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Why are people against taking cold calls more often than before? Are you scared to speak?
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10 Answers
What I think is really interesting about this question is that you mention 'more often than before'. This is where I think the answer (or one answer) lies. 'Before', although unspecified, evokes a time of fewer choices and less efficiency. Particularly in the context of sales and business, "before" all we had was telephones. Slowly over the last 10-20 years, new platforms have emerged that endow 'contact' a full spectrum of options. Whereas before, we had phones; we now have cell phones, e-mail, social media, social media messaging, chat, etc. There are now so many ways to communicate, that it creates a sort of queue in which we allocate who contacts how and when and how we may or may not choose to respond. This array of options makes cold calling a tough business for those doing it, simply because the prospect is less likely to devote the time to someone they don't know. Perhaps they're open to an e-mail, but taking a phone call from an unknown source becomes less likely to be the first preference, given the other means now available.
More often than not I'm simply too busy to spend 5-10 minutes on the phone discussing a product/service that I've never been previously introduced to. My personal preference is to conduct most discussions via email, so I'd prefer an introductory email with the offer to schedule a phone call in the future.
Over the years my role has been making outbound B2B cold calls and receiving alot of calls as well. In recent times I have really started to gear my prospective contacts to those in the market for X product. The reason for this is my observations found with information so readily available doing product research / being introduced to products is easier then before. Once committing to research the next stage is connecting with those companies which seem to be the fit. Taking a cold call about a product or service I may not be looking for or currently interested is viewed more as in interruption to take me off current task. So unless it is something on the plate today, convenient timing, there is very little opportunity to grab my attention.
People don't need another stalker - that's the main reason. If you engage with someone who is cold calling you then you're in for a series of phone calls which pressure for meetings. I make cold calls and also receive them... Cold calling is necessary but the few that do it badly and apply pressure set the tone for those of us who try to add value.
And my pet hate? Those who ask "How are you today?". It's not sincere.
Having listened to over 25,000 recorded prospecting calls from salespeople, the reason is clear to me. Why do they fail? Because of their unprofessional approach that lacks respect for the prospects' time and is all about the salesperson instead of offering a powerful value proposition to their potential clients. See more about prospecting and sales skills at http://www.telemasters.net/blog/
In the past, one of the primary ways a prospect could learn about a product or service was through the sales rep. Today, www.google.com provides you the buyer with more intel than the sales rep may even have!
When a sales rep calls, and it is clear that I can get more info on google.com, I will not invest my time to talk to that person, and I'll research on my own. Or I'll try to get to a Director or VP who can have a business conversation with me.
My advice to sales professionals. Send an email, AND leave a voice mail. Voicemail should be
Everyone has a lot to do and not enough time to do it.
I think in the past many felt forced to listen to cold calls, but today with the power of the internet people will look information up and contact the ones they want offers from.
With that said, I do not believe Cold Calling to be dead. It is a great way to find leads.
It just takes that you are a little quicker to the punch, a little more interesting and do it well.
It's nothing to do with people being scared. It's the job of the gate keeper to stop sales calls from businesses. Most people who cold call are in too much of a hurry to make sale or speak to the right person. Sometimes it takes more than one call before you get through to the right person. The best salespeople are easy to spot because they come across more trustworthy. See a post that I created on cold calling, http://blog.bobetherington.com/cold-call
I think there are several factors going on here:
1. A great many decision makers have determined that answering cold calls are just a huge waste of their time. There are more people cold calling today than at any time in the past, meaning that decision makers are getting more calls than ever before. Many decision makers are getting 5 to 10 or more cold calls a day. If each call takes 5 minutes out of their day (answering the phone, listening for a few seconds, saying no, getting their concentration back to where they were before the call), those cold calls could eat up three to five hours a week of their time—all to have maybe one conversation that is of interest to them. Far too much time wasted for little gain.
2. Most all of the calls sound alike—we’re great; we can solve your problems; I just want 10 minutes of your time; we’re number 1; we work with companies just like yours; etc. Answering dozens of phone calls from salespeople who don’t know what they’re doing—again, far too much of a waste of time.
3. The biggest issue—a great many buyers no longer need salespeople until way late into their decision making process and by that time they have a pretty good idea who the players are and who they might want to talk to. Damn internet! It used to be that salespeople were the dispensers of knowledge, now it isn’t uncommon to find buyers who know considerably more than the salesperson they’re dealing with.
4. Decision makers are just beat to death with marketing—from the time their clock/radio goes off in the morning till they turn off the TV just before bed, they’re inundated with a constant barrage of sales pitches. Their defense? Ignore them all.
Certainly there is a place for cold calling, but I think most of us need to find better methods of finding and connecting with quality prospects—ways that they will accept, respect, and respond to.
Jayson, I'm not afraid to speak. In fact, I love to speak.
But I hate being interrupted by a strangers that are more interested in a short-term quota than a long-term relationship.
Here's how I see it, and I suspect I'm not alone....
Companies that push their sales reps to cold call, without first approaching me through less intrusive and commonly-available channels like email, are uniformed, rude or outdated (or a combination of the three!).
Why would I want to give my time or money to a company that's rude and outdated?
Before a sales manager pushes his people to call prospects, he or she should be sure that two things have already occured:
1. The prospect has been made aware of your company and your value proposition, via another channel.
2. The sales rep has researched the prospect well enough to carry on a meaningful conversation.
If you launch directly into cold calling, you may even be hurting your brand.
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