Turning Up The Heat On A Cold Lead

Sarah Runyan (Copywriter & Content Creator)  

Good morning @here! Let's talk leads today! What are your tips, tricks, and hacks for turning a lead from cold to hot?

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Manuel Bahamonde (Sales Development Representative)

For me is perseverance; without being too invasive. The key is always to be present, especially if you have new products to offer. One never knows when they will require what you offer, so checking how they are from time to time is key.

Andres Clamens  (Sales Development Representative)

I agree! And not only is it being persistent, but it's also adding in value like sending resources, one-sheets, videos that explain and give a better view of the services you are offering.

Sarah Runyan

One thing I always practiced when I did sales (which was years ago, and I got out of sales because it was not my strong suit..lol) was to keep reaching out until you get a "no." Not responding isn't a no, so yes, being persistent is very important!

Sinai Oleta  (Sales Development Representative)

What has worked for me is to give the person 1-month rest and then go back to commenting on their post, talking to them, and learning about their hobbies. I stay that way for like a week, and then I ask them how is X department of their company doing, or if they were expanding talk to them about it. Usually, that way, I have managed to get them to meet the client.

Also, even when they have been unresponsive, I leave many resources and send a happy face. They remember this client exists when they are actually looking for what they are offering and book a meeting.

Sarah Runyan

Online is definitely more difficult to turn a lead from cold to hot. Back in the day of "beating the streets" with cold calls, you used to bring donuts to the receptionist or drop off goodies to an office, and eventually, that would lead to a meeting! Lol, What is everyone's online version of leaving treats for prospects?

Manuel Bahamonde

Offering demos or resources they can actually use is my go-to! Everyone loves free stuff, haha. Well, they only need to perceive them as "free" because, for us, that's slowly gaining their trust and probably paving us the way to a meeting. It's a win-win.

Nico De Bruyn  (CEO, Co-Founder)

lets goooo slack it

The best way to turn cold leads into booked calls is personalized content.

For instance, I just shared this with another agency that was looking to start lead generation!

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6815060583600279552/

linkedin.com

Nico De Bruyn on LinkedIn: Boundless lead generation outbound process

Made a few updates to our process that I wanted to share! https://lnkd.in/gx7HZhR #marketing #share #digitalmarketing #contentmarketing... (537 kB)

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6815060583600279552/

When they saw it, they were like, "let’s meet and see how this could maybe work for us."

It really boils down to trust!

and education is a GREAT way to build credibility and trust

Sarah Runyan

The word of the day today is definitely TRUST! 😊

Sarah Runyan

What is everyone's favorite cold to hot lead story?

Manuel Bahamonde

In one of the accounts, there was this guy who, from the beginning, said he was not interested. His answers were always very short, but he never answered something rude, so we kept talking to him and sharing with him the blog posts the client made. One day he answered one of the messages, telling us that he noticed that the client was a veteran, and he had a need that usually they would solve internally using their close connections, but that he prefers working with veterans because he was a veteran as him. That's how longer conversations started, and finally, a deal was closed. The end, haha

Manuel Bahamonde

Again, perseverance is key, as well as custom conversations and content, because we had to talk to this guy for almost three months before he wanted to know more about the client. Note that we told him that the client was a veteran. He just didn't notice at first.

Sarah Runyan

Perseverance at its finest!!

Also, there isn't a detail that's too small to share. You never know what might take someone from a maybe to a yes.

Manuel Bahamonde

Sarah Runyan

What do you not like about what you see other people doing? If someone has reached out to you, is there something they did that immediately made you say no?

Andres Clamens

Super long text is one of the worst things you can do on LinkedIn.

Sarah Runyan

@Andres Clamens, why? I haven’t done a lot of sales or prospecting through LinkedIn (that's why I'm a content creator and copywriter, lol). Is it because people don't want to read a lot of text, or is it just better to be short, sweet, and to the point?

Sinai Oleta

I personally don't read long text; it's annoying. I consider it a waste of time. 😂 You can be offering something great, but if it takes you too long to explain, I'm not interested.

I prefer people who have a more relaxed approach and don't give me ALL the information at once. Also, the ones that are "to the ground" are great.

Andres Clamens

Yes, that's basically it. People want to read short messages because it's not time-consuming, but they don't have to always be to the point since some people like to small talk a bit before entering to sales pitch kind of conversation.

Sinai Oleta

My brain is like: move it, what do you want, quick! Hahahhaha

Andres Clamens

Yeah, I also like a direct approach.

Sarah Runyan

Gotcha!

Jane Tampol-Polinar  (Sales Development Representative)

This is something I would love to learn on. Cause I'm opposite Sinai, I love detailed messages as long as it makes sense and not redundant.

Sinai Oleta

Hahahahah

Sarah Runyan

So @Jane Tampol-Polinar, how do you handle the more detailed message approach? Do you go straight to the point or deliver the point at the end?

Andres Clamens

That's why it is important to read the room. Everyone has a preference in the approach they want to take.

Jane Tampol-Polinar

Aren't small talks and a direct approach total opposites?

Jose Fuentes  (Team Support)

I'm late to the party, I know. But let me share some input.

Andres Clamens

Yes, but that is why it's important to know who we are reaching out to

Sarah Runyan

Better late than never! 😊

Sinai Oleta

Kind of. But sometimes, the small talk cuts off a lot of back and forth in a conversation and closes the deal faster than without it. @Jane Tampol-Polinar

Jose Fuentes

I live by the words you can never be too friendly with someone. Like @Manuel Bahamonde said, it is all about not being invasive.

Jane Tampol-Polinar

I agree with Andres. You need to evaluate the lead, what you think they prefer. Some leads like small talk, but I personally think most CEOs haven't got time for just small talk. They need to get something of value, and for them, every second counts.

I do pleasantries + concise value proposition.

Jose Fuentes

One of my "techniques" it's mimicking. I usually mirror the lead's mood and vibe when responding to messages. It adds a new level of personal approach to the matter, I believe.

And in my experience, I feel short and sweet lands the deal. Like @Sinai Oleta said, it is better to go straight to the point and not beat around the bush.

Too much text might seem a little too daunting or uninviting for some people. Ever got that one dude that just talks none stop without reading the room? That's what it feels like.

Jane Tampol-Polinar

Again, isn't small talks the personification of beating around the bush?

Also, question... how do you transition from small talks to sales pitch?

Jose Fuentes

It’s usually a compromise people tend to bear with if there's affinity behind it.

Sinai Oleta

I lead the small talk for them to basically tell me what they want in specifics of service,  what they are looking for or the problem they are facing; I tell them I can do that or help with it and end up meeting. It is like talking with a friend, and you then discover the solution was there.

That's what I usually do

Jose Fuentes

Great question, @Jane Tampol-Polinar. I usually just do my "magic" ✨ I use a joke or two and lead the conversation into a sales pitch bit by bit.

Using the Client's personal anecdotes is a great way to slowly creep up to people with a sudden sales pitch.

It doesn't work if the prospect can't relate to it though.

Sarah Runyan

It's like a sneak attack! lol

Andres Clamens

I usually use small talk to get the prospect to hand over the information I need to convince him to use the service we are offering.

Justine Anderson (Content Manager)

I am jumping in here! I don’t have much experience selling over LinkedIn, but if I were being sold to, I think I’d like the small talk approach. I also love when we send fun things like memes or personalized videos in the messages cuz it’s a great way to show off some personality! Maybe that’s just the content creator bias I have, though 😉

Jane Tampol-Polinar

@Jose Fuentes, Can you sample some of the jokes here?

Jose Fuentes

Hmm... that depends. Those are usually follow-up jokes to the one running in Mark's campaign. But let me show you a few.

Andres Clamens

Well, sometimes the fun things like memes and personalized videos do help flip the leads from cold to warm.

Sarah Runyan

I'm here for some dad jokes! Lol, I think telling jokes (depending on your audience) is a great way to break the ice!

Jose Fuentes

A silly combination of nerdy and dad jokes. Too bad it didn't land here :(

Sarah Runyan

That's hilarious!!

Jose Fuentes

Here's another good example

I couldn't help it with that one.

It was too big of a temptation.

Justine Anderson

hahaha, yess love the dad jokes!

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Jose Fuentes

Here we got replied with a classic. Gotta love them

I hope to someday be on the level of Spider-man... in regard to his quips and jokes, of course. 😂

Sorry, geeky remark

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Jane Tampol-Polinar

I'm sorry, but I need some schooling in the jokes area. 😂 I can't even say it's the generation gap. Gaah, I feel so old! Haha, I'm just not someone who finds most jokes funny. But that comeback from Bob is funny. haha 😂

Jose Fuentes

That's why it is a classic @Jane Tampol-Polinar. It never gets old.

Sarah Runyan

It was the ultimate joke clap back!! lol

So, what are some mistakes that you made when you were first starting out in lead gen?

Jose Fuentes

Gotta hand it to him.

Hmm... that would be mixing up names. I'm so bad at that. I have to keep an eye out nowadays so I don't screw up again.

Sarah Runyan

I know I'd send a message to the wrong person... Again, that's why I'm on the creative side. Lol, I'll send a text to the wrong person if I'm texting multiple people at the same time. I know I'd mess this up too! 😂

Jose Fuentes

Lol. I get you totally.

I have years of friendship with my close friends, and I still sometimes mix their names up.

They hate it when I do that.

Andres Clamens

Definitely writing the wrong name is one of them.

Sarah Runyan

What advice would you give to someone just starting out in this field?

Jose Fuentes

Hmm... Never give up. Trust your instincts. Read the mood.

Oh! Also, treat them as real people, not a name on a whiteboard.

Andres Clamens

Try not to be too robotic when messaging.

Andres Clamens

Another piece of advice would be to double-check every message to see if there are grammar mistakes or if the person's name is misspelled.

Larissa  (COO, Co-Founder)

^ YES! Using a tool like Grammarly helps immensely.