A sales pitch on the phone is very different than making a sales pitch in person. It’s an important distinction to make. It will change how you approach your pitch, how you sell, and how you interact with your prospects and customers.

With phone pitches, you need to keep in mind that there are a few factors working against you:

• It’s often a cold call – people are less receptive to them
• You have less time to win over the prospect
• Many sales reps have a fear of making sales calls

So why do you still need to make sales pitches over the phone when you can connect in many other ways – email, social media, text, video chat?

Tamara Monosoff from Entrepreneur explains:

“The reality is that even in our internet-based world, few tools are more effective and necessary for generating sales and sales appointments than the good old telephone.”

Here are 5 tips from a sales recruiter on how to make a successful sales pitch over the phone:

1. Practice makes perfect

You are not going to nail your sales pitch on your first day on the job. Like anything else, it takes time to hone your craft, get to know your products, your customers, and learn how to identify which approach to take. The more you do it, the less you will fear cold calls and sales pitches over the phone.

2. Plan your sales pitch call

If you fail to plan, plan to fail. Before you pick up the phone to make a pitch, know who you are calling, review the information you have about the client, understand their most pressing needs, and have an understanding of the products and services they would benefit from most.

3. Keep it simple

Most sales reps use a script for a sales call. This is perfectly okay. Where they run into trouble is when they make the script too complicated. When you do this, it easy to get caught up in trying to remember your next line or pitch rather than listening to the customer and identifying ways you can help them.

4. Get to the point right away

Unfortunately, there is no shortage of people who hang up on you before you establish rapport. Therefore, you need to be direct, keep things brief, and get to the point. You can elaborate on key points and features to generate interest. Make a connection, and then worry about the pitch.

5. Your voice matters

You need to sound like a professional, and it matters how your voice sounds over the phone. A high-pitched voice may sound amateurish, and talking too fast, talking over the customer, and other poor verbal communication cues can make you seem nervous and unprepared. Consider listening to how you sound on the phone to look for ways to improve how you present yourself over the phone.

Learn more by reading these tips from a  sales recruiter:

4 Things to Avoid Saying During a Sales Call

An Insider’s Guide to Making a Sales Pitch

SalesForce Search is a sales recruiting company which specializes in the recruitment and placement of sales professionals. We recruit sales people in every sector of the economy including, software, manufacturing, financial services and medical devices. Find the right sales person for your organization, start your search here.