In this episode of Tech Sales Insights, Randy Seidl interviews Greg Casale and Ryan Reisert about the importance of live conversations in sales. They discuss the metrics of conversations versus dials, the effectiveness of cold calling, and the impact of local dialers. They also emphasize the need for personalized and targeted outreach and the importance of training and skill development for successful outbound calling. Ryan shares a study from Outreach, a billion-dollar valuation company, which suggests that after 250 deliveries, a 12% top-line response can be expected when using email and LinkedIn, compared to a 20-40% connect rate when solely using cold calling. Greg emphasizes the importance of setting realistic expectations and understanding the specific connect rates for your industry and target audience. They also discuss the qualities and training needed for successful outbound calling, including the ability to stick with the process and build muscle memory. Greg highlights that competitiveness is not the only factor for success, and introverts can excel in outbound calling due to their analytical and listening skills. They also touch on the effectiveness of phone-ready leads in increasing connect rates, with Ryan explaining that their process involves identifying signals that indicate a higher likelihood of reaching prospects. KEY TAKEAWAYS Live conversations are essential for sales success as they allow for meaningful interactions with prospects. The connect rate for cold calling is typically between 2% and 12%, depending on the industry and target audience. Local dialers can be effective in some cases, but the advantage has diminished over time as people have become more accustomed to receiving sales calls on their mobile phones. It is important to set realistic expectations for outbound calling and understand the specific connect rates for your industry and target audience. The qualities needed for successful outbound calling include the ability to stick with the process and build muscle memory. Introverts can excel in outbound calling due to their analytical and listening skills. Phone-ready leads can significantly increase connect rates by identifying signals that indicate a higher likelihood of reaching prospects. QUOTES "Nothing converts better than a live conversation." - Ryan Reisert "You want to build enough of a statistical database to know what the connect rate is for your persona in a company of the size you're trying to reach." - Greg Casale Find out more about Greg and Ryan through the links below: Greg Casale: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregcasale/ Ryan Reisert: https://www.linkedin.com/in/salesdevelopmentrepresentative/ This episode of Tech Sales Insights is brought to you by: Sales Community: https://www.salescommunity.com/ Sandler: https://www.sandler.com/