Prospecting Tools for B2B Cold Calls: Research and Personality go a Long Way

For Kyle Norton, Sales Coach at Toronto’s fast-growing health insurance startup League, successful prospecting is the result of balancing two core functions: adherence to a consistent sales process and constant learning.

It’s no surprise to find out, then, that both of those tasks are part of the DNA at League.

“I’m always learning from a variety of sources and disciplines like Tim Ferris and his writing on creativity”, says Norton, in an upcoming edition of The Predictable Revenue Podcast.

“It’s the biggest contribution to my success.”

But for all the inspiration books, blogs, and even conferences can bring to a business development team, you’ve got to have a clear sales process for your SDRs to follow. A method to the madness.

So, what does that SDR roadmap look like at League?

Here’s his 12-day sequence of calls, varied emails, and social media touches:

Day 1 – First call, with a voicemail
Day 1 – Email with something interesting about League and something relevant & personal to the lead
Day 2 – Call with no voicemail
Day 3 – Resend the first email (This step has the highest reply rate in entire cadence)
Day 4 – Nothing
Day 5 – Call
Day 5 – Content email (“Hey, I saw this and thought it’d be helpful…”)
Day 6 – “Challenger email” (Focused on a problem we can solve)
Day 7 – Phone call with voicemail
Day 8 – Linkedin add (“Sent you a couple emails, just wanted to know if you saw them”)
Day 9 – Call, no voicemail
Day 10 – Twitter interaction
Day 11 – Call, voicemail
Day 12 – Business breakup (“If it’s not of interest, let me know so we can part ways”)

Underpinning League’s thorough cadence is research and personality, stresses Norton. You got to know how to talk to people…and why you’re talking to them. Know your product and your niche well. But always reach out with humility and respect.

“You should have a strong hypothesis that you can help them before you pick up the phone,” says Norton.

“But make sure you have a conversation. Don’t feel like you’re only asking questions just to get to the pitch. Stop, listen, and let their answers sync in. Figure out what’s really going on in their organization before you move on. Just have genuine conversations and don’t lead with things that are directly related to your product.”

These are critical factors because League’s SDRs are working a lot of contacts, having a lot of conversations and passing on a lot of qualified opportunities.

The monthly funnel for each League SDR looks like:

Work 100 contacts at a time
To have 40 Discovery calls (60% conversion rate)
Book 25 Demos (80% conversion rate)
Book 20 Sales Qualified Opportunities

But although 20 Sales Qualified Opportunities is the expectation each month, Norton stresses the fact that SDRs shouldn’t be afraid to disqualify. In fact, he encourages it.

“Don’t be afraid to qualify out, especially in Canada. If they have way bigger priorities on their plate right now, then put it on a shelf for a while,” says Norton.

“Hustle but know when you’re not spending your time wisely.”

For more from Kyle Norton, check out his interview with Aaron Ross and Collin Stewart on the forthcoming Predictable Revenue Podcast…stay tuned!

Contact the Predictable Revenue Team to find out how we can help you nail your outbound sales goals.