One of my biggest phobias is making cold telephone calls. This includes following up on leads. I've been that way my whole life. I don't mind sending an email and I can walk up to a perspective client at a party or event and start a conversation but the thought of making a phone call makes me nervous. Fortunately for me Rose can call and start a conversation with just about anybody.
On this subject is another good read from Manta,
https://www.manta.com/resources/small-business-experts/how-much-is-call-reluctance-costing-you/?
I hate receiving "cold calls", so I'm not sending any.
I would feel funny doing it. I would feel like I'm sounding desperate.
Only once in my career did business slow down to the point that I had to "shake the bushes" to drum up some work. I put flyers on doors in a few choice neighborhoods, and called on a few restaurants that had a lot of torn booths. All in all, it netted me almost nothing in return. Business picked back up on it's own, and I never even thought about doing that again.
When I receive "cold call" emails, I immediately mark them as spam and delete them without reading a single word. I recently fired Tru-Green from doing my lawn because I got tired of all their "up-sell" phone calls offering various services additional to regular lawn treatment.
Basically, the quickest way to NOT get my business is to call me.
Kody I hate that stuff too. Don't know why, really.
I had a friend some time ago, his job was to cold call all day long and try to get products into stores. He just had that kind of persona. And a pot of coffee in the morning, too
But if you're wife is good at it and doesn't mind it, then let her.
There are ways to practice though. A book rec'd to me by another a very long time ago: 'how to win friends and influence people'. This is one of my key books that I will always keep and refer to.
I don't need to cold call so I don't. But if I needed to cold call to get business, there would not be a better cold calling upholsterer than me. And there would not be an upholsterer who hates cold calling more than me.
(I have a sales and sales management background where I think I was a fairly good salesman.)
I hated cold calling so much that I got very good at it. I had a script. My goal was to get you off the phone as quick as possible after finding out if you used or needed my product or service. If you wanted to talk now, great. If not, I'll call you in a month or two or three or whatever the time frame I was working with, when you might be interested in my product or services at that time. I graded my prospects A, B, C, D, and F. The A's were closest to becoming a customer. I had a filing system and then use a computer program to keep track of all my phone calls. I always called back when I said I would.
I started my career by selling insurance. My instructor told me NOT to sell to my family and friends. He said that if I learned how to cold call, I would always have prospects to turn into customers. If I only hit on my family and friends, I would soon run out of prospects and then not know how to get more prospects.
My goal of cold calling was never to sell anything. It was to gather information about you or your company in regards to my product or service as quickly as possible to show you respect for your time. If I thought you might be a viable prospect I always let you know I would call again in the future.
A successful cold call was one where I qualified you as a prospect and I had a date on my schedule to call you again.
Cold calling B2B still has some viability today but cold calling people at home is not something that works very well. We're just too overwhelmed with advertising and selling of all kinds.
Hey, I'm starting to miss the cold sweats, anxiety attacks, and overwhelming rejection I used to feel when I cold called. Maybe I'll make a few calls tomorrow? :-)
gene
All contributors of this post, is convincing how good all you business people are at what you do - running
your business. It is reluctance but smart!
That is why you are running a good business. You speak well of our industry and will be successful in
your activity.
I agree with all of you.
Doyle