Ari Galper asked:
Do you struggle with the process of cold calling? For many of us, it’s a grueling experience. That’s because we try to carry on a conversation from a rigid, linear place. We’re trying to follow a strategy or a script.
Thus, when it comes to having a relaxed and enjoyable cold calling conversation, it just doesn’t work very well.
Our “right brain” is very different from step-by-step, logical, linear processes. It’s organic and intuitive. The right brain is all about things like speech and relationships.
So why do we turn off this very skilled part of ourselves when we’re doing exactly that in cold calling — having conversations and engaging in some kind of relationship with a fellow human? Well, we’ve been trained out of it. We’ve lost the normal flow of our intuitive, right brain abilities in cold calling. We’ve swapped it for sales scripts and strategies, opening and closing “lines.”
In some ways, you could say that we’ve become less human in our cold calling. All the intuitive elements have been taken out of the cold calling process. We’re focused on the sale, not on the person. We’re reading a script rather than really talking. We’re making a pitch, not listening.
Doesn’t this sound kind of like a game to you? Make a pitch, counter objections, and offer a closing line — all with the intention of acquiring a sale. This is why most of us associate cold calling with the worst of what selling is all about. It’s the “going to war” concept. You put on your armor and play a mind-and-word game with someone you’ve never met.
On the other hand, what if we engaged the power of our right brain to bring us out of that place into real person-to-person contact? What would happen? Well, the first thing is that you would relax. Your right brain is more interested in the experience than in the goal. You would find yourself less rigid and less tense. Your cold calling speaking voice will have less of that telltale “salesperson” tone. You’ll feel more normal, speak more easily, and let a conversation move at its own pace and focus.
When you do this, others respond to you more naturally because they won’t feel chased. Many people really do genuinely enjoy the opportunity for pleasant connection, whether interested in buying or not.
Here are six keys to adjusting your mindset to tap into the power of your right brain when cold calling:
1. The right brain is interested in process, not outcomes.
Before you make a cold call, make sure your focus isn’t on making the sale. That’s the goal. Putting all of your focus on a goal sabotages your enjoyment of the process itself. Therefore, think to yourself, “My goal is not to make the sale but to create a conversation based on how I can help the other person.”
2. The right brain is intuitive, not calculating or manipulative
When you’re making your cold call, avoid changing whom you are in order to secure the sale. Be your everyday relaxed self — as if you’re calling a friend. There’s no need to be “on stage” or artificially enthusiastic.
The right brain is genuine, normal, relaxed, and decidedly non-artificial.
This is a great way to be when talking with potential clients. People know when you’re being genuine and when you’re not. Thus, they always respond much more positively to someone who’s being “real.”
3. The right brain is flexible rather than linear
Throw out your linear sales script and strategies. Generate a spontaneous conversation based on the problems you can help the other person solve. Allow your cold calling conversations to “breathe.” Allow the topic to wander a bit from time to time.
4. The right brain sees things holistically
View the person you’re calling as another person, not a “prospect.” Let go of the “buyer-seller” mentality. You are not wanting to “get” a sale from somebody. Your focus is on the bigger picture, which includes the wellbeing of your prospect as well as yourself.
5. The right brain is open-ended, not rigid
Don’t worry about driving the cold calling conversation forward. Instead, open your call with a statement that focuses on a problem you can solve and invites a response like, “What do you mean?” or “Tell me more.”
When you start tapping into the power of your right brain while cold calling, you’ll start to have fun. You’ll be amazed at how people respond to you. What’s more, at the end of the day you won’t be burned out. You’ll be energized and truly happy.
This is the power of your right brain.