What Is Warm Calling & How To Do It Right

Nov 18, 2020

Warm calling is an effective prospecting activity when done correctly; so, what is warm calling, and how can you do it effectively?

In this article, you’ll learn what is warm calling, as well as how to make your cold calls into warm calls.

What Is Warm Calling?

So, what is warm calling exactly?

Put simply; warm calling is a call to a prospective client when they already know you exist, and you’ve already made contact with them in some way.

Examples may include reaching out to someone by phone that you’ve met at an industry event or calling someone who you’ve sent a previous letter or email to.

Do Warm Call Sales Scripts Work?

When people are generally looking to learn how to warm call, they will often come across content that teaches you that you should be using a sales script.

Just because the advice is plenty – doesn’t make it correct!

When you’re going to warm call and reach out to people you’ve met, we recommend using a structure instead.

As per our article in Entrepreneur; many Sales Professionals and Business Owners rely too heavy on using the exact wording in a sales script, which ends up hurting your sales.

The reason being is that each of your potential clients are different – they have different roles, have different personalities, and use different language when communicating.

If you approach each potential client like they’re all the same, you’ll risk breaking rapport and missing out on potential interest.

Instead, use a structure which will guide you with having consistency, however still giving you flexibility to change your approach depending on who you’re speaking with.

Warm calling just like cold calling, should be done with a framework – not with a robotic script that’ll break rapport.

Further reading: Are Sales Scripts Hurting Your Sales?

Warm Calling – A Step By Step Guide

Now that we’ve covered what is warm calling is and why you should avoid using exact sales scripts, the next step in regard to warm calling is your structure.

Below is a step by step guide to help you structure your sales efforts to get to a warm call.

Warm Calling Tip #1 – Research

The first step towards warm calling, is to ensure you do your research up front so that you’re reaching people who would benefit from your product or service.

Many Sales Professionals and Business Owners get this part wrong; which results in making calls to people who don’t care for your call, your offer or solution, and a lot of time wasting.

That’s why we recommend finding out who your potential clients are first, and who within that business would be the key decision maker to speak with to get the next desired action.

To get to warm calls in the first place, you’ll need to reach out to people who ‘make sense’ for your business; and meeting with you needs to make sense for them too.

To learn more about how to identify your key decision makers, read the related article below for more information.

Related article: Sales Targeting Strategy – Your Complete Guide

Warm Call Tip #2 – Warm Them Up!

The second step we recommend in setting up dialogue towards warm calling, is quite different from a lot of what you’ll read out there.

Although we recommend cold calling because it does work; we also highly recommend warm calls because it makes outreach so much easier.

The reason why cold calling can be quite difficult, is because as per the definition of cold calling – your potential client has no idea who you are.

The first step is trying to persuade someone to take some kind of action, is to build trust.

If they don’t know you, it can be hard to build trust right off the bat.

What we teach at The 5% Institute, is to find your potential clients on LinkedIn or another directory which’ll detail your decision makers, and then send them an email introducing yourself and your purpose for reaching out.

Those who reply, are perfect for calling and establishing the next step in your sales process.

If they don’t reply – that’s OK too. Simply give them a call and let them know that you’re following up on your email.

You can leave a voicemail, and then again, a few days after. However, we don’t recommend pestering them if you’ve done it three times.

The chances are even if they didn’t reply, they’ll know who you are, and you would have already built some kind of familiarity with them.

This allows you to warm them up prior to making your call.

To learn how to do this; including the email system and structure we use, check out the link below.

Further reading: Find An Endless Supply Of Leads (Online Program)

Warm Calling Tip #3 – Don’t Pitch Straight Away

Premature Presentation can harm your sales; which is why it’s important when you’re learning warm calling that you don’t go into your call trying to present too early.

When you introduce yourself, start by saying “This is <insert your name> from <insert your company>”.

Then you need to pause.

The pause is crucial. Many Sales Professionals and Business Owners here start rambling on and try to pitch their products or services here.

Now only does this break rapport; but you’re not yet able to pitch because you haven’t established whether they’re qualified for your product or service.

The pause will help your warm call, because it’ll allow them to ask how they can help you, as well as where they remember you from; in which you can then start your next set of questions.

Related article: Sales Probing Questions – 20 x To Use Daily

Tip #4 – Establish Rapport

Rapport is crucial to learn when you’re mastering how to cold call. As per Business Dictionary’s definition, rapport is the art of building commonality between people.

People buy from people they like and trust.

If you try selling them on a solution too early, you’ll blow the sale because you’ll position yourself as a commodity, rather than a trusted advisor.

When you’re establishing rapport, focus on the following list below:

Display a sense of relaxation and comfort
Build commonality
Ask open ended questions
Establish empathy
Match and mirror language and tonality

To learn each of these steps in detail, read the article below to learn how.

Further reading: A Guide To Building Sales Relationships / Building Rapport

Warm Calling Tip #5 – Explain Your Reason For The Call

The next step when getting to warm calling, is to position yourself in a way that establishes who you are, as well as why you’re making the warm call.

Once you’ve introduced yourself, learnt who you’re speaking with and built some rapport, now you need to give them a reason as to why you’re making the call.

Simply say something similar to, “The reason for my call, is because I work with <insert job title> to help them get <insert benefit>. Does that sound like you?”

You don’t have to use that line verbatim; as mentioned, you should be more natural when you speak, and not follow scripts to the exact letter. Instead, mix it up depending on whom you’re speaking with.

The important step here is to let them know what you do, and why you’re making the call.

By giving them a reason, you’re removing uncertainty. Uncertainty creates nervousness in people, which may make them feel defensiveness, so you want to get rid of this right away.

As long as you do those two things – you’re good to continue.

Tip #6 – Sell The Next Step

To master warm calling, it’s important to understand that you shouldn’t be necessarily selling your product or service up front.

For people to make a buying decision – they have to trust you and desire the outcome you offer.

Not to mention – you need to ensure they’re qualified.

Go into your sales discovery call efforts with a next step intention; this can be getting more information, learning who decision makers are, or setting a phone appointment or in person meeting.

This is important to ensure you spend your time wisely, and to make your warm calls an investment of your time.

Bonus Tip – Handling The Send Me Some Information Objection

Whether cold calling or warm calling; you’re most probably going to come across ‘Send Me Some Information’ objections.

Many Sales Professionals and Business Owners making warm calls or cold calls will make the mistake of saying no problem – sending them information and then getting no response afterwards.

Never just send information for information sake.

Not only will you get no response – but it’ll position you in a way that you’re purely after a quick sale, rather than building a long lasting and fruitful relationship.

Below is an article which details how to overcome this objection in detail; click the link below to learn how.

Further reading: How To Respond To The Send Me Some Information Objection