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1. Have a call script to avoid objections.

This is a really important idea when it comes to successfully dealing with cold calling objections. Even though having a call script isn’t exactly a way of dealing with objections, per se, it’s a way of avoiding objections in the first place—which is even better.

A weak call script will get you a lot more objections than an effective one. This means that the key is developing a strong call script that’s clear, concise, tight, and devoid of meandering ums and ahs. You should always know exactly what you’re going to say next.

2. Know what’s coming, when.

Because a prospecting call is a pretty short engagement with a prospect (only a couple of minutes in most cases), it’s typical for objections to come up early on in the conversation. In fact, when you really take the time to think about it, most cold calls are structured the same way so there’s a lot of predictability about what’s going to happen, when.

One obvious example is when the prospect answers the phone, hears the salesperson’s opening line, and then says something such as, “This isn’t a good time. I can’t talk right now. Can you please try back later?” That's a very common scenario, so you should be prepared for it.

By knowing what objections are likely to come, and when, you’re setting yourself up to stay ahead of cold calling objections, instead of getting blindsided by them and derailing the conversation.

3. Script out contingencies.

Now that you’ve thought about what key objections are likely to come your way during a cold call, it's time to actually script out the biggest contingencies. A contingency is simply your rebuttal to the most common cold calling objections.

The first step of any contingency is to acknowledge what the prospect just said. Let's take an example that might happen at the beginning of the call. You start the call and the prospect says, "You know what? This just isn't a good time. Could you try me later?" The first thing that your scripted contingency should have you do is to softly acknowledge what the prospect just said: “That’s totally fair. Sounds like this just isn't a good time.” By responding this way, with soft acknowledgment rather than salesy pushback, you’re immediately going to lower their guard.

With prospecting calls, every 30 seconds more that you hit with a prospect, the more likely you are to be successful. So you might say something like, "You know what George? It makes total sense that this isn't a good time. Would it be okay if I just took 30 seconds to tell you why I called? If after that it doesn't make sense, we can just hang up. Sound fair?"

That's a pretty gutsy line—but you're going to find that when you use contingencies like that, prospects are extremely likely to say, "All right. Fine. 30 seconds, you've got 30 seconds. Go." Now you've bought yourself 30 seconds more, and increased your chances of making it to a next step.

4. Make it a game.

When I started my first business, which was a marketing business selling to small business owners, I was making a lot of dials. I found that the best approach to cold calling was to make it a game. I never took what prospects said personally. I always thought of cold calling as a football game, a full-contact sport, and we were just sparring.

By taking the personal part out of cold calls, they actually became a lot more fun.

If a prospect said something tough or cranky or difficult or angry, I was cool as a cucumber...because to me, it was just a game. I would just calmly respond to whatever they said and never get phased by it.

5. Remember, you have nothing to lose.

When it comes to prospecting calls, if you've got a live one, it can be tempting to get really excited and start to think, “Oh man, this is going to be a sale!” And then you probably start worrying because you don’t want to screw it all up. But you have to remember that until you actually have a check in hand, you have nothing to lose. Take risks. (Remember, it's just a game.) Prospects can’t hurt you, or take away your job, or cause you any real pain or injury.

So always remember, you’ve got nothing to lose. This mindset is key to taking the pressure off yourself so you can deal more easily with cold calling objections when they inevitably come your way. Don’t take yourself too seriously, and you’ll find that if you care just a little bit less, it will actually make you so much more effective at fielding tough objections.

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