You will be able to open a cold call with who you are, a request for permission, a reason and a question.
Think about the last time an unknown number called you during work. You picked up, heard "Hello, sir, how are you today?" in a voice that was clearly reading, and you were already reaching for an excuse. The caller had lost you before saying what they wanted, and nothing they said after that had a chance.
People decide in the first few seconds whether to stay on a cold call. That means the opening is the part of the call most worth preparing. This lesson gives you an opening in four parts, who you are, a request for permission, a reason and a question, and the whole thing fits inside thirty seconds.
One thing before you dial. If you are calling a Singapore number to promote something, the Do Not Call rules in module 5 apply. Read lesson 5.1, What the Do Not Call Registry covers and how to check it, before you call anyone from a new list.
Say your name and your company in one breath, then the buyer's name. "Hi, it's Mei, I run a bookkeeping practice for cafe groups. Is this Jason?"
The order matters. Leading with your name tells them a real person is on the line. Saying the buyer's name back, as a light question, confirms you have the right person and shows them this is not a recording reading out a script to thousands. It also gives them a natural thing to say: "Yes, speaking."
Skip "How are you today?" from someone they do not know. It sounds polite on paper, but on the phone it sounds like the start of a sales routine, and the person on the other end starts bracing for a pitch.
Next, admit what this is and ask for a little time. "I know I'm calling out of the blue. Could I take thirty seconds to tell you why, and then you can tell me if it's worth carrying on?"
This feels backwards to many new callers. Surely pointing out that it is a cold call makes it easier to hang up? In practice the reverse tends to happen. The buyer already knows it is a cold call. Pretending otherwise makes you sound like every other caller trying to sneak past their guard. Saying it plainly, and handing them control over whether to continue, lowers that guard more than any clever line.
Most people say yes, or "Okay, go on." When the answer is "I'm busy", turn to lesson 3.3, The first brush-off and what to say next.
Keep the promise. If you asked for thirty seconds, use thirty seconds.
Now give one sentence about why you are calling them, specifically. "I saw you're opening a fourth outlet next month, and founders I work with often find that's when month-end starts taking whole weekends."
The reason is about them: a trigger from lesson 1.3, or a problem that people in their position commonly have. It is not a description of your product. "We offer full bookkeeping, payroll and GST filing services" is a sentence about you, and the buyer has no reason to care about it yet.
One reason is enough. Lesson 3.2, A reason for calling that is about them, goes deeper into writing reasons that land.
End the opening with one open question about their situation that is easy to answer. "How are you handling the books at the moment with three outlets?"
Easy matters. The question should be about something they know without thinking, so they can answer straight away. "What are your strategic finance priorities this year?" makes them work. "Who does your month-end now?" does not.
Open matters too. A yes-or-no question such as "Would you be interested in bookkeeping help?" invites a no and ends the call. A question that starts with how, what or who invites them to talk, and once they are talking about their own situation you are having a conversation instead of making a pitch.
Then stop and listen. The question only works if you let the silence sit until they fill it.
Here is Darren's version for a young parent he was introduced to through a mutual friend, who agreed he could call:
"Hi, it's Darren, I'm a financial adviser. Is this Nadia? Siti said you'd be okay with a call. Could I take thirty seconds to explain why, and you tell me if it's useful? Siti mentioned your first baby just arrived, and new parents often tell me they haven't had time to check their cover. How have you been thinking about that?"
All four parts are there. It is warmer than a true cold call because of the introduction, but the structure holds either way. At about sixty words, it fits inside thirty seconds at an unhurried pace.
Your first version will be too long. Most are. Read it aloud with a timer, cut every word that is about you rather than them, and read it again. The activity below asks you to do exactly that for one of your personas.
Write your four-part opener for one persona and read it aloud with a timer until it runs under thirty seconds.
Junxiong-WFG Organisation is an authorised representative of AIA Financial Advisers Private Limited (Reg. No. 201715016G).