Creating a Cold Call Checklist for Sales Calls

Tens of thousands of cold calls taught me this… Most reps are doing it completely wrong. They make 2-3 calls between Slack messages. Check email. Do some research. Make a few more calls. Wonder why their calendar stays empty. Meanwhile, top performers follow specific systems that consistently fill their pipelines. After years of testing what works (and what doesn't), here are the fundamentals that separate successful cold callers from everyone else: 1️⃣Time blocking beats scattered calling every time. Shut down Slack, close email, put your phone on do not disturb. One hour of focused calling outperforms eight hours of distracted attempts. 2️⃣Setup determines success. Clean desk the night before. Browser tabs closed except your CRM. Contact list ready to go. Remove every possible friction point so you can start calling immediately. 3️⃣Energy management isn't optional. Proper sleep and clean eating directly impact call performance. Hard to believe until you try calling after a night of poor sleep versus eight hours of quality rest. 4️⃣Warm up like an athlete. Run through your first 5-10 calls out loud before dialing. Practice handling objections. Get your brain and voice ready before real prospects answer. 5️⃣Frameworks beat winging it. You don't need to sound robotic, but you need structure. Permission, problem, cost of inaction. Simple formula that works consistently. 6️⃣Write it down and make it visible. Brain fog hits everyone mid-call. Having your framework printed in large font saves you from fumbling when prospects ask unexpected questions. 7️⃣Prepare for predictable objections. Same 4-8 objections come up 95% of the time. Uncover, overcome, ask. Have responses ready instead of stammering through them. 8️⃣Record everything and listen back. Elite athletes watch game film. Sales reps should listen to call recordings. Your tonality, word choice, and objection handling become obvious when you hear yourself. 9️⃣Call when others don't. Friday afternoons worked best for me. Fewer competing calls, backup receptionists, tired decision makers with weekend plans. Blue ocean strategy applied to cold calling. 🔟Consistency trumps intensity. One focused hour daily beats sporadic marathon sessions. Pipeline problems show up weeks later when prospecting stops today. The difference between struggling reps and quota crushers isn't talent. It's system execution. Most reps treat cold calling like a necessary evil. Top performers treat it like a craft worth mastering. — Sales reps! Check out more secrets to master cold calls: https://lnkd.in/g7MBsEcR Sales Leaders! Want to install winning systems into your teams? Go here: https://lnkd.in/ghh8VCaf

How to build a bad*ss outbound playbook (in 5 steps) - To get your AEs self-sourcing more pipe - To get SDRs landing higher-quality meetings - To get your team off the sales roller coaster Already have a playbook? Use this checklist to beef it up. ✅ 1) Assemble the team Enablement should facilitate this process, but they shouldn't create the playbook in a silo. - Two best self-sourcing AEs. - Two best outbound SDRs - Best marketing copywriter - Product specialist (if applicable) - Sales leaders(s) actively working deals The team shouldn't be more than 10 in total. Bonus: Find a consultant who's worked in the role of your persona (e.g. an ex-CISO if you sell to CISOs). ✅ 2) Pick the medium I've seen playbooks built into enablement tools like Seismic. On Google Docs/Sheets. On PowerPoints. And everything in-between. What's most important: the playbook is built in a medium that's easily transferrable into a rep's existing workflow. The more clicks away the playbook is, the less likely it gets used. Example: Playbook is in Notion, and the talk tracks are copied into the dialer. ✅ 3) Gather examples of what good looks like Reverse-engineer examples of success. Gather cold emails that landed meetings. Recordings of cold calls that landed meetings. etc. And then go a step deeper. Provide a quick background and analysis. Example: Rep sent a cold email that landed a meeting with a CISO. Get the background on the account. Why the rep chose that account. Research they leveraged. etc. ✅ 4) Build these core components An outbound playbook should contain the following + answer these questions: - ICP & targeting strategy: How do I prioritize and tier my accounts to find low-hanging fruit? - Messaging: What do each of my core personas care about? - Triggers/signals: What 3-5 triggers align most with our personas? - Talk tracks: How do I approach the cold call conversation? - Email copy: How do I approach the email? (the provided email copy should get reps 80% of the way there) - Sequencing recommendations: What does my contact strategy look like? - Objection handling: What objections am I most likely to get? How do I handle them? - Time management: How should I think about structuring my week for optimal success? - Sales math: How should I calculate the required outbound activity to hit my desired sales target? - Plays: What are the most common plays that work? - Tech enablement: How can I best utilize the tools in our tech stack? ✅ 5) Ongoing refinement Last but not least: A playbook is a living, breathing document. Enablement should own the ongoing refinement. Every quarter: - Add more examples of what good looks like - Update messaging as necessary - Fill in gaps where reps are struggling ~~~ These are the core elements we build into outbound playbooks for our clients. What's missing? Comment and let me know. #sales #outbound

You’re in the mall when a kiosk salesperson locks eyes with you and says, “Let me give you a free sample.” How do you respond? If you’re like most people, you say, “I’m good,” and pick up the pace. Why? Because you know the sample isn’t really free. Take it, and suddenly you’re trapped in a hard sell for sea scrub you don’t need. This is what happens when salespeople pitch on a cold call. When sellers try to lure you in, you can smell the commission breath. The 2mm Shift The first step is to change your intent. When your intent is to book a meeting or close a deal, you behave in ways that feel pushy. That’s because intent drives behavior. Instead, let go of assumptions. Detach from the outcome. How? Think like a scientist testing a hypothesis. It’s not a problem unless the prospect says it is. Your solution has no value without a problem, so pitching before understanding is madness. Step 1: Start With a Mini Invitation Like this: “Hi Josh, my name is Sue Green with ACME. We’ve never spoken. I’m calling about your Audi S4 and was hoping to speak with you. Do you have a brief moment?” Why? Because autonomy is a basic human need. People want to feel in control. If they don’t want to talk, that’s okay. Gracefully end the call. Call someone else. There are so many people that will accept your invitation. Step 2: Ask How They’re Currently Getting the Job Done “Do you wash your car or do you get it cleaned?” “I wash my own car.” Step 3: Illuminate a Potential Problem “Not sure if you’re running into this, but sometimes dirt and grit settle at the bottom of the bucket, get trapped in the sponge, and scratch your car. How are you making sure that doesn’t happen when you wash your car?” Then shut up and listen. I call this poking the bear. Your prospect starts thinking: “Hmm. That’s a good question. I guess I…“ Step 4 Presuppose They’ve Looked Into a Solution “You’ve probably looked into using a grit guard.” Then shut up again. If they have? “Sounds like it didn’t work.” If you’re wrong, they’ll correct you. People like to correct. But they don’t like being corrected. If they haven’t? Now you can pitch: “You insert the grit guard at the bottom of your bucket, and dirt settles to the bottom, off your sponge so you don’t scratch your car.” No commission breath. No begging. No convincing. No kiosk-level pressure. Just a conversation that feels natural. Ditch the pitch. Poke the bear. Buyers have the answers. Sellers have the questions.