The Art of Cold Calling

Cold calling is one of the most effective tools job hunters have at their disposal. But it’s effective only if it’s done correctly and if you have plan how to do that.

During the trainings, that I am doing for my colleagues. I always try to mention one of the most important things. You need to overcome your fear from cold calling! It’s not a personal it’s just a business and you can take these calls like a game. Yes you will hear lots of “Sorry, but I am not interested”, but still you can change this within few seconds on “OK, so I am listening” It's easier than you think! 

In fact, you are about to call someone to discuss something that could really make a difference to their career!

Whether you’re a junior recruiter or a senior recruiter, you absolutely should add cold calls to your portfolio of job search activities. And not only LinkedIn! :)

If you are recruiter and you are reading this article, you probably receive a cold call at some point in your career life to. Some of them were really bad, but from some of them you can learn a lot!

I am not going to tell you all tricks and what you need to tell the candidates, but I hope you like this article.

Right steps for a cold calls

Be prepared

Get enough information about the target you are calling, the more credible you will be. Information is very easy to find (LinkedIn, Twitter, Google…).

There is no excuse, if you are not prepared!

Prepare the script

If you are newbie or hard-core head hunter always have your script ready. It’s really an excellent way to control the quality of your calls and everybody needs the guidelines. Be sure that your message to the client and candidate has parameters and you are not just making everything up. Without script you can forget to ask or discuss important issue with candidate.

Some recruiters are not prepared and you can hear these stories:

1) No script, no name, not ready at all

Rec: I am calling, because I would like to speak with one of your SW Architect.

Me: Which one?

Rec: Well, it doesn’t matter.

Me: It always matters.

2) Don’t say you’re returning their call
Rec: Hello, I am calling to Mr. X
Me: Yes, this is not his line
Rec: Well I am returning his call on this number, he called me.
Me: Ok, so next time we can try something else, ok?

3) I am too sure, that I am so good, so I don’t need no story and I am using my real name
Rec: Hey, my name is XY and I would like to speak with Mr. X
Me: Typing the name into LinkedIn.
Me: And what do you need? Mr. XY from this agency/company
Rec: … silence….

4) Don’t pretend to be fluent in a language you don’t speak

Rec: Hey, my name is XY and I would like to speak with Mr. X (in not fluent English, intermediate level)
Me: (In fluent English) Hey so who give you the idea, that when you are going to speak in English your call will be transferred?
Rec: … silence…. (But I am pretty sure, that he was trying to type something into Google Translator)

Note: I don't who is telling the recruiters to speak in English, so they can easily go through receptions without any question from her. Please stop it, it’s a lie!

5) Don’t even say it’s personal or you are relative, lost buddy etc.!

A) Family
Rec: Hey, I am trying to reach my brother, he is not picking my phone, can you transfer my call
Me: Absolutely and do you know his nickname?
Rec: … silence….  (Yes he wasn’t his brother and definitely he hasn’t any nickname at all)

B) Lost friend

Rec: Hey, I am trying to reach my friend from college and he is working for your company, can you give me his number?
Me: Yeh, not going to happened buddy.
Rec: OK, what about his email?
Me: Really?

Be positive

In recruitment the attitude is everything! Have confidence in your ability to provide value, because you're doing the candidate a favour by giving him or her opportunity to meet with you or start working with you.

Appeal to their ego

Almost everyone likes to think that they are well recognised, amazing and everybody knows what they are doing. Some people think that they are changing their filed, so you can just point it out. They will love flattering. And a little flattery, when done well, is part of the success.

One of the trick could be “You have been recommended to me as someone who is the leader in this field…” or “I spoke with 10 people and you have been recommended to me as the best person for the opportunity I have open…”

Voicemail

Some recruiters are afraid and they are trying to avoid leaving voicemail. They think that the candidates are not going to call you back so they are going to waste a time. But I love the voice mail. I have 90% success with the voicemail. Maybe my message is too catchy or I just have luck. Voicemails should be left on every call, but don’t call one person 3x per day and leave 3 messages. And always keep the message generic. Don’t leave any information that could cause any problem for the candidate or jeopardize future communication

Get the personal information during first call

During first call ALWAYS get a personal email and cell phone number. If the candidate is ok to give you only work number, just mentioned that you don’t want risk jeopardizing his position so personal number is more secure and he can always mentioned to his colleague that his wife is calling. With his personal number, you will get more open space to discuss the opportunity outside the work.

Learn from the call
Nobody is perfect, so we still need to learn new things and also we need to learn from our mistakes. Try to repeat in your head what went wrong and what you can do differently. And next time try different approach. Brain is powerful tool to use it!

One of the biggest mistakes!

Having a weak opening statement.

You have like 10 or 20 seconds to attract the candidate. If you are not able to be ready to sell the right opportunity, you are going to lose. The sole purpose of your opening statement is to grab the candidate’s attention. If the candidate is really good, he can get like 2-3 calls per week. So you have limited time to show the candidate, that you have to offer something that is irresistible and he/she is not going to cancel this call.


Don’t forget:

Track your personal statistics. 

Numbers don’t lie and it’s great to know exactly how many calls you have to make before you experience success and get the right candidate. As you will find out, the rejection is just the path to success!


Cold Calling is not about one call

Don’t forget that this is not about one call! The first call is just introduction call, so it's not necessary to disclose everything. But you need to know the candidate and built the trust.

“There’s always something to look at if you open your eyes!”

If you have any interesting tip for me, let me know in the comments or over the Twitter,