13 Real Alternatives to Cold Calling That Build Pipeline
Can’t stomach cold calling? Steal Jeb Blount’s 13 proven alternatives to picking up the phone that build real pipeline and actually work.
Welcome to the Sales Gravy blog, where salespeople and sales leaders get better every week. We publish new sales training articles and podcast episodes three times a week, covering prospecting, cold calling, objections, negotiation, and leadership, written by Jeb Blount and the Sales Gravy trainer team.
Can’t stomach cold calling? Steal Jeb Blount’s 13 proven alternatives to picking up the phone that build real pipeline and actually work.
The right time to hire a fractional sales leader is when your team has outgrown what you can manage on top of running the business. Here are 7 signs that tell you it’s time,
Making just three to five of proactive calls to customers in a five-minute block, breaks the reactive cycle most account managers live in and builds the relationships that drive real, predictable revenue.
Recruiting is a sales leader’s number one job, and the way to find sales candidates is the same way your reps find customers: recruit like you prospect.

Steal this trial close technique and exact scripts to motivate buyers to make decisions and act without making big price concessions.
Referral leads close at three to four times the rate of cold and self-generated leads. Once both reach a real sales conversation, referrals close at roughly 26 percent versus 9 percent for cold and

When should you ask questions on a cold call? Questions come after you’ve earned the right, when you’re gathering information and qualifying, and they lead the conversation only when the prospect contacted you first.
To prospect for new clients, stop making random touches and run a consistent five-step system. Work this system every day and you gain control of your pipeline, along with the peace of mind that
The best way to measure sales productivity is with leading indicators—the KPIs and metrics that predict future revenue and let you fix problems before sales dry up.
A good sales voicemail is short, scripted, and gives the prospect one clear reason to call you back. This guide gives you seven word-for-word sales voicemail scripts that work!
Salespeople fail at cold calling for five common reasons. Fix them and the phone starts producing appointments again.
Email response rates are collapsing because decision maker inboxes are stuffed with automated, AI-written slop. This is exactly why the phone is more powerful today than it was ten years ago.

Objections are not deal killers. Sometimes, they are deal enablers, helping the salesperson to understand the buyer’s real needs and requirements. Zig Ziglar was the best-known sales trainer in the world. The man from

Just as there is a set of best ways to paint a room, so there are sets of best ways to ask a question, seek an appointment, build rapport, make a presentation, close the

If you’re going to bypass mid-level gatekeepers, you have to be strategic, and you also have to use the right tone & pace, so you can be perceived as someone who truly cares about

Whether you are just learning the language of sales or improving your game as an already successful SalesMaker, there are six timeless principles to keep in mind. The sales industry has changed dramatically over

I’m not ready to just toss voice mail out into the sales-o-sphere — there’s still hope and opportunity for it to hold a prime spot in the sales mix. But that will require a

Today’s sellers need to be agile and actively looking for problems and opportunities they can help their buyers address or capture. Have you ever thought about the type of sales role you are in?

Don’t confuse your sales role with role-playing. Role-playing sends most sellers running for the nearest exit. Everything Terry was taught about sales reinforced the idea that he had to be, “larger than life,” or

It’s when we humble ourselves and admit we could do better and continue to push our activities, efforts, and risk for being humbled that we find the greatness we can really achieve. I cringed

Want to build rapport quickly and get people to like you more? Notice, and bring up similarities. You can easily find out some useful info on a person’s LinkedIn profile or company bio if it’s

What’s wrong with focusing on your sales process first and your sales philosophy second, or just ignoring the whole thing? It’s all about the results you want vs. the results you will get. Have

Salespeople and sales managers are caught up in their own version of Ground Hog Day. They keep using the same approach, having the same conversations, which are leading to the same outcomes. Sales Ground

Working smarter with people entails three key activities: assigning the right number of people, identifying roles and planning compensation strategically. Sure-fire Ways to Work Smarter with People Your sales force is defined by the

Data can do more than tell you facts about your own business. It also can reveal important information about what’s going on with your competitors in the marketplace. How to Be Data Savvy In