If you hate cold calling, you’re not alone. Even among top salespeople.
One tactic we’ve seen successfully employed: send video to warm people up.
Learn how and why it works and see several examples.
I’ve been meaning to write this post for years. And a video I recently received from George Schramm of RPM Mortgage in Carmel and Danville, California finally tipped me.
So many successful salespeople I’ve met through BombBomb hate making cold calls. For some, “hate” is too soft a word.
Interrupting people at inopportune times. Getting more voicemail than ever. Not getting calls back. Defensive, guarded, and even aggressive postures from those who do pick up. There’s not much to love.
In a video, George told me: “BombBomb and video messaging has eliminated cold calling from my life.”
So, let’s watch his video, then walk through some tactics to bring death to cold calls (even if you love them).
Send Video to Warm People Up Instead of Cold Calling
What George Says about Sending Video
“BombBomb has definitely changed my career.”
“I hate cold calling more than anything in the world.”
“I send videos out and I follow it up with a call. And, to me, that’s a warm call. I love it!”
“I appreciate everything you do and I thank you for changing my business.”
How To: Sending Video Before Calling
Record and send video or screen recordings to people with whom you’d like to connect. This could be a new lead, a non-responsive lead, a mutual connection, or someone else.
From here, you have two options:
1) Follow up shortly thereafter with a phone call or 2) Wait for BombBomb to tell you the email was opened and/or the video was played.
If you’re going to do the former, mention in the video email that you’ll be following up by phone. If you get voicemail, mention that you sent a personal video to their inbox.
If you’re going to do the latter (RECOMMENDED), turn on live, real-time alerts before you click “Send” in BombBomb.
Turn on Notifications in Quick Send (“Save as Default” so it applies to your mobile sends, too):
Turn on Notifications in Email Editor (Email opens, video plays, and/or any specific link click):
You can also get fly-in notifications if you send video from Gmail or a notifications feed in your mobile app.
When you see they’ve opened the email, you know you’re top of mind. It might be a great time to place the call.
Better yet, when you see they’ve played the video, you know their attention is available. You might open an email during a meeting or during some other activity. But you’ll play the video only when you’ve got the ability to direct your attention to it.
Why It Works to Send Video First
Convenience: Record and send video on your time. The person on the other end receives it and watches it on his or her time. There’s far less imposition than a live phone call.
Connection: By seeing you in a simple, personal video, they’re going to feel a bit like they know you before they ever speak with or meet you. The conversation starts in a different place.
Reciprocity: It’s harder to reject a real person than it is to delete a text email or even a voicemail. Again, they feel a little like they know you. At worst, there’s an obligation to respond. At best, there’s a respect and interest.
Results: In a recent BombBomb survey, 81% of people reported more replies and responses when sending video emails instead of traditional emails. It works.
Video Email Examples from George
Here are 4 examples of video emails sent by George to connect with people he’d never met.
Again, he hates cold calls, so he sends video to warm people up. He uses the analytics to let him know when the video’s been played, then places a warmer call.
Example 1: Follow Up after a Transaction
In this example, George reached out to a few people involved in the transaction with a video email follow up. The two gentlemen mentioned mid-way through are two real estate agents who he’d never met in person.
As he describes it: “Normally this would have been an uncomfortable cold call, but coming off the heels of a ‘played video’ the call became warm. Both agreed to meet with me next week.”
Click the email to play the video.
Example 2: Reach Out to a Top Producing Real Estate Agent
Typically, it would be difficult to connect with this agent by calling cold; he’s incredibly busy and is a top producer in the region.
George led with this video email instead. CLEVER: he used the news of a transition from one brokerage to another as the reason for the send.
“Once I saw he played it, I called him right up. The call went great and he loved the video.”
Click the email to play the video.
Example 3: Reach Out to a Real Estate Agent with Mutual Connections
George recognized that he had several mutual connections with one of the stars of Million Dollar Listing San Francisco. Because he’d never spoken with him (and because of his aversion to cold calls), he sent this video email to open up the conversation.
“Once I saw him play it, I called him on the phone. We met, I helped him get 2 listings, and now we talk daily.”
Click the email to play the video.
Example 4: Prospecting – Reaching Out to a Cold Lead
We’ve all got them in our databases – leads who’ve gone cold. Again, George went with video, rather than a phone call to warm this opportunity back up.
“It worked. We re-engaged and we’re starting to get it rolling again.”
Click the email to play the video.
What We Can Learn from George’s Video Email Examples
- Smiling. George opens every video with a smile. Nothing feels as good to us and nothing warms up others like a sincere smile.
- No scripting. George just talks to people as if he’s across the table from them.
- (Almost) no text. George only types text into the email to drive the video play.
- Custom thumbnails. George uses BombBomb’s thumbnail button to snap images with details that say, in effect, “I made this video just for you.”
- Analytics. George relies on the tracking and analytics behind the video emails to know when the phone call is warm.
- Results. Sure, George pointed me to these examples, but positive results came from all of these. And they’re as simple as leaving voicemails without the imposition of a ringing phone.
In Closing
A big BombBomb THANK YOU to George Schramm, a mortgage professional serving San Ramon, Danville, and Carmel, California.
Give his tactics a try. They work. And they’re fun.
Again, “BombBomb has definitely changed my career.”
Anxious about Recording Video of Yourself?
That’s common. You may need to send a few videos before you get comfortable – practice builds confidence and confidence builds success.
And check out our free guide, “Overcome Your Fear and Start Winning with Video,” for tips, guidance, and examples.
Get it below!
[thrive_leads id=’21045′]
Send Video Free for 2 Weeks
Click here to try video email free for 2 weeks. Unlimited video sending to up to 50 people with access to all BombBomb tools and features. No credit card info required.
It’ll warm people up – and can follow up once they open your emails and play your videos.
Try BombBomb Free for 14 Days.
