subject: Top Telemarketing Speaker Identifies Cold Calling's Real Fear [print this page] Through the years a tremendous amount of ink and bandwidth have been dedicated to exploring the fear of cold-calling.
Some say it is all about the fear of rejection, that some take a "No!" so personally, that they crumble when encountering one.
I suppose this is true for novices to the world of work. When a booming voice tells you, "I don't appreciate being called like this!" it can sound like an earthshaking parental rebuke.
Ouch.
But I think salespeople with at least a little experience are more daunted by the fear that they're going to waste their time by smiling and dialing. Phoning a bunch of strangers out of the blue with an offer they never expected to hear, does not sound promising.
Of course, if we're ringing-up warm leads, people that read something about us or were referred by a current customer, that's different; at least we think. To an extent, they're pre-sold by the time they reach us. They're receptive, in the market for this or that.
Comparatively, initiating a relationship, even getting someone on the line, seems like a terribly tall mountain to climb, and the footing is shaky, at best. What good could come from that?
Actually quite a bit, in the right circumstances, but to appreciate the point we must get past our reservations and invest in the process of smiling and dialing. Dashing the thought, "This will never work!" is the first order of business, and if we cannot get past the inertial roadblock of doubt, cold calling definitely won't work, for us, at least.
Cold calling WILL waste your time if:
1. Prospects simply will not come to the line.
2. You're working a list of unqualified or inherently disinterested people. During the golden age of consumer calling, this meant contacting people that owned brick homes about investing in aluminum siding.
3. You're not ready to designate at least an hour or more at a time to the process.
4. You are improvising, radically changing your conversational approach from contact to contact.
5. The economics are out of whack, the math of success is skewed against your campaign. If it takes 100 hours of calling to simply achieve one appointment with a qualified buyer, and it takes three meetings to close a deal, and the profit from a closed deal from that source only amounts to $3,000, you're working for less than the minimum wage, when you factor in costs. Wouldn't it be faster to simply use advertising to lure in that buyer?
The fear of wasting your time with cold calling is, therefore, justified. It's real, unless and until you can establish that the process beats marketing alternatives.
On the other hand, the fear of rejection is a phantom, it is self-created, and it amounts to voluntary disablement.
If you suffer from the latter malady, then you may as well hang it up. While systematic desensitization and positive imagery might ameliorate your symptoms a little, it may not be worth your effort to overcome your negatives.
Pay someone else to do your dialing, or find a better way to open and close deals.
Dr. Gary S. Goodman is a top speaker, sales, service, and negotiation consultant, attorney, TV and radio commentator and the best-selling author of 12 books. He conducts seminars and speaks at convention programs around the world. His new audio program is Nightingale-Conant's "Crystal Clear Communication: How to Explain Anything Clearly in Speech & Writing." He can be contacted about professional speaking and consulting opportunities at gary@customersatisfaction.com.
Top Telemarketing Speaker Identifies Cold Calling's Real Fear
