Contrary to the popular perception, cold calling is not done for the purpose of sales only. For example, you may do cold calling for job search also ( this is also a form of sales, in which you are selling yourself/your skills as a product). But since you have not specified the purpose of cold calling, I will assume it is for the most common use, that is, sales.

Again, cold calling is not a method of generating sales per se. It is rather a method of lead generation. These leads may (or may not) later translate into sales.

Nowadays, there is a great debate on the effectiveness of cold calling as a method of generating leads. Also, it is one of the fastest methods for producing sales. Some people believe that cold calling is not effective as a tool. Yet, it must be understood that it is an effective tool, especially for someone who is new in the field, or for a fresh salesperson.

Some people have an inherent, natural ability to connect to other people. Generally they will be more succesfully in generating successful leads from cold calling. Even for other salespeople, there is no reason to lose hope or be discouraged. Cold calling is skill which can be learned with practice and patience. If you make enough calls, some are bound to succeed.

Perhaps the biggest stumbling block for people making cold calls is the fear of a negative response. For a society which is so much success oriented, no one likes to take 'no' for an answer.

If you want to succeed in your cold calling efforts, you may like to follow these steps:

1. Don't sell hard on the very first meeting. Rather, spend this time in forming a relationship with person that you are making the pitch to. Remember that you are talking to a person, and not an organization.
2. Try to understand the needs of the prospective buyer. See whether your product(s) meets those needs. If you feel that the buyer needs only a bit of advise, and not your product, do it. The prospect will appreciate this, and remember you the next time she actually needs a product.
3. Stress on the benefits that the product will give, rather than just listing the features of the product. If you are selling a fuel-efficient car, tell the customer that he will save 200 bucks per week. Don't just tell that it is a fuel efficient car. If possible, quantify the benefit. For example, tell the customer that your machine will slash 40% of the current printing costs.
4. Identify the core problem of the customer that needs a solution. Then fit your product as a solution to the problem. Most sales persons do it the other way around, which is the wrong way.
5. Last, but definitely not the least, know you product. And know it thoroughly. Besides preventing you from cutting a sorry figure in case the customer asks tough questions, it will also help in checking whether your product really presents a solution to her needs.

As a matter of fact, the above steps will help you not only during cold calls, but in every other method prospecting and generating of leads.

To conclude, it can be said that cold calling is one of the most feared and despised methods of lead generation. It need not be that way. As pointed out earlier, it has more to do with our fear of hearing a 'no' for an answer rather than anything else. To achieve greater success, cold calling can be combined with other sales methods. But it would be very wrong to just give up on this method. Just follow the above steps, and you can be on you way to greater success in your cold calling efforts.