The art of

COLD CALLING

Hello!
Cold Calling?
Many salespeople like to distinguish between cold calls, warms calls and
lukewarm calls. However, a cold call refers to any situation where you are
attempting to contact someone without a scheduled appointmenteither
someone is expecting your call at a specific time and its on their calendar, or
they are not. The fact that the prospect is an old friend, a new friend, was referred
by a colleague, filled out a Contact Me form or you pulled their name off of data.
com simply defines the source of that prospect rather than the temperature of
the call.
Of course inbound requests, referrals and personal relationships are more
comfortable calls to make, and they will absolutely have a better ratio of dials to
meetings set. That said, it is critical to:
(1)
(2)

Use the exact same process in all of your prospecting efforts, and
Acknowledge that when you are not on someones calendar, you are
interrupting something they are doing, which, by definition, is a cold call.

Remember the Goal

The goal of sales prospecting (again regardless of lead source) is not to generate
interest, excitement or even to have a conversation right now. The goal of sales
prospecting is to convert an interruption into a scheduled interaction, specifically
a brief (1015 minute) phone conversation.
In the following scripts, youll notice a lot of the information that would normally
be conveyed up front and all at once is intentionally (even artificially) broken up
into multiple sentences that require the prospect to respond. More specifically,
this call flow script is engineered so that the prospect is highly likely to respond
in a relatively limited number of predictable ways.
Practice these scripts.
Increase conversions of calls to scheduled interactions.
Realize greater ROI.
Happy Selling,
Townsend Wardlaw

TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 1

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

Cold Calling Script

Gatekeeper:

Hello, this is Bob Smiths Office.

Salesperson:

Bob Smith, please.

GK

Who may I say is calling?

SP

This is MY NAME.

GK

What company are you with?

SP

Im with MY COMPANY.
SP Bob is still the CFO right? [VALIDATION Question]

GK

What is this regarding?

SP

I am looking to get on Bobs calendar for a brief introductory call.

SP Are you able to route me through to him?
SP Are you responsible for scheduling appointments on his calendar?

GK

What does your company do?

SP

We are in finance and accounting software business.

SP

Are you familiar with MY COMPANY?

[Then Routed to Voice Mail or work through the

Gatekeeper to a live conversation.]

TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 2

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

l
i
a
M
e
c
i
Vo
Hello Bob, this is MY NAME and
Im the founder of MY COMPANY.
The purpose of my call today is
I am looking to schedule a 10
minute introductory conversation
sometime early next week to
formally introduce myself and my
company as well as learn a bit
more about THEIR COMPANY. Im
sorry I missed you but will continue
to try and reach you until we are
able to connect. In the meantime,
if you have spare minute you can
reach me at MY PHONE NUMBER.

TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 3

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

Live Conversation Script

Prospect: This is Bob.
Salesperson:
P
SP

Hi Bob, this is MY NAME with MY COMPANY. Have I caught you at a bad time?
Yes, but what is this about?
Thank you for asking. Once again, my name is MY NAME, Im the founder of MY
COMPANY. The purpose of my call is I am looking to schedule 10-15 minutes for an
introductory conversation sometime early next week (or later this week).
SP

P
SP

Would you have 10 minutes on Thursday afternoonsay 1pm?

Im sorry, what is this about? Who are you?

My name is MY NAME and Im the founder of MY COMPANY.
SP

Have you heard of MY COMPANY?

P
SP

I work with

No I have not. (What does YOUR COMPANY do?)

[HIS TITLE]

of

[COMPANY SIZE] [INDUSTRY]

like yourself in the area of

[HIGH LEVEL

CONCEPT OF WHAT YOU DO].

SP
P
SP

[ASK A VALIDATION QUESTION ABOUT HIS COMPANY] Is that accurate?

Yes, it is.
Excellent! As I mentioned, the purpose of my call is to schedule a brief 10 minute
introductory conversation sometime early next week (or later this week).

P
SP

But what do you do?

Great question. We [USE A HIGH LEVEL ENHANCED VALUE PROPOSITION STATEMENT]. The purpose
of my call is to schedule a brief 10 minute introductory conversation sometime early
next week (or later this week).
SP

TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 4

[SCHEDULE CALL] Would Thursday afternoon work by chance at 1pm MDT?

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

n
o
i
t
c
e
j
b
O

Time!

There are only FIVE possible objections you will face

during cold call prospecting. Remember these steps:

(1) Agree with the objection. Its their perception,

belief, or reaction, so dont argue with them.
(2) Use the objection as an opportunity to gather
information. Ask a clarifying or qualifying question.
(3) Get back to the purpose of your call! You are
calling to schedule a meeting so suggest a time.

TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 5

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

Objection

Time!

Objection

#1 We already do this!

Agree: Thats wonderful! I spend most of my day speaking with folks

who are satisfied with their _____________________________.
Clarify / Qualify: Tell me this, [ASK A VALIDATION QUESTION]?
Redirect to Goal: Well, that is interesting. Again, as I mentioned, the
purpose of my call was to schedule an introductory conversation
sometime early next week. Looking at my calendar, I see an opening on
Thursday at 1pm mountain time. How does that look on your calendar?

Objection

#2 I am very busy. I dont have time for this!

Agree: I understand you are a busy professional. Thats exactly why I

am proposing a quick 10 minute conversation at a time when I am not
interrupting you.
Clarify / Qualify: Just to make sure I am not barking up the wrong tree,
I wanted to confirm that my records are correct when you indicate [ASK A
QUALIFYING QUESTION]? Is that accurate?
Redirect to Goal: Perfect. Looking at my calendar, I see an opening on
Thursday at 1pm mountain time. How does that look on your calendar?
TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 6

Objection Time!

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

Objection #3 Im not interested! This doesnt sound like

something we would be interested in.
Agree: Fair enough. In fact, I imagine if ________________________ was
front and center on your radar. Youd be calling me rather than the other
way around.
Clarify / Qualify: Let me ask you this. [ASK A QUALIFYING QUESTION]?
Redirect to Goal: Perfect. Looking at my calendar, I see an opening on
Thursday at 1pm mountain time. How does that look on your calendar?

Objection

#4 This sounds interesting. Lets talk now!

Agree: I very much appreciate the offer Bob. However, given you
are willing to give me a little of your time, I am hesitant to do you the
disrespect of presenting myself without having done the appropriate
research ahead of time. With your permission Id like to have a few days
to properly prepare. Is that fair?
Clarify / Qualify: Just to make sure I am not barking up the wrong tree,
[ASK A QUALIFYING QUESTION]?

Redirect to Goal: Perfect. Looking at my calendar, I see an opening on

Thursday at 1pm mountain time. How does that look on your calendar?

TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 7

Objection

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485

Time!

Objection

#5 Send me information.

Agree: Absolutely. Id be happy to send you some information, and we

have some great materials as well.
Clarify / Qualify: So that I have a better understanding of your current
situation, [ASK A QUALIFYING QUESTION]?
Redirect to Goal: Looking at my calendar, I see an opening on Thursday at
1pm mountain time. Does that look good on your calendar?
Alternate Ending: Note: If the prospect objects and wants you to send
information first before agreeing to meet, youll need to offer them an out.
I understand what you are asking and I am happy to do just that.
However, in the interest of saving both of us time can I ask if you are just
saying that to get me off the phone?
If they say yes then respond:
No problem, and thank you for your candor. With your permission, Ill try
to catch you in a few days or weeks. Can I ask you quickly before I let you
go, [ASK A QUALIFYING QUESTION]?
If they say No (some genuinely will review information), then respect their
position and let them know a specific date and time when you will be
calling them back. Create this as a calendar event, and dont drop the ball!
TownsendWardlaw.com // Page 8

Email me:
Phone: 720.443.3485