You’ve already pestered all the people you know and you still don’t have enough work. It is time to dig deep and start prospecting for a clients with people you don’t have a relationship with.
A “cold sales lead” is someone who is not be familiar with you or your business, but you believe that they could significantly benefit from what you have to offer. Successfully landing these opportunities requires a strategic approach and unfortunately there is no magic script that will create a crazy amount of opportunities for your business.
Cold sales requires a lot of effort for a small return, but if that is all you have left to do, then you gotta do it. Here is the best approach:
Step 1: Do Your Homework
Before reaching out, invest time in understanding the potential client’s business. Identify their key products or services, understand their history, and assume their target market. Familiarize yourself with their competition. Don’t just spam a bunch of people you don’t know.
Step 2: Connect on Social Media
Make sure you are following the potential client on social media. Don’t reach out to someone you haven’t taken time to “at least” follow on social media. (People reach out to me all the time to try to sell me their services. If they haven’t followed me on social media it is a non-starter.)
Step 3: Warm Up the Potential Clients
Make yourself known to the potential client by actively engaging with their content on social media. Comment on their posts, share their content, just a few little drips of interaction can warm up the potential client in advance of you reaching out more formally.
Step 4: Offer Something of Value
Don’t start your cold outreach with an ASK first. Lead with something of value to the potential client. This could be a sincere compliment, support for their content, an article related to their business, an audit of their brand or website, get creative and figure out something valuable you can provide the cold potential client. Offering value upfront sets a positive tone and demonstrates your commitment to their success.
After you’ve prepared for your cold sales efforts using the steps above, you are ready to draft your initial communication.
Here’s a formula for your cold messages:
Cold Sales Script Formula
Part 1: Establish Familiarity
Start by reminding them who you are, or if necessary, introducing yourself:
- “I’ve been following your content and commented on a few of your recent posts.”
- “I’ve been loving some of your content.”
- “I just bought your product X and really love it.”
- “I’ve been following your brand…love it so much.”
- “I saw your recent photos of your business…so cool.”
Part 2: Deliver Value
Give them the value you’ve prepared:
- “I recently read an article about one of your competitors that you may find interesting…”
- “I did a little analysis of your social media and prepared some insights for you. Here is a Loom video…”
- “I just read an article about X in your industry and thought of you…”
Part 3: Problem Solution Statement
Then, share your ‘problem/solution’ statement:
- “My name is X, and my agency helps businesses like yours solve problem Y.”
Part 4: Call to Action
Finally, present a call-to-action:
- “I’d welcome the opportunity to discuss how we could collaborate. We would be honored to help your business overcome its challenges and achieve greater success.”
Real Life “Cold Sales Message” Example:
Dear ________,
[PART 1: ESTABLISH FAMILIARITY] Thanks for subscribing to my newsletter. I really look forward to sending out my message to you each week and I don’t take it for granted that you let me drop into your inbox.
[PART 2: DELIVER VALUE] In fact, that is the whole point of this very article. I want to help you have more success with your cold sales efforts. I hope it helps you!
[PART 3: PROBLEM SOLUTION STATEMENT] As you likely know, my mission is to help creative entrepreneurs (like you) succeed in their businesses. I’m giving away the entire blueprint for how I built my agency to help you build yours.
[PART 4: CALL TO ACTION] If you haven’t taken my freelance course, I know it will be packed with value. You can check it out here. And I’m also posting a ton of free content on YouTube and Instagram. If you’re not following me in those places, go subscribe now. I have a whole new wave of content coming with a little bit different approach.
Thank you!
Mike
(Obviously, don’t include the “PARTS” in your actual message. I just put them here to help you see the flow.)
Effective cold sales is volume play, high volume and low return. But theses strategies can help you do it more successfully. It’s all about being prepared, genuine and proactive. Do your homework on the potential client, engage with them on social media, give them something they’ll find valuable and clearly communicate how your services can make their business better.
Remember, it’s not just about making a sale. It’s about sparking a connection that could turn into a rewarding relationship down the line. Keep it real, show that you care and you’ll stand a much better chance of success!
