You've heard it before…cold calling is dead. Long live eCommerce, social selling, and all the other newfangled ideas the kids are buzzing about these days.
Except, the stats don't back that up. In fact, 75 percent of buyers are still willing to accept cold sales calls and make appointments based on those incoming calls. Maybe that's why the majority of successful salespeople still make them.
The key to cold calls is to set yourself up for success by warm calling rather than relying entirely on calling ice-cold prospects.
Keep reading to learn more about cold calling (i.e., talking to people without prior contact,) how it differs from warm calling (i.e., talking to people with prior contact,) the differences between the two types of calls, and how to find success with each strategy. Let's get started!
Cold calling is when sales reps reach out to prospects with no prior contact. The goal is to start conversations, qualify leads, and schedule follow-ups. While often seen as outdated, cold calling in 2025 is still effective when supported by sales scripts, CRMs, and multi-touch outreach.
Sales reps usually start with a list of pre-qualified phone numbers and start making calls. Once they get a potential customer on the line, the rep delivers a quick sales pitch to explain the reason for the call and ask questions to better understand the prospect's needs.
The goal of most cold sales calls is not to make sales. The goal is to learn about prospects and schedule follow-up appointments if there's mutual interest. Once a sales rep makes it past the first call, they can pitch their products or services in earnest.
Cold calling is a viable strategy that sales teams have used for decades. But that doesn't mean it's free of challenges. Here are a few common ones:
It’s also worth mentioning that most sales reps hate cold calling. Forcing them to complete this activity daily—especially without SDRs, cold calling scripts, or other resources that make their lives easier—may result in a higher-than-average staff turnover rate.
Clearly, cold calling has its issues–which you can avoid by deploying warm calling strategies instead.
Let's talk more about that.
The process might look something like this:
Company ABC publishes multiple SEO-optimized blog posts a month. Customer XYZ finds one of these posts through Google, enjoys reading it, and signs up for Company ABC's email newsletter.
They’re interested–at least a little.
Next, a sales rep for Company ABC sees the new email address, researches the lead on LinkedIn (yay for social selling!), and decides to reach out. During the phone call, the rep knows the lead and asks if they're interested in purchasing.
A small shift, but it can make a huge impact on conversions.
There are several different kinds of warm leads, and they tend to convert at different rates.
The warmer your leads are, the better your chance of booking future appointments and making sales. That's why you should spend as much time as possible "hot calling," i.e., talking to leads who’ve already expressed buyer intent.
It will almost always lead to a higher success rate.
Warm calling strategies usually achieve higher conversion rates compared to traditional cold calling.
After all, when a lead already knows who you are and what you sell, they’re more likely to trust you. It’s kind of like starting a marathon halfway to the finish line.
That said, there are a few drawbacks to this calling strategy. Here are the most prominent ones:
The key differences between cold calling and warm calling are lead awareness, level of trust, and the amount of effort required from sales reps.
Let's explore each in greater detail:
When you cold call a prospect, there's a chance they're completely unaware of your business and the products/services you sell. That's not true for warm calls.
By definition, warm calls are made to people who have heard of the business the sales rep works for. They may be familiar with the products/services as well.
This level of lead awareness is significant, especially in B2B sales, where the cost of goods and services is typically much higher than in B2C sales.
Who do you trust more: the woman at the coffee shop who takes your order every morning or the guy sitting at the table next to you whom you've never met before?
We’re more likely to trust people we know, even if we only know them a little.
Sales calls are similar. Prospects will trust you more if they know you, your business, and what you sell. Why? Because you're not a stranger. As such, you probably know more about the prospects' goals and pain points, making you more trustworthy.
Sales reps must make many cold calls to connect with potential customers and drum up sales. This is why some companies have entire call centers dedicated to cold calling.
Warm calling is also hard work but requires a different type of effort.
Sales reps must find inbound lead generation opportunities, acquire contact information, and face rejection. However, the success rate of warm calling is much higher than that of cold calling.
So, there's a case to be made that warm calling requires less effort on the part of sales reps than cold calling. (Though it does depend on how much effort you put into warm calling!)
Cold calling techniques can still generate quality sales opportunities—if executed with the right strategy.
Remember these six tips before, during, and after your calls to ensure they're effective.
Research is critical to the sales prospecting process.
Who are you planning to talk to? What industry are they in? What company do they work for? What challenges do they struggle with? And what is their contact information?
You need to know the answers to these questions. Luckily, this kind of information is pretty easy to find. Just search for your prospects' social media profiles. LinkedIn is preferred, but Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok may provide more insights.
I suggest researching your prospects' companies, too. The more you know about them, the more productive and successful your cold calls will be.
You shouldn't ever "wing it" during cold calls. Instead, create a blueprint to ensure you steer your sales conversations in the right direction.
If you're committed to cold calling, create a sales script for your cold calls that can be customized for every conversation. Your sales script may look something like this:
You don't have to use your scripts word for word. You probably shouldn't. Doing so will make you sound robotic and insincere. Instead, use your scripts as a guide to ensure you hit all the main points.
When you call, it is almost as important as what you say.
Research has shown that the best times to cold call prospects are between 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
That doesn't mean that between 3:00 pm and 5:00 pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays is the right time for you to call your prospects. You’ll want to experiment and find your cold-calling sweet spot, but these times are a great place to start.
What would you do if a sales rep called you and immediately started talking about their super cool, ultra nifty, new gadget—a piece of technology you have zero interest in?
I'll tell you what I'd do: hang up the phone faster than The Flash after chugging a Redbull.
Why? Because the rep made the entire conversation about them. They didn't ask how my day was going or try to understand my challenges. They launched into a sales pitch, assuming I would like their product as much as they do.
If you want to succeed with cold calling, you have to prioritize the prospect. Ask questions, listen to their answers, and personalize your conversations based on their needs. Doing so will help you build trust, which is essential to the sales process.
What do you do after you cold call a prospect? It's pretty simple: you follow up with them. It's a simple step, but one too many salespeople ignore.
Try calling them again in a week, a month, or any time. Or take a multichannel approach and send them an email or text message instead. Maybe you can use social media and comment on their latest LinkedIn post.
There are many ways to follow up; make sure you do!
Finally, assess your cold-calling efforts. Are you connecting with prospects and generating sales? Or are you wasting your time?
If your results are less than stellar, try to figure out why. Experiment with new tactics, implement new strategies and do what you have to do to achieve success.
If your results are impressive, congratulations! But don't get lazy. Analyze your calls to learn why your current cold-calling approach is working. Once you determine why, you can double down on winning techniques and supercharge your sales.
Looking to implement a warm-calling sales strategy? That's a smart move. Here are five ideas to ensure your warm calls consistently turn potential clients into paying clients.
Warm calling is a great way to build your sales pipeline.
But it's not that much different than cold calling. As such, you’ll want to implement a few of the ideas I shared in the previous section.
What's an open-ended question, you ask?
Any question that requires prospects to elaborate. In other words, if the prospect can answer your query with a simple "yes" or "no," it's not an open-ended question.
In sales, open-ended questions might include:
Open-ended questions are ideal because they encourage prospects to engage so you can learn about their daily challenges and whether or not they're worth your time.
Plus, people love to talk about themselves. Open-ended questions give prospects a chance to do that, which will help them enjoy your conversations more.
Don't just ask questions during your warm calls. Listen to the answers.
Listening is an important skill. Seriously, your sales team won't make many sales without it. When you learn to listen well, you can easily identify pain points, suggest solutions, and earn your prospects' trust–resulting in a higher close rate.
Consider recording your warm calls—with your prospects' permission, of course—so you can listen back to them. This will make your follow-up communications more effective.
Every warm call should end with the next steps so your prospects know when you'll contact them and what to do next.
It could be as simple as asking, "Can I send you a quick email recapping our conversation?" Or maybe, "What if I call again next week? If you're interested, I can prepare a demonstration of our product, which you can view via Zoom. How's that sound?"
Providing the next steps also gives prospects a chance to decline future communication with you. While it might sting, it's better than wasting your time on leads that won't convert.
Last but certainly not least, take a moment to evaluate your warm-calling sales process. Are you happy with your results? Do prospects seem to enjoy your calls, and are they converting? If not, make a few changes.
Maybe you need to connect with leads more personally before the call to "warm" them up. You may step up your research game to be more prepared for every call. Or maybe you need a better lead qualification process!
So, warm vs. cold calling—which is better?
There’s no right or wrong answer. Many sales teams use both strategies to increase revenue and build their brand and market share.
To improve your efforts, invest in a few cold calling and warm calling sales tools. The solutions below will help you with outreach, social selling, and referrals.
While the true power of sales calling comes from research and learning to listen, these tools will make your life much easier.