Is your outbound sales strategy stuttering? Do your outreach efforts need a refresh? Nowadays, there is so much more to landing outbound sales than simply cold-calling. So, to learn more, continue reading to discover all the ideas you can use to increase your outbound sales.
What are outbound sales?
Outbound sales is a sales technique used to attract more customers. It works on the principle that you, as a company, contact potential customers or clients through cold outreach and try to sell your product or service. This can be performed through multiple channels including calling, email, social media, or in-person visits.
Given the nature of this technique, the outbound sales technique is perfect for the B2B industry. It is a perfect fit because, in addition to selling your services to other companies, you build relationships and connections that are necessary for any success. Outbound sales require a lot of planning and are generally considered more time-consuming compared to inbound strategies. However, if executed correctly it can be hugely rewarding. With outbound sales, you are able to target accounts that are the best match for your product and service.
7 tactics for increasing outbound sales
But just how do you go about boosting your outbound sales? Lucky for you, we’ve put together tips on how to increase outbound sales. Continue reading, to find out what can be implemented in your outbound sales strategy.
1. Find out who your target group is!
Before you even start reaching out, you need to know who you should be targeting. Knowing your target group and ideal customer profile (ICP) allows you to be more effective with your outbound sales pitch. Once you have this information, you are then able to develop tailored content and material that matches your target group's pain points, needs, and behavior. In order to understand more about your target group, analyze your customer base to identify patterns and reach out to your existing customers to learn more firsthand. From the information you gathered, create personas that will help you picture your ideal customers.
2. Set your KPIs
It wouldn’t be sales without targets and outbound is no exception. With outbound sales KPIs, the focus should be on activities, whether it’s calls made, emails sent or meetings booked. Having a clear set of KPIs will enable your reps to be more focused and engaged with their tasks.
3. Don’t rule out cold calls
Arguably the strategy that is most associated with outbound sales, cold calling is a sales method of reaching out to potential customers via phone. This approach is a quick way of reaching and connecting with customers. Although success rates for cold calling are often low, it’s still one of the most popular methods of outbound sales, and in a sales environment dominated by online interaction, can be particularly effective in the B2B space.
If you’re looking for ways to strengthen your cold-calling technique, then head over to our blog on Cold Calling Tips to learn more.
4. Ramp up your email marketing
Cold emailing is an outbound strategy that involves identifying potential customers and then advertising your service or product through email.
Just like cold calling, cold emails will reach potential customers completely out of the blue. That’s why important to not appear too salesy during the first impression. Instead of simply listing out your products and features, focus on pain points and how your product can help solve them.
Here is a checklist of things that will ensure successful cold emailing:
✅ Grab your prospects’ attention by write compelling subject lines and opening sentences
✅ Describe how your product meets the needs of the business or individual prospect you are addressing.
✅ Encourage the email reader to visit your website to learn more about your product.
✅ Not received a response? Be sure to send a brief follow-up message a few days later to bump your message to the top of their inbox.
5. Polish your script(s)
It can be nerve-wracking reaching out to complete strangers, particularly to those still learning their trade. That’s why it’s never a bad idea to have a script, or at least some bullet points before diving into a call.
Create straightforward, to-the-point scripts which highlight the most crucial information about the value you provide. It’s also a good idea to have multiple scripts that are tailored to different industries, job titles, and departments.
And of course, whichever way you are reaching out to prospects, give plenty of space for the prospects to ask questions and speak. There’s nothing worse than scaring off potential customers by bombarding them with too much information.
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6. Invest in social selling
This one’s a newer strategy that has surged in popularity in recent years. Social selling is a sales-driving strategy that involves engaging with potential customers via social media platforms. This includes posting on social media from both the company account as well as individual profiles. Unlike traditional sales methods, social selling focuses on building and nurturing relationships with prospects.
By social selling, you are playing the long game, but a game that can be incredibly rewarding if you execute it correctly. With social selling, you are developing content with a value focus that is attended to assist readers and is less product-focused compared to traditional sales tactics.
Naturally, LinkedIn is the most popular platform for B2B social selling, but you should also explore other platforms such as TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram.
7. Educate potential customers through Webinars!
To continue on the topic of building relationships with prospects, webinars are one of those things that will help you achieve this. Webinars are a great method to educate prospects and showcase the value that your product creates. Webinars are a great way to position yourself as an industry expert and to also develop partnerships and relationships with other people within your space.
Of course, while webinars are one of the best ways to generate high-quality leads, refrain from making them sound like a sales pitch. A webinar is here to educate and help you engage with your audience. The reason why webinars work so effectively is that people are more willing to sacrifice their time in exchange for something that is valuable, exciting, and enlightening.
The perfect tool for your outbound efforts
Just like inbound sales, outbound sales are all about hitting targets and reaching them. So, be sure to keep track of all your outbound sales KPIs by centralizing them on real-time dashboards.
What’s more, outbound sales is a tough job, so celebrate all the wins that do come through with our gamification features. It's packed full of tons different ways to engage, motivate and empower your sales reps that will guarantee to liven up their day-to-day activities.
