In class today, we knocked on the door of Prospecting which led us to driving down the road and exploring Cold Calling. We talked about how Prospecting is definitely not the most glamorous part of the sales process and how it’s a game of numbers. Numbers, numbers, numbers are what Cold Calling is built upon because without making call after call, you won’t get results. Cold Calling requires repetition, patience, persistence, and a good attitude because without it, rejections will begin to sting more and more.
This past summer, I had the opportunity to do a lot of Cold Calling from inside the office and on the road visiting businesses. Cold Calling in the office is one game completely different from Cold Calling on the road because both require different tactics with different end goals in mind. When it came to being on the road walking into businesses, my job was to drop my card, some information, and grab the name of the gatekeeper or a decision-maker who I, or my manager, could then have a conversation with about their business. The goal was to increase overall awareness of our products and services so if and when the need arose, my card would be the first on their desk.
Walking into businesses was intimidating, getting out of the car was the first battle, but the follow-up is where the games began. 24-48 hours later, I would try reaching out again either with a phone call or an e-mail, depending on the experience, hoping to receive a response later in the week. Honestly, sometimes you would receive leads that seemed promising but ended up being dead ends. Other times, I’d sit at my desk after a follow-up and hope they would call me just once. After a round on the road, the fun never ends because you’re planning your next road trip and mapping out everywhere you believe qualified customers may be located; hence the process of prospecting.
Cold Calling is hard and sometimes not fun, but it’s a necessary evil in generating new business.
BoweryJE22
Super creative title, Sam! It is encouraging that you had a positive experience with cold calling, despite sometimes facing rejection. However, I wouldn’t classify it as a necessary evil in business. Maybe an annoyance, but because it has the potential to generate new business you could look at it as being a necessary privilege to get to discover and serve new clients.
It’s a shame that cold calling isn’t more fun, but I love how you were able to keep a positive attitude while doing it! Also, I like your insight on some leads seeming promising, but in the end not being so great. Good lesson.
I’ve got to be honest. Your title drew me in! Super creative. I am absolutely terrified of cold calling, so I agree that it could be categorized as a necessary evil! I loved the part of your post where you said: “Cold Calling requires repetition, patience, persistence, and a good attitude because without it, rejections will begin to sting more and more.” In so many areas of business, we are required to have these qualities and it seems like you really grew in those areas through your experience!