Debunking the Myth: Is Cold Calling and Outbound Email Really Dead?

The debate over the effectiveness of cold calling and outbound email in sales has been ongoing for years. Critics argue that these methods are outdated and ineffective, while proponents claim they are still valuable tools for generating leads and closing deals. In this blog post, we'll delve into the statistics to debunk the myth that cold calling and outbound email are "dead." 

The Statistics: Cold Calling is Not Dead

According to this GITNUX article, the average success rate of cold calls is 2%, and with a well-crafted script, you can increase it up to 10%. Here are some key statistics that prove cold calling is far from dead:

• Companies that don't believe in the effectiveness of cold calling experience 42% less growth than companies that do.
• It takes an average of 8 call attempts to reach a prospect, and once you have a qualified lead, 20% of them will convert into a sale.
• 69% of buyers have accepted at least one phone call from a salesperson in the past year.
• More than half (57%) of C-level executives prefer that salespeople contact them by phone.
• 27% of sales reps believe making phone calls to new contacts is an extremely effective prospecting strategy. 

The Power of Outbound Email

While the GITNUX article focuses on cold calling, it also mentions that email marketing is 2x more effective than cold calling. This doesn't mean that cold calling is dead; rather, it suggests that using both methods in tandem can be a powerful strategy. 80% of buyers prefer that salespeople contact them by email. Which is great for us because email allows for easy follow-up and can be automated to some extent, saving time and effort.

At Set 2 Close, we’ve seen the bulk of our success, especially in our early days, result from cold outreach. Over the past 12 months, through cold outreach, we have scaled our company from 1 employee to 13 employees with year-over-year growth. Cold outreach was the launchpad for our sales processes, and we continue to repeat that same strategy for our clients. But we must preface that cold outreach has changed since its prime days in the 80s, 90s, and early 2000s. If you don’t evolve and modernize your cold outreach processes, you will fail. 

The Problem With Cold Calling and Emails

According to Gitnux: 

• 63% of salespeople say cold calling is what they dislike most about their jobs. 
• Less than 1% of cold calls lead to a sale.
• 42% of sales reps feel they do not have the right information before making a sales call. 41% of salespeople claim they get leads that are too difficult to reach, and 37% say marketing gives them poor-quality leads. 

New strategies and technologies in the sales world all eventually result in abuse through poor execution and the sheer bloating of the people who use them. We have all become savvy and learned to sift through and avoid unsolicited calls and emails. If you claim that cold outreach doesn’t work for your business and/or team, we at Set 2 Close would claim it's not the cold outreach but the systems and strategies (or lack thereof) that you have in place. Without the right technologies, you risk being left behind in today's fast-paced marketplace. 

Keep reading below to learn how we adjusted our cold outreach approach to be successful in 2023 and beyond. 

The Evolution of Cold Calling

Every time I hear someone say, "Cold calling is a relic of the past," I'm instantly reminded of that iconic scene from the movie "Pursuit of Happiness." Picture Will Smith, playing Chris Gardner, tirelessly dialing number after number from a bulky phone book, racing against time, trying to make a sale. The sheer determination, the hope in every ring, and the resilience in every rejection - that's the essence of cold calling. But here's the thing: while the spirit remains the same, the methods have evolved.

Gone are the days when sales reps would simply pick up a phone book and start dialing numbers. The approach to cold calling has evolved significantly since the 1980s and 1990s. Today, the Sales Development Rep (SDR) approach is more holistic, encompassing not just cold calling but also LinkedIn prospecting, texting, and outbound email. These systems are interconnected, ensuring a seamless flow of communication.

Key Pillars for a Successful Cold Calling Program:

• CRM Integration: A robust CRM is the backbone of any successful cold-calling program. It's essential to integrate technologies that streamline the process.
• Auto Dialers and Predictive Dialing: Auto dialers allow reps to plug in a list, press play, and quickly move through calls, leaving voicemails when necessary. Predictive dialing, on the other hand, dials multiple numbers simultaneously, connecting reps to live respondents.
• Follow-up Sequences: After the initial call, sequences (or follow-up actions) are crucial. These sequences should be tailored based on the persona being targeted and the nature of the call (positive, neutral, or negative).
• Targeting: Ensuring that the lists being called are up-to-date and relevant is crucial. Sales leaders must ensure they're targeting the right people with the right intent.
• A holistic strategy that contacts a prospect on multiple platforms over the course of a period of months
  • I.e., calls, emails, LinkedIn messages, etc. 
• Software that automates the sending of a sequence of the above outreach on your behalf and notifies/creates tasks for manual follow-up or action. 
• Highly targeted prospecting and research that allows you to speak directly to your prospects unique buying decisions, pain points, goals, etc. 
• Pre-planned templates make it easy to fill in the above points for a customized and personal email without writing from scratch every single time 
• Long-term automated email nurture campaigns set up for common rejections, job positions, and or next scenarios in your buyer's journey 

This list can go on and on and quickly falls into sales basics that you absolutely need in place before embarking on a cold outreach campaign (Buyer personas, key messaging, lead scoring, key qualifiers, KPIs, etc.) 

Further Keys For Successful Outbound Emails

Ever hit 'send' on an email and immediately felt a pang of doubt? Will it be opened? Will it end up in the dreaded spam folder? Or worse, will it be swiftly deleted, never to be read? These are the standard hesitancies many of us face in the age of digital communication. But what if I told you there's a way to craft emails that not only get opened but also leave a lasting impression? 

Outbound email is far from dead. Here are a few keys we use in-house to send a cold outbound email that’s crafted for the modern day:

• Remember, you're a stranger (not strange, just a stranger) - Knowing this, they will be suspicious of our email. One of the first things they notice when they look at our email is the “from” line. This from line is key to getting an open instead of a delete.
  • A standard from line that works for us typically is something like: First name + Last name, Title
• Master the subject line. - a good email is nothing without a strong subject line. This should create intrigue without being clickbait to the point of being corny. It should be personable and tie back to the email. 
• It should be specific - Your cold emails CANNOT be generic. Gone are the days of blasting out an email to 10,000 contacts, hoping for a bite. In order to convert on email today, you must be specific with whom you're targeting, do 3-5 minutes of research prior to sending the email, and adjust a template to be personalized to them (templates for a cold email are good). (Leave room to customize names, locations, job titles, value propositions, and pain points.) 

Holistic and Systematic Approach

It's not just about the methods of your calls or emails but also about the systems supporting them. 

With the rise of AI and other technological advancements, the sales landscape is changing rapidly. Businesses must be agile, adapting to these changes and ensuring their sales and marketing teams are aligned. It's no longer about working in silos; it's about revenue operations.

In conclusion, neither cold calling nor outbound email are dead. However, their success hinges on the systems supporting them and the strategies employed. In this era of rapid innovation, businesses must be proactive, leveraging the latest technologies and strategies to stay ahead of the curve. For those seeking guidance in this evolving landscape, "Set to Close" offers insights and support, ensuring businesses are well-equipped to navigate the challenges and opportunities of the modern sales era.