How much should you be talking on a Sales call? I recently came across a post from SalesHacker, which suggested that “the best talk-to-listen ratio is 55%:45%.”

They went on to explain, “as a salesperson, you’re taught to do more listening than talking. This is true in some stages of the sales process, but not in a cold call. Gong.io says the most successful talk-to-listen ratio is 55% : 45%, with agents talking more than the prospect. A good rule of thumb is to prepare to carry the majority of the conversation and calibrate yourself to keep your talk level at just over half of the potential customer’s.”

I disagree!

We recommend a 70/30 ratio with the sales person doing only 30% of talking.

A Cold Call is a DISCOVERY call – the only way you will discover if it is worth scheduling an appointment with the prospect is if you let THEM do the talking!

Your job, when Cold Calling, is to engage the prospect in a conversation and ask key, probing questions to determine if they are a good fit for your product or services. To do that, you need to LISTEN more than talk.

Yes, you need to be prepared with questions but you need to be sure to leave time and room on the call to HEAR the answers.

How much should YOU be talking on a Sales call?

Here are some more posts and podcasts on this topic:

Active Listening: It is more than just hearing what your prospect is saying

Prepare for Cold Calling Success

My podcast with Laurel Bernstein on ‘How Active Listening Can Help You Sell More Effectively’

Need help mastering the art of Listening? Give us a call! Our time proven sales system will show you what to say, how and when to say it and how to really listen.

Contact me at 908.879.2911 or nancy@oneofakindsales.com to learn more and to get started TODAY!