The most successful sales reps have a great deal of cold calling experience. they’re used to consistent actions: qualifying leads, sending cold emails, scheduling meetings, maybe following up a few times, and finally closing the deal. however, from time to time, you need to go back to the drawing board and discover the gaps in your sales process.
You can brush up on sales fundamentals, pick up a new soft skill that will allow you to close more deals, or just leisurely read sales and business literature. Reading books is one of the cheapest ways to gain knowledge, improve your thinking skills, and sell more as a result.
You are reading: Books on cold calling
We already present you incredible sales books. If you specifically want to add more cold calling books to your reading list, then I’ve got you covered. This article covers fifteen best cold calling books, divided into four categories. let’s get started.
jump to category:
- → best cold calling books with sales tactics
- → best cold calling books for beginners
- → best cold calling books for startups
- → the best cold calling skill building books
best cold calling books with sales tactics
Whether you’re a seasoned pro or sales newbie, the following books will give you techniques and tips to improve the conversion rate of your cold calling efforts.
1. Gap Selling
author: keenanpublished: December 3, 2018
Who should read this: Seasoned and new sales professionals who are ready to unlearn the damaging sales axioms they’ve formed throughout their careers.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: The author breaks down many limiting beliefs around selling such as “people buy from people they like” (customers buy from anyone who can add value). and “clients don’t change” (they will accept the change if you show that their future state is better than the present one). the book breaks down such outdated beliefs and sales tactics in a no-nonsense, engaging style.
gap selling is about genuinely helping customers, acting as a consultant, and becoming an expert that people can trust to solve their problems. it shows you how to engage in the buying process with your customers instead of selling to them. Instead of taking orders, they become sales influencers.
Whether you’re a reading sales professional or not, you’ll find new frameworks and plenty of ideas in the book.
2. Smart Calling: Eliminate the Fear, Failure, and Rejection from Cold Calling
author: art sobczakpublished: April 8, 2013
Who Should Read This: Inside sales reps will find many invaluable tips for making smarter cold calls and practical techniques for addressing specific sales challenges.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: This is one of the best cold calling books on b2b sales prospecting, both for inspiration and insight. you can use it as a guide to creating a systematic process and welcoming environment for conducting business over the phone.
The material is divided into four sections. in the first, you are introduced to the concept of smart calling. the second is about preparing for your call by creating your value proposition, using social engineering to gather intelligence, setting smart call targets, and the like.
The third section presents sample opening statements that you can use at the beginning of the call to create interest, handle early resistance, listen carefully and gain commitment, etc. the final section summarizes how to sound smart, stay motivated, and concludes with a case study on smart calling.
To get the most value from the book, it’s best if you read it in parts. apply the tips and strategies discussed in one chapter before moving on to the next.
3. Take the Cold Out of Cold Calling
author: sam richterpublished: July 9, 2009
who should read this: For inside sales professionals who do a lot of outbound prospecting.
Why Marketers Need This Book: The author shares search techniques and websites you can use to find hidden information about your leads, customers, and competition (including the “invisible web” through which cannot be accessed by search engines). he can use the information to tap into the world of warm sales to make a great first impression, deepen his relationships with his customers, and close more deals.
The book is a great resource for researching your prospects, getting sales insights from social media, accessing premium insights and lists of highly qualified leads at little or no cost, “warm call scripts” and more. . The book was last updated in 2015, however many of his research techniques are still relevant to finding information about your prospects on the web.
4. Hyper-Connected Selling: Win More Business by Building Personal Influence & Creating Human Connection
author: david j.p. fisherpublished: May 12, 2017
Who should read this: All types of sales professionals.
Why Marketers Need This Book: The world is now hyper-connected and the way customers shop has changed dramatically. however, you can still leverage social selling technology in your everyday sales activities and integrate into the customer’s buying process. The author introduces you to tools and tactics that he can use along with old school sales techniques.
The book covers the modern evolution of sales, how to build relationships so that closing opportunities are always available to you and still trust sales the way it’s always been: person-to-person (becoming a sales sherpa). is a great read for any sales professional who wants to harness technology to sell more.
best cold calling books for beginners
If you’re just starting to prospect and want to increase your chances of converting them into business, the following books will be of great use to you.
1. Fanatical Prospecting
See Also: Ridley Pearson – Book Series In Order
author: jeb blountpublished: October 5, 2015
who should read this: Most useful for new sales reps, but has practical takeaways for seasoned sales development reps (sdrs) as well.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: The material begins with an emphasis on relentless prospecting and goes on to detail the mindset of successful prospectors. in the following chapters, however, he goes beyond the standard sales motivation. there are specific examples and practical frameworks that seasoned sdrs (as well as beginning sales reps) can leverage in their sales process.
The author is a sales acceleration specialist and has laid out a detailed prospecting methodology in the book. For example, he shares the 30-day rule to keep the pipeline full, the law of familiarity to reduce prospect friction, scripts and frameworks for cold calling, cold emailing, texting, social selling, and plus. Overall, it’s a great resource for learning about successful prospecting through multiple channels.
2. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Cold Calling
author: keith rosenpublished: August 3, 2004
who should read this: good for sales newbies.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: Provides a comprehensive sales framework for new sales reps in five sections. you can use the material to develop your own prospecting and follow-up process that runs on autopilot and aligns with your selling philosophy, strengths, and natural talents.
The book begins with sections on taking care of your inner game and delves into developing strong systems for generating new business. In the following sections, the author covers how to turn your cold calls into warm calls through better conversations and beat the gatekeeper to close more sales. concludes with a section on how to secure his position at the top.
3. How To Crush It, Kill It & Master Cold Calling Now!
author: anthony iannarinopublished: April 8, 2013
Who should read this: Salespeople just getting started with cold calling.
why marketers need this book: anthony iannarino is an experienced b2b sales coach. and this 13-page eBook is a training ground for dipping your toes into cold calling. the material is succinct, insightful, and the questions after each chapter help you absorb the concepts.
The book is a compilation of blog posts by the author. Topics include: why sales gurus hate cold calling, why salespeople don’t like cold calling, prospecting c-level executives, offering value to your prospects during sales calls, and six principles of effective cold calling.
4. The Psychology of Selling: Increase Your Sales Faster and Easier Than You Ever Thought Possible
author: brian tracypublished: July 18, 2006
Who should read this: Salespeople just starting out in their careers will get the most value from the book.
why salespeople need this book: the author has provided a healthy dose of motivation along with psychological principles that play a key role during sales. Professionals starting out in sales will find the fundamental concepts and strategies in the book valuable.
The material is divided into eight easy-to-consume chapters. It starts with the inner game of selling, setting and achieving sales goals, why people buy, creative ways to sell, getting more appointments, the power of suggestions, making the sale, and ends with the ten keys to success in sales. sale.
best cold calling books for startups
I’ve had a lot of experience with startup sales and it’s a very important topic for me. If you’re a b2b startup venturing into sales, then I recommend you take a bite out of the books below (some of them are actually written by you)!
1. Your Growth Hacks Aren’t Working
author: steli eftipublished: 2017
Who should read this: Startup founders looking to evaluate and set up cold calling for their business.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: As the co-founder of a successful startup, I can tell you that cold calling is incredibly effective at customer acquisition. Most founders are fascinated by the idea of AI-powered chatbots and online sales funnels. but they rarely work. Since most of your competitors are zigzagging, you can take advantage of the old “cold calling” tactic to zag and enable rapid growth for your business.
The book comprehensively covers how to create a cold calling sales process, from getting started with validating your idea to finding your ideal customer. There are also a couple of sections on the psychology of sales success and the five most common sales mistakes, and how the most successful sales teams use technology like predictive dialers to improve their sales productivity.
Even if you have no sales experience, the examples and tactics in the book will put you on the right path to setting up cold calling to reach your customers.
2. The Founder’s Guide To Sales Negotiation
author: steli efti
Who should read this: Startup founders (especially those selling saas products).
Why Marketers Need This Book: Start-ups often face negotiations fraught with fear of rejection. however, giving discounts is not the way out. You can charge what your product is worth by becoming a better sales negotiator. Selling more doesn’t require adopting clever tricks and complex strategies. rather it is about changing your mindset and following a set of simple principles outlined in this book.
See Also: The 15 Best Books for Rental Property Investors in 2022 – Sprint Finance
The first chapter covers the negotiating mindset. Throughout the rest of the book, we delve into negotiation tactics, including the importance of silence, showing vulnerability, procrastinating, how to deal with a customer’s demand for a discount, handling questions when you don’t know the right answer, and the other tactics for overcoming most obstacles to your negotiation. The book ends with a proven loi template and how to renegotiate a deal.
3. Outbound Sales, No Fluff: Written by two millennials who have actually sold something this decade
author: rex biberston and ryan reisertpublished: December 7, 2017
who should read this: ideal for sdr recent college graduates.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: It contains a fairly quick overview of the world of outbound sales, which you can finish reading in about 30 minutes. there is no advice for immediate action in the book. on the other hand, it is also free of jargon and self-promotional jargon.
Beginners can read and learn how to develop their sales cadence in eight crisp chapters. The first half covers the basics of building prospecting lists, defining your “swimming sales,” business targeting, and lead extraction tools.
The second half covers the details of cold calling, cold emailing, social selling, creating leads, using technology tools, and funnel math to improve your conversions.
best cold calling skill building books
To be most effective at cold calling, you need to work on a set of sales skills. here are a couple of books that will get you on the right track.
1. Difficult Conversations: How to Discuss What Matters Most
author: douglas stone, bruce patton and sheila heenpublished: November 2, 2010
Who should read this: All sales professionals who want to apply emotional intelligence and learn the art of good communication during formal negotiations.
Why Salespeople Need This Book: The book gives you a practical framework for having tough conversations with your customers, employees, and people in general. Whether you’re a sales organization leader, a sales development representative, or any other sales professional, the authors will teach you the art of fruitful and effective conversations.
The book covers the underlying structure of difficult conversations, why people avoid having them (or worse, mishandle them), how to hear the meaning of what isn’t being said, keep your balance when attacked, and move on from emotions to problem solving. .
2. How to Get a Meeting with Anyone: The Untapped Selling Power of Contact Marketing Kindle Edition
author: stu heineckepublished: February 16, 2016
Who should read this: All types of sales professionals.
Why Marketers Need This Book: Bypassing gatekeepers and reaching high-level decision makers is tricky. The author (a cartoonist) relied on a personalized “contact campaign” approach to attract attention and book meetings with CEOs and VIPs. His unorthodox techniques, tips and tactics are laid out in the book for anyone to execute.
The material begins with an introduction to contact marketing and covers twenty categories of contact campaigns. after a couple of sections it can get a bit repetitive. but you can walk away, adding a rather unconventional set of “contact marketing” tools to your arsenal.
Bonus: The Introvert’s Edge: How the Quiet and Shy Can Outsell Anyone
Selling is supposed to be about aggressive pitches, direct conversations, and dealing with strangers. it’s a nightmare for introverts who lack these “natural talents.” however, in the book below, the introverted author outlines a proven sales process that works for all types of personalities.
author: matthew pollard with contributor derek lewispublished: January 4, 2018
Who should read this: Introverted sales professionals (although other personalities will find this helpful, too).
Why Salespeople Need This Book: While introverts may not easily strike up small talk or strike up conversations with prospects, they can rely on their strengths to sell. the author speaks of sales as a skill that can be acquired, and all kinds of personalities can follow it.
the book lays out the sincere selling process in seven steps acting as a consultant. As the author says in the first chapter, “…in the long run, the process overcomes the personality. every time.” all kinds of sales professionals can emulate the process established by the author and the sales teacher.
conclusion
Whether you’re just starting out with cold calling or have extensive experience, it’s not just about dialing numbers all the time. you need to take breaks and analyze the gaps in your sales process. reading books is a guaranteed way to make you introspective, learn new techniques and help you improve in your career.
so please choose one book from the fifteen I shared in this article. If you don’t know which one to read first, start with our free guide to cold calling for startups.
Are there any other cold calling books you’d like to recommend? let me know on linkedin!
Want to dive deep with cold calling? take our free b2b cold calling course! It will teach you how to build rapport and trust, show authority, and increase desire for your product or service.
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See Also: Jason Kasper – Book Series In Order