There is a trend these days to trash cold calling. The word is that cold calling is old fashioned and a waste of time; it's dead and it plain just doesn't work. (Ha! Tell that to all the entrepreneurs and sales professionals - myself included - who have built entire businesses from prospecting by phone.) This pronouncement is usually followed by a pitch for a revolutionary new approach that will quickly and automatically catapult the reader into a league above their competition. Please don't be taken in by all the hype.
As a matter of fact, a study by the Direct Marketing Association found that telemarketing was first in terms of average response rates and return on investment. The study found:
'For the second year in a row, telemarketing had the best response rates, with the average at 5.78 percent. Dimensional mail, catalog and direct mail were the next highest, at 2.3 percent, 2.18 percent and 1.88 percent, respectively.' (excerpted from DMNews.com, October 18th, 2004)
This 'No More Cold Calling' frenzy is fundamentally dishonest and misses the point. The bottom line is that no matter where you find a lead, whether from networking or a referral (or even if someone calls you), at some point you will need to speak with that person on the telephone. If you don't do a good job of that, you won't get the customer.
What we're really talking about is a communication skill, the ability to speak with someone that you don't know or don't know very well and have them understand your message and the value you offer. If you have this skill, it doesn't matter what you choose to label the call (i.e., cold call, warm call etc.)
Many people are genuinely afraid and/or at least uncomfortable picking up the telephone to speak with people they don't know. That is real. Much of this fear stems from the terrible stereotype associated with sales and telemarketing. This stereotype is the myth of the old style, back slapping, glad handing sales man who would sell his mother for a buck if the opportunity presented itself.
So who are these dinosaurs? And where are they? In the almost 20 years I've been working with sales people (and the even more years I've been buying from sales people), I've never met one. Yes, I've met sales people I didn't care for and sales people who were not particularly good at their jobs. But the evil, manipulative, sleazy salesperson of our national myth--I haven't met him. The reality is, he's the boogieman and he doesn't exist.
Instead of preying on people's fears, it is a trainer's responsibility to help clients get beyond their fear and find a communication style that is comfortable and that works for them.
Let's honor those who fearlessly use the telephone to build their businesses. That's why I'm creating 'National Be Nice to Cold Callers Day.' It will be a day to acknowledge business owners, entrepreneurs and sales professionals who prospect and sell by telephone. It will be a day signifying that people who cold call are part of an honorable and ethical profession. And it will be a day to show that cold calling is not only a viable way to develop a business, it is actually the most effective way to develop new business.
'National Be Nice to Cold Callers Day' is January 30th, coincidentally the same day that 'Cold Calling College-Live' begins. Join me in celebrating 'National Be Nice to Cold Callers Day' by enrolling in 'Cold Calling College-Live' to develop your telephone prospecting skills so that you can talk to any prospect anytime, anywhere. http://queenofcoldcalling.com/nationalbenice/
The Queen's Rant