Tips for Cold Calling

I am a little weird and actually enjoy Cold Calls! The great thing about them is they are great practice for selling. Sometimes you get lucky--or is it skill? Well, lets look at some tips on cold calls.

*Be persistent when cold calling.
"Eighty percent of new sales are made after the fifth contact, yet the majority of sales people give up after the second call" (AllBusiness.com).

*Prepare an opening statement for your cold call.
This lets you organize your thoughts before cold calling, and helps you avoid common mistakes in the cold call opening that would give the person you're calling the chance to terminate the conversation. For instance, you should never ask, "Is this a good time to talk?" or "How are you today?"

Ok, so this sounds nice, but how does this look?