Outbound leads: who are they, what are their characteristics, and how to sell to them

Working with cold leads is challenging. According to statistics, 92% of sales professionals give up after four “no’s” when communicating with cold leads. But there are many reasons not to stop working with them: reaching a new audience that hasn’t heard of you yet, increasing brand awareness, and much more. Today, we’ll talk about outbound leads and how to work with them to maximize sales. The Ringostat team has successfully applied the tips from this article for years.

Who are outbound leads, and what are their characteristics?

Outbound leads are cold leads that the sales team finds on their own and works on warming them up. Outbound leads differ from inbound leads because they do not show independent interest in the company’s products or services. They also need more nurturing to become customers in the future.

Useful statistics about outbound leads

1. The average conversion rate of an outbound lead is 1.7%. That is, in this percentage of cases, such a lead turns into a customer.
2. Generating outbound leads is usually more expensive than generating inbound leads, and they are also less profitable. 
3. Outbound leads typically have a longer sales cycle, which requires constant communication with the client and “heating” of interest.
4. The quality of outbound leads may vary, and more effort may be required to qualify them.

What to consider when processing outbound leads

Develop a clear script for the conversation and choose the best time

A well-built cold-calling script can increase the average conversion rate from 2% to 10%. Here are some tips for developing it. By the way, similar principles can be used to create emails for a cold database.

1. The shorter, the better. The success rate of cold calls drops by 61% if the call duration exceeds 5 minutes. 
2. Research shows that cold calls from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. are 71% more effective at booking appointments than calls from 11:00 to 12:00. However, conducting your own research is better. If you’re a Ringostat user, assign a specific category to successful calls, such as “Client agreed”. Then, make a report with calls of this category and see what time there are more such calls. 
3. Be bold and talk a little more than listen. After all, you called the customer, so you should take the time to explain the reason for the call. According to Gong research, the optimal talk-to-listen ratio for successful cold calls is 55% to 45%.

Try different types of cold-calling scenarios. The Salesforce platform, with which Ringostat has a ready-made integration, offers several options.

A direct scenario, which is divided into:

• discovery;
• proposal and social proof;
• concluding question.

Permission-based opening: in this case, the salesperson should ask the prospect if they want to hear from them. For example: “I know you weren’t expecting my call, but do you have time? I promise to be brief.” However, we don’t recommend asking: “Is it convenient for you to talk now?”. If it weren’t, your interlocutor wouldn’t pick up the phone. The exception is if you can hear the street sounds, traffic, etc., in the background.

This script has sections:

• opening with a request for permission;
• problem statement;
• a final question about the consequences of inaction.

The upside is that you’ll hit a nerve with the client, and it will be easier to talk to them and then make an appointment, for example.

When working with any type of lead, use the SPIN method. It helps to build a conversation in such a way that the customer comes to a decision to make a purchase. Read the article “The SPIN method in sales to boost your business” for detailed tips.

Use life hacks to reach the decision-maker

You must look for the decision-maker if you have not yet established contact with the buyer. Otherwise, you will be wasting your time, unable to get past the secretary, etc. Therefore, first, understand who exactly you need and then find their contact information.

How to understand who to look for 

Qwirl service recommends an interesting principle of focusing on the staff size. Find a company on LinkedIn and pay attention to the number of employees:

Based on the staff size, you can understand who to contact.

1. Fewer than 10 employees: the CEO or founder usually makes the decision.
2. Up to 50 employees: the decision is made by department heads.
3. 50 to 500 employees: as the company grows, special positions are usually added, such as Business Development Manager. They will be helpful to you.
4. More than 500 employees: find a regional or specialized role. For example, the Head of Switzerland, Europe, etc.

Also, pay attention to additional signals. Let’s say the CMO has only been in the position for two months, and the marketing director has been there for three years. The latter is likely to have more influence.

Read the company’s news and analyze which top executives they talk about. Or who is usually the author of expert articles? This is the person who definitely makes critical decisions in the company.

How to search for contacts 

Of course, you can search for contacts on the website or on LinkedIn. However, in the first case, the contact of the right person may not be listed, and in the second case, the decision-maker may not read the message. Or they can only write to them if they have a premium LinkedIn account. Therefore, it makes sense to use particular tools as well. 

For example, Snov.io can be used like this:

• enter the company’s domain; 
• see all emails with job descriptions;
• filter only the ones you need;
• add to a list that can be used to send emails.

Some services, such as Zoominfo, can find phone numbers in addition to emails. They can even create a list of companies that meet your requirements and provide contacts for their top executives. For example, you can find the commercial directors of all Australian manufacturing companies with 100–500 employees.

Ask for an intro

Use LinkedIn to check your mutual connections and see if you can be introduced. Generally, people are three times more likely to respond to a message sent after an introduction by another professional than to a cold email. You can offer something attractive to the person who makes the intro: a discount, special conditions, or even a joint trip to a cafe 🙂

Use tools that speed up cold calling 

Cold calling is a difficult and stressful task for many sales professionals. As a result, employees may consciously or unconsciously procrastinate. For example, it takes a long time to find the next customer’s phone number every time, or sales reps get distracted while dialing. As a result, an employee calls much fewer potential customers per day than they could. To avoid this problem, tools that automate communication with outbound leads should be used.

For example, our team uses a handy app called Ringostat Smart Phone to communicate with clients and colleagues. It allows, among other things, to make calls with one click to a phone number located anywhere. Let’s say a manager finds potential clients’ websites and gradually calls them. In this case, he only has to click on the company’s phone number listed on the website. Similarly, you can call by clicking on the customer’s number in a document or CRM card. 

You can also use Ringostat Power Dialer, a solution that allows you to call customers automatically. It works according to the following principle:

• the head of the department uploads the numbers of the leads to be called and assigns the responsible employees;
• after that, Power Dialer appears in their call application;
• the manager presses the “Play” button, and the solution dials contacts from the database in a row;
• after each call, it pauses for the employee to record the details of the call;
• if the manager needs to leave, Power Dialer can be paused.

This solution has several advantages:

• the employee saves 5–7 seconds during each call, which is a significant saving if you have to call dozens or hundreds of customers;
• it is a guarantee that all numbers in the database will be called accurately;
• statistics on all calls will be recorded in visual reports;
• Power Dialer can be integrated with CRM using the API and call the database of numbers from there.

Bring an outbound lead to a final decision, even if they postpone it

Any customer needs to be encouraged to take the action you need. However, this is especially difficult with outbound leads because they are less interested than inbound leads. They may try to “slip out” of the sales funnel. 

Sometimes, a potential buyer doesn’t agree with the time you’ve suggested for the next step and wants to postpone it for a week or more. In this case, you can’t leave the situation in limbo:

• ask what is the reason for the postponement for such a long time;
• remind the client of what is required;
• emphasize that it will take a little time — let’s say 5 minutes;
• ask what prevents them from doing it today.

Often, clients say, “Let’s discuss it better tomorrow.” But “tomorrow” is an imprecise term. Therefore, you need to agree on a specific time tomorrow. For example, offer the client two time slots to choose from. It is better to contact at 9:00 am the next day if the customer is in the same time zone as you. It’s also better to send all questions and messages that push the lead to take action between 9:00 and 12:00. This way, the client will have most of the day to do what you need them to do. 

If you have not yet received clear consent and specific information, call them at the agreed time. In the conversation, emphasize that it is beneficial for the client to make a decision as soon as possible:

“{Name}, good afternoon! 

We agreed that today you would provide me with a list of employees participating in the trial lesson. 

I’m reminding you of this just in case so that we can close this issue today and start preparing for the lesson. 

If we receive this data by 14:00 today, we will be able to send out invitations today. I hope for your prompt response.”

If you can’t get through the first time, you should immediately send a message to the messenger. It is important to add specifics to it: “It will take 5–10 minutes to discuss, so let’s move on and not waste time. Can I call you at 3 p.m. today?”

What should you do if the client still doesn’t respond? Take the following steps one by one:

• call the customer again in the afternoon;
• wait 2–3 days and write a message emphasizing the benefits of making a decision sooner, such as bonuses for purchases this month;
• a week after the last contact, make a final call and ask what the delay is and what the blockers are.

Summary: principles that are important when processing outbound leads

1. Build a clear script for the conversation and the optimal time for it. The dialog should not last longer than 5 minutes, and you should get to the point and benefit the other person as soon as possible. Search online for different conversation scenarios and test them to find the best one for your business.
2. Look for contacts of decision-makers. The “About Us” or “Contacts” section on the website, LinkedIn, and special services will help you with this. You can also understand who is most influential in the company by reading media publications on behalf of the company and paying attention to the authorship.
3. Automate cold calling using special tools. For example, you can use Power Dialer, which allows you to call customers automatically. It is enough to upload a list of outbound lead numbers, and the solution will start dialing them in a row, pausing between calls. This way, salespeople save time and are not distracted during calls.
4. Don’t give up if you don’t get an immediate response from the client or if they want to postpone the decision. Develop regulations on how many times the team needs to contact a potential buyer and conversation scenarios for each reminder. After all, many cold leads that don’t agree immediately become satisfied customers.