Cold Email vs Cold Call: Which Is Best?
When it comes to sales and marketing, getting your message in front of potential customers is key. But with so many cold outreach strategies to choose from, how do you know which is best?
In this article, we'll dive deep into Cold Email vs. Cold Call to help you make an informed decision. We'll explore the effectiveness of cold calling and examine cold email success rates so you can better understand which approach may be right for you.
Let’s begin!
What Is Cold Email?
Cold email is a form of outreach where you send an unsolicited email to a potential client or customer. Unlike spam emails that end up in the spam folder, a cold email is tailored and often personalized to the recipient. The goal is to initiate a conversation and build a relationship. Cold emails are highly trackable, allowing you to measure metrics such as open rate and click-through rate.
According to studies, the average response rate for cold emails is between 1% and 5%, but with proper targeting and personalization, this can jump to 15-25%. Due to its digital nature, cold emails also offer the advantage of scalability, enabling you to reach a wider audience with less effort compared to cold calling.
What Is a Cold Call?
A cold call is a sales technique where a salesperson contacts potential customers without prior notice. It's a more traditional approach but still widely used. The effectiveness of cold calling varies; it's a method that often requires getting past gatekeepers like secretaries or voicemail.
It demands excellent timing to catch leads when they're available and receptive. Reports suggest that the success rate of cold calls is relatively low, around 0.3%. However, this number can improve significantly with a well-trained sales team that understands the needs of their prospects.
Cold calling allows for real-time conversation, enabling the sales rep to use their persuasion skills more effectively, particularly for complex or high-value sales.
Difference Between Cold Email and Cold Call
In the ever-changing landscape of sales and email marketing, it's crucial to understand the nuances of each outreach strategy to make the most informed decisions.
When comparing cold email vs. cold call, several factors come into play, such as personalization, response rate, gathering relevant information, reach, time commitment, buyer personality, trackability, and scalability.
Below is a comprehensive comparison:
1) Personalization:
Cold Email:
Personalization is easier to implement in cold emailing. One study found that personalized emails saw a 139% increase in click-through rates. With the use of technology, you can personalize the email body, subject line, and even the timing at which the email is sent, making the recipient feel like the message is just for them.
Cold Call:
Cold calls can also be personalized, but this generally happens in real-time and relies heavily on the skills of the sales representative. A skilled rep can build a rapport quickly, but the lead is less likely to feel personally targeted from the get-go.
2) Response Rate:
Cold Email:
Cold email success rates range between 1% and 5%. With the right strategy, however, the response time can rise up to 15-25%.
Cold Call:
Cold calls have a lower average success rate, around 0.3%. However, a study found that more than half of high-level buyers prefer receiving phone calls, which suggests that the effectiveness of cold calling can't be discounted.
3) Gathering Relevant Information:
Cold Email:
An advantage of cold emails is that they can be tracked, providing valuable insights like open rates and engagement, which help refine your approach.
Cold Call:
Cold calls offer the advantage of gathering real-time responses and objections, providing deeper insights into the buyer's pain points and needs.
4) Reach:
Cold Email:
Cold emails have a broader reach as you can send a batch of emails with a single click. They are less intrusive and allow the prospect to respond at their convenience.
Cold Call:
Cold calls are more geographically and temporally limited and are best suited for targeting local prospects during business hours.
5) Time Commitment:
Cold Email:
Cold emailing is generally less time-consuming, especially with cold email software that can automate much of the process.
Cold Call:
The average sales rep spends about seven minutes on a cold call, making it a more time-intensive approach.
6) Buyer Personality:
Cold Email:
Cold emails are ideal for those who prefer written communication and wish to review information at their own pace.
Cold Call:
Cold calls are more effective with prospects who prefer verbal communication and are more impulsive in their decision-making process.
7) Trackability:
Cold Email:
The digital nature of cold emailing allows for extensive tracking, from open rates to click-throughs and conversions.
Cold Call:
Trackability is limited to call logs and manually recorded outcomes, making it harder to analyze effectiveness in real time.
8) Scalability:
Cold Email:
Highly scalable, especially with the use of software tools that can send bulk personalized emails.
Cold Call:
Scaling cold-calling efforts often requires adding more personnel and can become increasingly complex and expensive.
By understanding these key differences, you can better gauge what might be more effective for your specific needs, whether it's cold emailing or cold calling. Given the effectiveness of cold calling in certain situations and the scalability of cold emails, a hybrid approach might be the most successful.
When to Choose Cold Emails?
Understanding when to opt for cold emailing over cold calling is crucial for maximizing the effectiveness of your cold email outreach efforts. Below are some scenarios where cold emails could be the better option:
1) When Scalability is a Priority:
Cold emailing is an excellent choice if you aim to reach out to many prospects without draining your human resources. Cold email software can automate your cold outreach campaigns, making them much more scalable.
2) When Personalization is Key:
Cold emailing allows you to research the potential client deeply and personalize your message. This is significant because the engagement rate rises when the email is tailored to meet the specific interests or needs of the recipient.
3) For Longer Sales Cycles:
In industries where the sales cycle is long, and decisions are made after detailed deliberation, cold emails give your prospects the time they need to evaluate your offer. It's easier to lay out complex information in an email, providing value to which the prospect can refer.
4) For a Global Audience:
Cold emailing can be more convenient if your target audience is located in different time zones. It allows the recipients to read and respond to your message at their leisure, thereby increasing your cold email success rate.
5) When Trackability is Crucial:
Cold emails provide better trackability options. You can use various tools to see who has opened your email, clicked on links, and more. This data can be essential for refining future cold prospecting email campaigns.
6) If Your Target Prefers Written Communication:
Some people prefer receiving information in written form so they can process it at their own pace. If your research indicates that your target audience prefers cold emailing, it becomes the more suitable outreach method.
7) For A/B Testing:
Cold email campaigns can be easily split-tested to see which messaging works best. This ability to test different approaches can provide invaluable insights into what resonates with your audience, thereby improving your cold email success rate.
By identifying which scenarios align with the use of cold emails, you can optimize your approach to fit your specific business needs and audience preferences.
When to Choose Cold Calls?
While cold email offers various advantages, there are situations where a cold call's immediate and personal nature trumps its digital counterpart.
Here are some scenarios where cold calls are more appropriate:
1) When Immediate Feedback is Necessary:
Cold calls are more effective in industries or situations where quick decisions are paramount. Speaking directly to the prospect allows for real-time problem-solving and closing deals quicker, thereby boosting the effectiveness of cold calling.
2) High-Level Executives as Targets:
A study has shown that more than half of high-level buyers prefer receiving a cold call over an email. If your target audience consists of C-suite executives, a cold call is often the best way to grab their attention.
3) When Selling a Complex Product or Service:
Some products or services must be simplified to adequately describe in an email. Cold calls offer the opportunity to provide a nuanced explanation and immediately address any questions, raising the cold call success rate for complex sales.
4) For Establishing an Immediate Connection:
Cold sales calls allow sales reps to build personal connections much quicker than sales emails. You can use voice intonation, pacing, and direct responses to establish rapport, which is often crucial in sales.
5) When Buyer Personality Prefers Voice Communication:
Some people prefer voice communication over written text. If your target audience has such a preference, cold calling will resonate more with them, leading to higher engagement rates.
6) When Reaching Out to Local Businesses:
If your target audience is small, local businesses, a cold call can often feel more personal and appropriate than an email. The effectiveness of cold calling often increases with the level of personal connection you can establish.
7) In Follow-up to a Cold Email:
Sometimes, the best approach is a mixed one. After sending a cold prospecting email, a cold call can help push the prospect further down the sales funnel by immediately addressing any questions or reservations they may have.
By understanding when to utilize cold calls, you can tailor your outreach methods to suit the nature of your product, service, and target audience, optimizing your cold call success rate.
Cold Email or Cold Call: Which Sales Strategy Should You Choose?
In summary, choosing between cold email and cold call strategies will depend on your specific needs and resources.
Cold Emails
Ideal for scalability and reaching a larger audience, especially when time resources are limited. They offer straightforward trackability and are well-suited for an audience that prefers less direct engagement.
Cold Calls
Best for immediate feedback and establishing strong relationships. They require more time and effort but can result in quicker decision-making and are more suitable for an audience that values direct, real-time interaction.
Your decision should hinge on your team's strengths, your product or service type, and your target audience's preferences. Often, a hybrid approach—initial outreach through cold emails followed by cold calls for closing deals—yields the best results.
By making an informed choice between these two strategies, you'll optimize the effectiveness of your sales efforts.
