Awkward Cold Call

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sales Pro 1000

I've not thought of a business telephone call as an invasion of privacy I guess. To me it's much the same as the front door of the business. During business hours it's open.

Chuck

The problem is the prospect doesn't see it that way. The analogy is wrong.

If I walk through the front door of your office, I'm seeking information. I'm inviting you to talk to me. If you call me without an invitation, it's an unwelcome invasion into my space. If you walk into my office uninvited to sell me something, I have every right to have my receptionist politely decline your request to see me. It's my office, not yours. You've invited yourself into my space. The same goes if you call me. You've invited yourself in--which doesn't mean you're welcome.

The biggest problem with cold calling is that most people calling simply waste the prospect's time. Consequently, prospects have been taught that salespeople are time wasters and to avoid them. Prospects don't have their calls screened or refuse to return unsolicited voice messages to intentionally be rude, they do it because they've been taught that answering the calls or returning the call wastes a lot of their time. Unfortunately, that means even the salespeople who call who have learned how to bring real value to the conversation suffer.

If I get unwanted email, it's called SPAM.

If I get unwanted phone solicitations, I consider it the same as SPAM.

The person who called me was contacting me about a possible joint venture. As this is a business opportunity, and we both belong to the same JV club, there was no reason to block his number.

Also, had he started the call with an introduction and told me he was a part of the JV group, it would have created a much better impression.

I contact people all the time about JV's. I usually send a letter with a note that I will follow up with a phone call. That way, they're expecting my call.

Susan

I think maybe we're getting somewhere with this thread. The reason I'm massaging it is that the circumstances you've described here are major obstacles in the quest to selling goods and services to strangers.

Knowing how to deal with these issues can make a big difference in one's paycheck. That difference could be between being a clerk at a big box store for $7 and hour or making $100K a year is a real fine line.

The thread originally started out being the subject of caller ID not being visible.

My position is that if the caller had been schooled in the fine art of cold calling on the telephone the blocked caller ID could have been a non-issue.

The spread between what can be considered spam and not spam is also a very fine line and those of us in the selling profession need to understand how this works.

Before we can apply our selling skills we need to work through this barrier by honing our skills.

Chuck

My position is that if the caller had been schooled in the fine art of cold calling on the telephone the blocked caller ID could have been a non-issue.

I've never received any training on telephone cold calling. That's why I send letters and tell the prospect that I'll be calling. Gives them some advance notice.

Susan

You can't lose what you don't have.

Who among us has such a short prospecting list that it matters whether any given prospect answers their phone or not? A sufficient percentage will answer.

Just make the calls, handle those that answer expertly, and you will always have an abundance of High Probability appointments.

	#22
susana	If I get unwanted email, it's called SPAM. If I get unwanted phone solicitations, I consider it the same as SPAM. The person who called me was contacting me about a possible joint venture. As this is a business opportunity, and we both belong to the same JV club, there was no reason to block his number. Also, had he started the call with an introduction and told me he was a part of the JV group, it would have created a much better impression. I contact people all the time about JV's. I usually send a letter with a note that I will follow up with a phone call. That way, they're expecting my call. Susan __________________ *Join my new blog: www.sellingtotheaffluent.net* *www.susanadamshome.com*

	#23
Sales Pro 1000	I think maybe we're getting somewhere with this thread. The reason I'm massaging it is that the circumstances you've described here are major obstacles in the quest to selling goods and services to strangers. Knowing how to deal with these issues can make a big difference in one's paycheck. That difference could be between being a clerk at a big box store for $7 and hour or making $100K a year is a real fine line. The thread originally started out being the subject of caller ID not being visible. My position is that if the caller had been schooled in the fine art of cold calling on the telephone the blocked caller ID could have been a non-issue. The spread between what can be considered spam and not spam is also a very fine line and those of us in the selling profession need to understand how this works. Before we can apply our selling skills we need to work through this barrier by honing our skills. Chuck

	#25
JacquesWerth	You can't lose what you don't have. Who among us has such a short prospecting list that it matters whether any given prospect answers their phone or not? A sufficient percentage will answer. Just make the calls, handle those that answer expertly, and you will always have an abundance of High Probability appointments.

Awkward Cold Call

Sales Approach