your solution. The key is doing this subtly by using curiosity. Find out what really matters to your prospect. If their goals align with your solution, you’re on your way to adding them to your customer base.
13. Wait to reveal your price.
Price should not be the primary deciding factor for your prospect. On a cold call, your goal should be fully understanding if your solution is right for your prospect. Then and only then should you discuss your straight price.
14. Be prepared for the prospect’s objections.
Similar to preparing for rejection, you need to prepare for objections. If you’re new to cold calling, ask team members what objections they face most and how they handle them. Then, keep your notes updated. Note down new objections you hear and the most effective responses.
15. Don’t take a no personally.
Become emotionally detached from your B2B cold-calling efforts. You’ll find that hearing a ‘no’ isn’t so difficult anymore. You’ll see each ‘no’ as one step closer to your next ‘yes.’
16. Evaluate every call.
After every cold call, take a few minutes to note what you think went well, what didn’t go well, what worked, and what didn’t. Taking real-time notes on your performance will consistently strengthen your cold-calling game. Self-reflecting on how to improve will also help.
17. Track your call metrics.
To win sales and grow your sales success, you need to track your goals and critical sales metrics. Understanding your call volume is vital for improving your conversion rates. Knowing these numbers provides insights into the effectiveness of your cold-calling efforts. It also helps in refining your strategies for different target markets.
18. Assess your cold-call strategy quarterly.
Over the course of a year, your industry, the economy, and general customer needs may change. Combine your observations of these changes with your notes. You are starting an overhauled cold-calling strategy. This is the best way to stay ahead of the competition.
19. Go all-in on follow-up calls.
Follow-ups are essential if you want to win at B2B cold calling. 48% of salespeople never even make a single follow-up attempt, yet 80% of sales require five follow-up calls. They allow you to reconnect with prospects, and address any objections. That means there’s money on the table. If you’re willing to do more cold calls than your competitors or colleagues, you’ll inevitably close more sales and have higher success rates.
20. Consider warm-calling.
Warm-calling is a type of cold-calling. It happens after you have made prior contact with a prospect. It could be prior contact through social media or conferences. It could also be another form of networking. By leveraging previous positive interactions, you can increase the chance of turning a prospect into a new client.
Mistakes to Avoid in Cold Calling
Mistake 1. Not Making Enough Calls
Cold calling is largely a numbers game. If you’re simply not making enough of them, you can’t win it! Look for ways to increase your volume to increase your conversions. Don’t let call reluctance get in the way. Instead, dial up your efforts to maximize your chance at a successful call.
Mistake 2. Spending Too Much Time on Admin and Research
While understanding your prospects is important, excessive admin and research can be counterproductive. Balance is key; use thorough research to be prepared, but don’t let it become an excuse to make fewer calls. Remember, each discovery call is a chance to learn more about your prospect’s needs. Tailor your pitch accordingly.
Mistake 3. Letting Email Take Over
Email should not replace B2B cold calling. This is especially true in industries where a high-touch approach is necessary to sell. Use emails in conjunction with cold calling. Emails are great for following up. They also communicate pertinent information discussed on cold calls.
Mistake 4. Failing to Overcome Objections
Most objections are rooted in your prospect’s doubts, fears, or misunderstandings. Learn to look beyond the surface of objections. Get curious. Objections are not roadblocks but opportunities to delve deeper into your prospect’s concerns. Equip yourself with essential tips and effective strategies to address these objections. Reflect on your understanding of the competitive landscape. Consider the specific industry you’re addressing.
Leveraging conferences for leads isn’t as simple as just showing up. If you want to optimize your attendance, preparation starts before you attend the conference. The work to land hot leads requires follow-through at the conferences you attend and follow-up after you attend.
1. Review the conference attendee list for likely leads
Reach out to the event organizers for a list of attendees a week or two before the event. Note anyone you’ve interacted with in the past year.
2. Reach out to warm contacts
Set up meetings with the attendees you’ve had prior contact with. Offer to exchange referrals and introductions with as many people as possible.
3. Identify “land and expand” opportunities
Aim to deepen relationships with large companies. Look for attendees from companies you may have already started connections with.
4. Prepare to build relationships with centers of influence
Keynote experts and speakers may not be your ideal customers, but you should not ignore them. Ask them questions, buy their books, and follow them online. Experts have the potential to help you meet many leads.
5. Block out time for post-conference follow-up
Plan for 2-3 hours on your calendar the day after any conferences you attend. Send emails, make calls, and connect with attendees on social media during this time.
If you’re a top performer and know you deserve to be paid top dollar, salary negotiation is likely in your future. Prepare proactively by creating a salary negotiation strategy.
Step 1: Do Your Homework
What are other professionals in your industry and role making? Indeed.com, Salary.com, and Glassdoor.com are great places to research before salary negotiation begins.
Step 2: Find Your Range
Consider your experience, the unique expertise you have grown, and the strengths and weaknesses you possess. How do these qualifications compare to others in your industry? Use this information to determine what a reasonable salary range is for you.
Step 3: Quantify Your Value and Performance
Turn your qualifications into easy-to-understand statements of value. Being able to cite specific numbers that prove your success is imperative. Consider your past achievements and what you expect to achieve in your new role when positioning yourself as an ideal candidate.
Step 4: Aim High
When an employer asks about your pay expectations, start on the high end of your range. Give yourself room for salary negotiation.
Step 5: Prove You Deserve It
To show your employers that you deserve a premium salary, consider showing past W-2s that undeniably display evidence of past performance. When you receive an offer, know when and how to counter it. Be prepared to walk away if the final offer doesn’t represent your value.
Year-end is full of pressure for any sales team. That said, you and your team members should face your targets with courage and optimism until December comes to a close. Here are three things employees might do that sabotage hitting year end targets — and how to remedy them.
#1 Quitting Early
When sales reps feel like they’re running behind on their goals, they often quit before the quarter ends. This defeated attitude will keep you from hitting year end targets and spill over into the first quarter of the new year. Keep your team encouraged, upbeat, and working hard toward their goals. Instead of quitting on targets early, encourage them to find ways of hitting year end targets early!
#2 Making Excuses
Even under pressure, top performers don’t make excuses and slack off. Only mediocre employees give up on their goals. Year end time off, holiday plans, and other seasonal circumstances don’t justify disengaged behavior. If you notice employees making excuses about not hitting their numbers, it might be time to chat about reasonable career expectations. Be constructive in your conversations and offer proactive solutions to help them close year-end deals.
#3 Ruining the Fun!
Year-end tensions can keep stressed-out employees from hitting year end targets. Whenever possible, nurture friendly competition and bonding across your team. Offer surprise rewards and appreciate every effort your employees make towards winning. Lighten the mood, and your customers will notice, too.
Access our global network of top performers and start your new year off with a burst of motivation. Contact us today to get started!
Birds of a feather flock together, and so do top performers!
That means your best employees are probably connected to a handful of people who would make great additions to your sales team. Don’t rush into an extensive search for job candidates. Ask your employees who they might know for the role.
Prepare to ask your employees by creating an employee referral program. A simple employee referral program can motivate top performers to share their connections with your company.
Let Your Employees Know How You Handle Referrals
Determine your referral strategy. How should your employee get you in contact with their referral? Should the referral contact your hiring manager directly? Make your strategy easy to understand and predictable. This will help your team members feel more comfortable with your employee referral program.
Reward Employees For Successful Hires
When an employee’s referral gets hired or closes their first sale, they should receive a financial reward. You can also offer intangible benefits such as extra PTO days as a thank-you for the referral.
Foster a Culture of Healthy Competition
More top performers on a team automatically means more competition for your current top performers. Maintaining a culture of healthy competition is crucial as you add to your team. Ensure that employees have common goals to work towards and give plenty of recognition for individual achievements.
Sales hinge on connections, conversations, and conversions. All three of these are unlikely to happen without effective sales follow-ups. Consistency and persistence are key in 2025!
We’ve gathered insights from top sales companies, including trends from trade shows. We checked them against the real-world experiences of thousands of high-performing sales teams we work with. We delivered them to you in this handy article!
These sales follow-up statistics reveal:
How to gain a competitive advantage with follow-ups
What to emphasize about follow-ups in your onboarding and training sessions
How many times you need to follow up to close a sale
The role of email and social selling in successful sales follow-ups
Ready to build a team that excels in follow-ups and drives results? Contact Peak Sales Recruiting today and find the top talent to transform your sales performance.
The State of Sales Follow-Ups
Only3%of your market is actively buying at any given time. And another 40% are ready to start. The rest won’t buy no matter what you do.
48% of salespeople never even make a single follow-up attempt after a cold call. Follow-ups are an easy way to gain a competitive edge and beat sales quotas!
44% of salespeople give up after one follow-up call. Statistically speaking, one follow-up call isn’t enough to land most sales.
60% of customers say no four times before saying yes. Resilience in the face of rejection is key.
8%of salespeople have more than five follow-up touches. Be the 8% salesperson!
80% of sales require five follow-up calls. Since so few salespeople keep up their follow-ups to five calls or more, there’s money left on the table!
2%of sales are made on first contact. 3% are made on the second, 5% on the third, 10% on the fourth, and 80% on the fifth to twelfth contact. This emphasizes the importance of nurturing prospective clients throughout the sales process.
The Speed of Sales Follow-Up Statistics
Web leads are9x more likely to engage if you follow up within five minutes.
35-50% of sales go to the vendor that responds first.
50% of buyers go for the vendor that replies first.
How Buyers Feel About Sales Follow-Ups
75% of online buyers want to receive 2-4 phone calls. Don’t give up before you’ve met or exceeded these expectations. Many sales happen on the fifth call.
12% of online buyers would like a company to call until they get a hold of them, often leaving voicemail messages.
42% of people would be encouraged to buy at an appointed time. Busy professionals and business owners sometimes appreciate warm calls at a specific time. This way, they can make a clear-headed decision. Offer this option in your follow-up process.
57% of people appreciate low-pressure follow-ups. The content of your sales pitch isn’t the only thing that matters. When you follow up, use a helpful and casual tone. This encourages prospects to ask questions, creating a positive sales experience.
How Salespeople Feel About Sales Follow-Ups
Only28%of sales professionals expect to meet or exceed quota. Lean into sales training and education, find the gaps in your sales strategy, and ensure you’re prepared for the new sales landscape.
65% of sales reps say they can’t find content to send to prospects. Informative content and helpful resources can be a vital part of the sales process. In particular,challenger sales models rely on education and need it. Start building a content library that serves the real questions and objections your prospects bring up in the sales process. This way, you can include relevant resources in your follow-ups.
Email Sequence Sales Follow-Up Statistics
70% of reps only send oneemail to prospects. This means that if you consistently follow up, you’re bound to beat out the competition and gain clients they’ve left behind.
Your chance of hearing back is25% if you send more than one email.
Cold email outreach campaigns with three total emails have9.2% reply rates.
After three total emailsreplies decrease by 20%. Sending too many follow-ups won’t necessarily do any damage, but it can be a waste of the sales team’s productivity.
Subject Line Sales Follow-Up Statistics
47% of email recipients open emails based on the subject line alone. Keep your subject lines engaging, curiosity-provoking, and personal!
69% of email recipients use the subject line to detect spam. Avoid subject lines that look automated, are overly formal, or use “Title Caps.”
Timing of Email Follow-Ups
Next-day follow-ups reduce replies by11%. Give prospects 2-3 days to think youremail over and reply to you.
Waiting three days results in a31% increase in replies. The optimal time between a cold email and follow-up is between 2 and 5 days.Plan your email sequence strategy accordingly! And remember, someemails simply get buried in people’s inboxes. Spacing out your follow-ups will keep you on top of customer interactions.
Your chances of a response drops to 24% afterfive days. Don’t wait too long to get in touch with your prospect again!
In-Depth Sales Follow-Up Statistics
70% of sales leaders are seeing a decrease in risk-taking. This is company-wide and affects the culture of organizations. While playing it safe may lead to more steady results, leaders should pay special attention to their team’s disposition. If follow-ups feel too risky, reps are unlikely to do them.
66% of sales reps say they have too many tools to work with. Simplify your sales CRM, narrow down the most essential sales tools for your team, and ensure everyone has adequate training to optimize your tech stack.
High-performing reps are1.9x more likely to use AI. Sales leaders and operations pros see AI as a way to leverage reps’ time. Use new AI innovations to reduce routine and repetitive tasks and data entry. This will give your reps more time to focus on their prospects and customers.
Sales leadership encourages long-term relationships over short-term wins, say90% of sales reps. This is a testament to starting off sales relationships strong. Follow-ups strengthen the prospect relationship quickly and build trust in your dedication.
Over80% of sales reps find that buyers are more educated. Before a sales conversation even begins, they’ve done their research and have questions prepared. Sellers must pool their resources and be ready to address hard-hitting questions. They must show their company is the right choice above and beyond their competitors to improve customer retention.
Ready to add high-performing closers (who are dedicated to the follow-up) to your team?Contact us today to discuss your hiring needs!
Looking for more sales resources? Check these out:
While industry experience in a job candidate is great, the lack of it is not a deal breaker. Having a skilled recruiter and a clear hiring strategy allows you to identify relevant sales skills. These skills can be transferred from another industry to yours. In addition, you can use these three tips to amplify your hiring efforts.
Lean Into the Power of Change
When you position yourself in the labor market as a company willing to hire salespeople outside your industry, you show that you are open to evolving.
Hire the Best and Invest
Look for salespeople outside your industry who have a strong sales DNA. These innate traits cannot be taught to a new hire. You should focus your training efforts on educating motivated salespeople. Teach them about your product, market, and customers.
Embrace Unforeseen Benefits
When you hire outside your industry, you’re less likely to encounter legal issues with non-competes. You also tap into fresh perspectives and may find new ways of doing things that work better for your business. New blood can even result in entirely new sales since these people can bring a book of business you might not have previously considered.
Before Peak, Brent worked in sales and sales-leadership positions for 18 years. He has considerable experience building and running high-performance teams, which consistently won awards and exceeded sales targets. He was Vice President of Sales for a financial management consulting company, and served with Borland Software as a Regional Sales Manager.
Competition to hire salespeople is tough and you’ve exhausted the pool of eligible contenders in your marketplace. It’s time to fish in deeper waters.
Recruiting outside of your industry is not difficult, but it does require some planning. You’ll need to define your selling environment, identify required skills and find someone with the right DNA to succeed. A candidate that has not worked in your field, but comes with the right talent, has the potential to be a huge asset to your company. While industry experience is great, the lack of it is not a deal breaker if you can identify relevant sales skills that are transferable from one industry to yours. New blood can result in new sales. Don’t overlook other industries as a good source of fresh talent.
Image courtesy of sheelamohan / FreeDigitalPhotos.netrelpost-thumb-wrapper
Before Peak, Eliot spent more than 20 years building and leading companies, where he took the lead in recruiting and managing high performance sales teams. He co-founded Ventrada Systems (mobile applications) and GlobalX (e-commerce software). He was also Vice President of Sales for PointShot Wireless.Eliot received his B. Comm. from Carleton University and has been honored as a Top 40 Under 40 Award winner.
He co-authored Sales Recruiting 2.0, How to Find Top Performing Sales People, Fast and provides regular insights on sales team management and hiring on the Peak Sales Recruiting Blog.
When your year end target is just out of reach, there are seven ways to push your team to the finish line.
1. Communicate Your Year End Target
Keep energy levels high on your team by sharing your targets clearly and enthusiastically. Make sure every rep understands the importance of your goal.
2. Emphasize Key Details and Territories
Identify the deals that matter most, then make your sales executives available 24/7 to support reps in closing crucial deals.
3. Support Discipline and Good Work Habits
Find creative ways to ensure your team is sleeping well, eating well, and taking adequate breaks during their work days. Refreshed and recharged employees will always sell more!
4. Reach Out to Your Existing Customers
Prepare and share the best deals you can to inspire repeat business and timely purchases.
5. Monitor Activity Volumes for Signs of Deteriorating Effort
As a leader, you must act quickly when the number of calls, meetings, or proposals decreases below typical ratios.
6. Track Deal Slide
Time kills deals. Don’t let open offers hang. Jump on deals at risk of sliding into the next quarter, find out what you need to do to close them, and reach your year end target.
7. Say No to Negativity and Distractions
Ask your employees to turn off the news and stop doom scrolling. An anxious mindset won’t put them in the right mind to sell.
