5 Cold Calling Tips for the Entrepreneur Calling Door-to-Door

It may not be everyone's favourite way of getting contacts and new customers, but no one can deny the effectiveness of door-to-door cold-calling. This is a marketing technique that many try to avoid, because they are so afraid that they are going to have too many doors slammed in their faces. You know, door-to-door cold-calling doesn't have to be a scary thing at all. In fact, if you are good, it can be a very profitable way of doing business. What you need is the right mindset, and the skills to pitch your product or service and seal the deal. To get you on your way to door-to-door success, here are five great cold-calling tips you can use every time you go out:

Watch Your Body Language: What you say in words is not nearly as important as how you convey those words with your body language. Using the wrong body language can break a deal, even if you have done everything else right. More than half of all communication is through body language, and another 38% is from the tone of voice, so as you can see, it is a very small percentage of words compared to how they are conveyed. Have a great attitude, hold your head high, shoulders back, and for goodness sakes, never cross your arms or have your hands in your pockets.

Introduce Yourself, and Let Them Know Why You're There: Don't expect everyone to just let you in. People want to know who you are, and why you are at their doors. Let them know why you are there, and ask if you can have a few minutes of their time, and let them know exactly what you are going to do, so there are no surprises. Be almost humble in your approach, and if someone refuses, do not try to push your way in.

Open-Ended Questions Really Do Work: You would be surprised at the effectiveness of open-ended questions. Instead of giving a yes or no answer, they must provide a reason behind their answer. Then, you can work with this reasoning to change their minds. This is a great way to get lots of information about how your customers think, and what their real needs are, and then you can set about being the one to fulfill those needs. As you are talking with them, slowly introduce your products or services and let them know how they can help them.

Learn How To Handle Rejection: Not everyone is going to let you in, and even with those who do, it is not guaranteed that you are going to make a sale every time. To keep from being rejected more than accepted, what you need to do is find ways to overcome all types of objections. For loads of help you in this area, you can red Zig Ziglars books on selling. Be empathetic to your customers, and deal with any objections they may have in a positive way. In time, they often come around to your way of thinking, then you can set out to make your sale.

Try To Get Them To Do Something: Once you have presented your pitch, your potential customers are either going to say yes, no, or that they will think about it. Try to get them to say yes or no, because this way, you know exactly where you stand with them. If they want to think about it, get another appointment scheduled with them, again, having them do something. If they absolutely say no, ask if they know of anyone else who may be interested in your product or service. It is not just enough that you are cold-calling, but you also have to keep on generating new leads for your cold-calling.