Is Cold-Calling Still Effective?

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It seems as if the era of cold-calling has passed... or am I just doing it wrong?

I've called plenty of businesses over the past week and I'm either just ringing through, or people aren't interested at all.

I understand it's a numbers game.. but is it still viable? Is anyone else having success with cold calls?
#offline marketing #coldcalling #effective
  • I think it still can be, depends on what you are selling. If you do your research and come up with a targeted list of customers you can win with it. If your selling things people need they will listen from there it is up to you to close the sale.
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    • And that's the point one should remember before selling products & services using the cold calling techniques.
  • For some reason, about once a year, this identical question gets asked, and the same answers are given.

    Enjoy.
    https://www.warriorforum.com/offline...ctiveness.html
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    • Ah yes. I see it was the OLD ME who responded back then, when I was gjabiz, but know that Infocision is still making millions with cold calling. And many others are banging it out of the park too.

      The era of cold calling HAS passed, for those who can't do it.

      Maybe they aren't interested in what you are offering because __________ ?

      Don't want, don't need, you haven't given them a good reason?

      Of course, choosing the WHAT to sell goes a long way toward cold calling efficacy.

      With the restaurant Chalk Boards business, there is little sales resistance, because it is FREE. So that takes the fear out of cold calling, which is one of the main reasons why some struggle with it, they stink of desperation for a sale, which turns everyone off.

      If anyone has had success in the past, they will succeed today. It is, after all, just talking to people. Talk in a way that INTERESTS THEM.

      Speak to their needs, wants, what is in it for them...and it will always be a good time to make cold calls, simply because, MOST can't.

      Or don't know how.

      GordonJ
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  • I think it can be still viable if you can get people to pick up the phone. There's not a lot a cold caller can do to increase their rate of pick ups. Back in the day, everyone answered their phone. Then caller ID came out and most would still answer, but would take a couple rings longer to see who was calling. Then people would block their numbers, but people would still answer for fear of missing an important call.

    Now though? Wow...no one enjoys talking on the phone. Most people don't have a landline anymore. Most cell phones are on silent or vibrate so they won't be disturbed watching Netflix. Even if the person WANTS to talk to the incoming caller, they will still let it ring out and call back a little later when they're completely free.

    The way we communicate now is through text and email because no one wants to talk on the phone. So, if you can someone get someone to pick up the phone, that's half the battle won right there.
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    • If you sell to businesses, they still pick up the phone. Old people still pick up the phone.

      And cold calling to residents is going to get you a lot of dials, and only a few phone presentations/appointments.

      Nowadays either the consumer (if you sell to a consumer) either requests information first (easy to do with direct mail, Facebook, or PPC ads), or they have bought from your company before.

      But selling to business owners? They still answer the phone.
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    • Cold Calling is a method of the past. Humans are very intelligemnt these days. If the phone they carry in their pocket and text with and surf the net with every single day begins to ring during their very hectic life. Someone they know better be on the other end. I personally get a minimum of ten calls every single day. If you answer the phone with a single "Hello!" the phone will drop your call. But if you say "Hello,...Hello" then this will connect you directly with a random caller who is sitting in the call center.
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  • Cold calling used to work 10 years back but not these days however, the niche you are pitching to and your services might make an impact.

    Good luck.
  • To say thing like "it still works, only cowards do not like it...blah,blah.."

    It might still work but is it as easy as it was 10,20,30 years ago? No way. It got saturated. It got harder. They tuned out.

    The world is forever changing....old school sales tactics of the 40-50's were not as effective in the 80,90's etc....it evolved and i think the time of the cold call is coming to an end.
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    • What has changed is that now consumers have a Do Not Call List...and caller ID. And businesses get lots of recorded calls.

      But callers also have access to dialing software. Cold callers have access to better qualified lists with names of who to contact. The game changes, but human nature doesn't.

      Cold calling is essentially just talking to strangers, whether it's by phone, e-mail, in person....it works well enough to do...but there are better ways.


      "it still works, only cowards do not like it...blah,blah.."


      Most of the people I hear disparaging it are either people who don't do it, or people that are tired of getting calls.

      On the other hand, the vast majority of people who cold call on the phone are terrible at it, and are trained by others that are terrible at it (or not trained at all). So it usually ends up being a thoroughly unpleasant chore for the caller, and mental torture for the person called.

      And, although these are plenty of examples of companies making cold calls work. There are so many other prospecting methods that are far more pleasant and effective...I wonder why people still cold call strangers.

      Added later; I decided to actually count the number of robo calls I got yesterday. 14. Mostly selling some form of online listing or SEO services. And..about half say nothing, because of the way I answer the phone. (or I hang up before the call is transferred).
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  • It still works, but isn't anywhere near as effective as it used to be. I still get cold calls, but they are mostly auto dialers and I always hang up on them.

    You should take the time to learn marketing so you can be the welcomed guest, not the uninvited pest.

    Of all the "old school" things I still do, I would say that direct mail is still the most effective.

    Just my two cents.
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    • I agree completely. In fact, the single greatest jump I ever got in sales was when I started applying marketing principles to selling.

      And most people I know that "cold call" today, are actually calling leads that were generated by direct mail, PPC ads, or Facebook ads. To me, not really cold leads at all.

      And the direct mail leads are always more solid than those gathered online.

      Yup, if you can get them to call you first, for any reason, the dynamic is completely changed in your favor. One way to simulate this when cold calling is to call leads that are made up of past customers...or customers of competitors.

      A list of buyers (of just about anything related to your offer) greatly increases your odds of them buying from you.


      And......when I said that the single greatest jump I ever got in sales was when I started applying marketing principles to selling? It also goes that for marketers, the biggest jumps will come when they learn how to sell face to face.

      I was at a Dan Kennedy event when he was talking about copywriters. He said (from the stage) that he would rather have a 53 year old vacuum cleaner salesman write the copy "Because he knows how to sell something". He was talking about me, as we talked about it earlier that day.

      A related insight was (when I was speaking to a group of advertising salespeople), that their most profitable expertise would be if they learned how to create ads that sell something. An almost universal travesty is that ad salespeople never learn how to advertise. If they did, they would never have to cold call, because the demand for their services would never stop.

      My 2 cents.
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  • cold calling will always work.

    In my opinion cold calling is better than email marketing.

    Don't expect to make high ticket sales without making phone calls.

    Even if you've tried cold calling and not working for you, you should of course try a new strategy.

    But cold calling isn't dead, it works all the time. it's just a numbers game, you can't close everyone.
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  • If cold calling is dead how come here in NJ at least 3-4 companies are advertising on Craigslist looking to hire people. If these business are dying, they would be laying off instead of hiring. Just my .02
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  • Why not?
    Cold Calling belongs to outbound marketing. However, internet marketing belongs to inbound marketing.
    Obviously combine both of them are the best solutions.
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  • Cold calling can work, of course.

    I've found when you take the time to identify those businesses who need your services, that's clearly half the battle. Then, I make sure my spiel is short, sweet and offers a benefit that causes the person to either listen more and engage in the conversation, or ask if I could call back at a better time.

    Or, they simply aren't interested.

    Move on.
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  • Cold calling is effective but based on the products what you are selling, nowadays people them self search on google and get product instead of waiting for any calls.
  • I think that it can be effective, but sometimes it's just a waste of time. It's better analyze your target audience and improve your service.
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  • I do cold calling extensively, and it can be very effective for driving new business. For example, after a successful sale in a home or business, my team hits up several homes/businesses in the area with our network marketing products and/or opportunity. We collect phone numbers and referrals for followup calls. There is almost no competition.
  • I tried cold calling once, even had a small team to do the calls.
    Totally hated it. The response was very low, and expenses high.

    I do not recommend it to anyone
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    • I used to cold call to set appointments. And i hired people to cold call for me...again, to set appointments. these were true cold calls out of the phone book (remember those?)

      When I made the calls (after several years selling) about one out of four people I talked to made an appointment with me. They weren't interested in my product, but they wanted a gift I was offering them for their time. It was a bribe. And it worked.

      When I hired appointment setters to make the same calls...the same script...to the same people..they would average one appointment an hour..or about a 6% set rate. It was miserable work for them. And it was miserable for me to listen to them on the phone.

      I started getting referrals from my customers. These were names of people that had already agreed to see me, to help their friend (my customer) earn a premium (maybe a $300 value).

      At first, I just dropped by their home to show my product. Usually, they wold let me in right then. And they (if they bought too) would give me names of referrals that they would talk to before I dropped by.

      To save time, I started calling these referrals, to make an appointment. I ended up, after several months, with hundreds of referrals that already agreed to see me...and my schedule was packed all day and every evening.

      So I had the brilliant idea to hire someone to call all of these people who had already agreed to see me....so I would be free to just go on appointments.

      Can anyone guess what happened?

      In less than a week she burned through all of my names. By the next week, I had no appointments with referrals, and lots of customers that were expecting a premium, but didn't have the referral appointments to earn it.

      I had to fire the girl (who had no idea she had killed my business), and start over again.

      Soooo what did Claude learn? Call your own damn referrals. 80% of the referrals I got, agreed to a presentation...and 80% of those people bought. Never trust anyone else to call them.

      There are lots of industries that buy leads . These are people that have expressed at least a mild interest in what's being sold, and are expecting a salesperson to call. These leads cost anywhere from $20-$40 each. Personally, I'd never trust these leads to a caller working for me. At $20 a name, I'd call myself.
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  • In my journey, indeed, my call is rejected by all of my contact list. No one want to answer my calling.
  • Isn't cold calling illegal?

    Isn't it mostly WASTE OF TIME?

    If I ever get a cold call i always think "yeah your service/product is sooo great you have to revert to cold calling to get customers..." Not a great start.

    Does it work? Course it does.....Should you do it?
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    • What law is being broken by calling someone or a business?

      It's definitely a waste of time for those who don't know how to do it effectively. There are many in here who are good at it though. The same can be said for most online methods of making money...a LOT of people don't make any money or even lose money online. Some would say that's also a waste of time...but ask the right people and I don't think they'd agree.

      Maybe you've never been offered a product or service that you actually wanted or needed? I don't think you'd feel that way if it was something unique or the person selling was nice and not aggressive, and you actually wanted or needed it.
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    • No.



      Yes, just like all prospecting/marketing. Most direct mail is thrown away unread. Most phone calls don't get through, most e-mails are ignored.



      Almost nobody thinks that. You may think that, but customers don't.


      Should?
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  • I think the biggest mistakes amateurs make in cold calling is they try to be coy and attempt a sale on the first call.

    Always be upfront and open the call with your full name and company name.

    Avoid asking time-wasting questions (how are you, is this a good time, blah blah blah)

    You've got less than 20 seconds to present your offer, so make a big and bold claim about your product or service.

    Close for an appointment, demonstration, or followup call - never try to directly sell on the first call.

    If there is no answer, always leave an engaging voice mail message, with full contact information, including website.

    Be prepared to be googled. They will check you out.

    In my not so humble opinion, cold calling is perhaps among the top strategies for quick traction and lasting presence especially in the most competitive (ie lucrative) markets.
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  • It may still work a bit, but people are so pissed off with people doing it you're probably better off with leafleting / posters / online ads instead.

    In the UK, this thing has been introduced to crack down on it: https://www.tpsonline.org.uk//tps/index.html
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  • by personal experience it work like a charm but you have to know your stuff, know your sales tech and speak native language help a lot too... but but but i prefer cold email, very simple text with a call to action like "let me know when is the best part for a short call this week"..

    that got me more clients than i need for my web design and marketing business
  • Cold calling used to work 10 years back but not these days however, the niche you are pitching to and your services might make an impact.
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    • Yes, I remember that day, ten years ago..March 22nd...when cold calling stopped working. It was a day of mourning for us all.
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  • Cold calling services is an old method of a marketing strategy but it still has some relevance in today's world as it has many advantages.
    1. Freedom of hunting alone
    2. All-time marketing, more opportunity
    3. Go hassle-free and economical
    4. Little to no support structure
    5. The quickest way of making things possible and feasible
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  • I don't think any decision makers would buy from a cold call or give an appointment. We also found this an expensive solution. The calling, the staff payments, etc. Email marketing and Social Selling, Paid Ads is a lot more effective.
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    • And you say this after several of us tell about our cold calling experience...and talk about the companies that are using cold calls? Did you get a cold call in the last week? If you're in business, you have. And these calls make money for the person calling.
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    • Many, if not most of the top decision makers can only be approached effectively through cold call prospecting. Over 90% of the business executives I've sold to were initially contacted by phone, and almost always appointments and/or sales are ultimately made exclusively over the phone. There are lots of marketing tools available, but hardly anything can replace the effectiveness of old-fashion personal communication, such as the phone. Only face-to-face selling is more effective - particularly for high-end products/services.

      Train your staff well in proven selling methods, and pay your sales team commission only. I found the phone to be the least expensive and most effective tool for selling - when done right. Email marketing, Social Selling, Paid Ads, and other online exposure tools, etc are merely adjuncts in the total sales process. Technology may change, but human behavior remains the same.

      Cold calling is quite alive and well. More people have phones than ever before, and usually now have them instantly available. Cold calling, done right, is actually the quickest and most effective method for generating sales. Having a strong online presence is required these days, but so-called "old school" sales, focused on personal communication and building relationships, has never changed.
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  • This entire debate over cold calling seems to be between two different arguments.

    1) We do cold calling successfully.

    2) We don't like cold calling, we think there are better ways to get customers, we dislike getting cold calls, and we think cold callers are evil and misguided.

    And the #2 people are arguing a different argument, as though they are arguing with #1.

    Personally, I'll never do another cold call...ever. And I don't enjoy getting them. Just like I don't enjoy any conversation initiated in any way. Not by e-mail, direct mail, telephone, or FAX.

    But the truth is, in any sales exchange...somebody had to start the conversation. And that is usually something similar to a cold call.

    It's intellectually painful when I read here something along the lines "I don't like cold calls, so they don't work for anybody". It's simply not a rational stance to take.

    We have had this conversation several times on this forum. More evidence that learning rarely takes place.
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  • Ok, Got It, This is very informative information.
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    • Yeah Very Helpful
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  • For the record, cold calling is NOT DEAD. Far from it.
    It's easier to claim it doesn't work than figure out how to do it right.

    You need to be able to quickly answer the two most common (unspoken) objections within about 20 seconds ...
    Who are you?
    Why are you calling?

    Include something like these in your opening salvo:
    "I understand the challenges you face, and I believe I can help."
    "I have solved the problems you face for others, and I believe I can do it for you."

    Especially in the more competitive markets, prospects are not going to try to find you. In my experience, cold calling is the most effective way to rise above the competition of marketing heavy weights and the search engines. And in some of the most lucrative markets, your only competition is often just other cold callers.

    For example, I sell high end Amazon products to executives and business owners within very narrow vertical markets. They appreciate this "service" because it saves them a lot of time. Hardly anyone is doing this (because they hate it), so the real competition is nearly negligible. Cold calling, in my not so humble opinion, is not only the least expensive but also the most effective method to quickly find top decision makers.
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    • Yup. Just like any type of marketing, prospecting, or selling....

      Someone tries something once or twice, and it doesn't work.

      This morphs into "It doesn't work"...and that morphs into...

      "It doesn't work in my business"...which eventually becomes...

      "This doesn't work for anybody in any business". And we have a new Gospel. And no amount of evidence will change their mind.

      When I started selling Kirby vacuum cleaners in 1976 (I bought one already) it took me three months before I made a sale.

      My wife (at the time) kept telling me "Nobody is going to buy this"....and I would say "Yes they will. I bought one, others are making sales. I just need to figure out what I am doing wrong".

      And I did.


      I was talking to a store owner in Canton Ohio. I asked him what kind of advertising he did. He said "Advertising doesn't work in Canton Ohio". And he was serious.

      I asked how he knew. He said "I ran a newspaper ad once, and it didn't work".

      So he now made the leap that all advertising will fail for everyone in his city....and that was now his Gospel. And that's what we have on these threads on Cold Calling.
    • Yep, real effective for the OP...

      "Cold calling is God's punishment for failure to get enough referrals."
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  • Yes,it certainly effective .It will always work as long as you have the power to initiate a conversation and convince.Cold calling strategy is really important if you want good results.but it takes putting in some extra work to get the results you are looking for.
  • It is effective, but way less than the past.

    Studies have shown that millennials hate to get cold called.

    Yet, sometimes I still keep listening when someone cold call me to pitch their services, and I've seen on YouTube many people being successful with it.

    Look at your own skills. Do you have any past experience with inbound or outbound sales calls? If not, I think it wouldn't be efficient for you to start doing them, as cold emails and other kind of lead generation strategies are way more effective cost-result wise.
  • I would be interested to see a study (or survey) that shows that cold calling on the phone is less effective today that it was..say...10 years ago.

    Anyone have a link?
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    • How about:
      https://www.inc.com/geoffrey-james/i...ad-buried.html



      A number of my clients have shut down their telemarketing. I'll see if I can get permission to post some stats and their reasons for shutting down.
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    • [Grant Cardone holds his phone up in the air above his head during one of his webinars] "This is not a phone, it is a weapon. ... Keep in mind, every call results in a sale. You either make the sale, or you are sold. Sell ... or be sold." Amateurs are sold on the belief that cold calling doesn't work.

      I've been doing cold calling for over 20 years, and there is no letup in sight. Of course, it's not a major direct source of revenue, but we have consistently tapped into extremely lucrative markets which the competition has overwhelming precluded through virtually any other commercially viable method. Cold calling levels the playing field when you're up against stiff competition.

      Marketing heavyweights have dominated most of the "easy" channels - content marketing, attraction marketing, social media, search engines, PPC, emails, and even some of the primary offline strategies such as advertising, publishing and multimedia.

      For some, cold calling is dead as a doornail and has never been effective. For others, it is booming as the most effective and powerful method for preempting the competition.

      Just sayin'
      https://hockeystickprinciples.com/co...im-just-sayin/
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  • Cold calling can be both effective and useless but it is not an easy task. Its result depends on people who use this marketing channel. Cold calling can be very effective, but it takes putting in some extra work to get the returns you're looking for.
  • i think cold calling is effective but it is not essay to convert it because the conversion rate is approx 6.3-6.5% approximately.
  • If people are not taking your call then may be the list you have, is not that much verified.

    Make sure the List should be well Targeted, Authenticated & Verified. If possible do your primary research yourself.

    If people say, they are not interest, then be relexed and say, OK and ask then, any reason for not buying...

    If they keep ignoring then avoid or if they are answering. Means there is a chance.

    Not down all your conversation, no matter it is closed or not, at least till then you get results.

    It helps.

    And yes, Cold Calling is something that can't be down. It will be there... Format & medium may change but not the concept.
  • Cold-calling still exists. Call centers in India and Pakistan will vouch for that. In terms of effectiveness, I'd say that it's usefulness may have been reduced over the past year or 2 in the wake of more sophisticated digital marketing solutions, but businesses do incorporate cold-calling as part of their strategy, and it is still effective.
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    • In the form of many calls no less.

      The irony is, because of these operations, in this day and age, simple technology such 'Call Guardian' is being rolled out by means of equipment manufacturers and service providers.
  • Cold calling was always a mugs game. I made a lot of money from those mugs. My point is that cold calling is hard, there are now easier ways of discovering how hard it is to sell anything. So, you say, what do I do? Well, thanks for asking! What you do is work harder than your competition, be better than your competition and give better service than your competition. The good news is is that the world is your oyster.
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    • Similar to doing joint ventures......
      Waiting for your competition to go out of business is highly profitable.
      Of course, you're selling in the mean time.

      But when a business is ready to close, its inventory and customer lists are available for next to nothing.

      And you would be the only person making an offer anyway. How many companies are trying to buy a failing business' customer lists? Damn few.

      In my business (retail store vacuum cleaners) my fellow store keepers are dropping like flies. And when they are within 50 miles of me, I make sure I buy what's left, and get the customer list. Highly profitable.
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  • I think alot of it has to do with what you're offering, who you're calling, who you're talking to specifically (and broadly), and demographics. If you're calling the owner of a plumbing company about copywriting services, he has no idea what you're talking about and has is most likely to see no value in it. Keep in mind that the people who need digital marketing the most are small business owners. Statistically, they are also the ones who are least likely to use digital marketing or see any value in it. Copy writing is a necessary component of digital marketing and marketing in general. Very few, if any, small business owners are going to hire copy writers - even if their company website suck rotten eggs and have zero SEO and no blog content at all.



    I was a Certified Business Mentor for SCORE (a division of the US Small Business Administration) for about ten years where I talked to hundreds of small business owners. Even though each business or idea was unique in some ways, they all had the same problems: they wanted more leads, but refused to pay anything to get them and were all trying to do everything themselves with little to no experience.



    So personally, I would be contacting publishers, newspaper offices looking for stringers and freelancers, local newspapers and publications, tourist publications, local celebrity websites (if any), local TV stations, local resume services, and so on. I'd get on Indeed and look up remote work, as well and apply for twenty per day. After a few weeks, someone will respond.





    But I think telling you to simply "guard your game" or provide better services doesn't address anything specific. You could be the best there is in your region. If you don't market well, your well dries up.
  • You still can catch some people...but I think, it's better to stop. You can use other tactics to attract clients who are really interested in yoursproduct.
  • Yes, It still works, but most of the cold callers aren't aware of the relevant data where they can get more conversion.
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  • Cold calling is very effective, but you have to be good. Do your research in who you are calling, show them that you are different than everyone else who has called them.
  • It can still produce some results but it would never be as effective as it was before. In the age of technology, people don't seem to have the time for that just as how it was before.
  • They are still relevant if you use the proper way and reach to potential consumers.
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  • Yep to depends upon the customer to customer and the caller who have the potential to attract the people and can influence people to buy their products.
  • Over the past little while I have seen a battle brewing between those who say cold calling is dead and those who claim it is alive and well .Of course each side has an agenda - one promoting social selling and the other promoting cold calling improvement coaching. Some people are defining cold calling differently than others, and this causes confusion. For the purpose of this post, cold calling means cold! Not merely the first call but an unexpected call out of the blue. In the old days, we used to call from lists pulled out of the yellow pages . The distinction is important because the social selling mantra calls for more evolved tactics to "warm up" a cold call and thus increase the efficiency and conversion of those calls.So, getting someone out of their busy zone is a skill- by picking up the phone and calling your clients or prospects, you are able to pull someone out of their daily schedule and get their full attention, even if only for a moment and that works.
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    • Not so much here. On this Forum it's mostly a few that sell a different way than cold calling, VS the few that actively cold call.

      Maybe there is an agenda, but I don't see it.

      But yes, if I were listening to a speaker talk about cold calling...either way, they would either be a Social Media guru or a Cold Calling guru. Most Sales gurus stay away from promoting cold calling, because it's more acceptable to promote marketing systems that "do the work for you". And almost nobody wants to know how to cold call more effectively...because even effective cold calling is work.
    • ^^ This exactly.

      But that doesn't mean random calling. I cold call quite extensively to reach selected prospects of specifically targeted demographics, professions, and industries.

      All this nonsense about "warming up" prospects through social media, ranking in the search engines, giving away freebies, doing product "reviews", building lists, etc is generally way too much work and a waste of time just to get a few scraps - if anything at all.


      But strategic cold calling bulldozes through all that BS.
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  • After reading the recent posts... damn I want to get myself into cold calling.
    Actually I have done somewhat cold-calling. But for payments instead of selling them products. Getting payments is a bit on the harder side. Isn't it?

    Where do I get started? Sign me up!
  • It's been many a year since I hammered away on the dog and bone (telephone).

    And it took a while before I realised that "cold calling" wasn't the best word.

    In essence you're mining for warm to good to hot prospects.

    Most found it an excruciating endurance.

    Because

    They "tried" to handle all the objections and expletives - (which took ages, rarely got anywhere and just made you emotionally frazelled).

    Much faster and a heck of a lot easier to get results by...

    Having a really good 10 second pitch and if you got a "No" (or worse) just say -

    "That's Ok, sorry for troubling you, let me leave you in peace - click "

    And without the agonising pressure keep dialling until you hear, "Ah, glad you called, cos I might be interested..."


    Steve
    • [ 2 ] Thanks
    • [1] reply
    • Still works...I've been cold calling business here in the UK and asking if they hire copywriters on a freelance basis.



      Managed to find a few interested prospects after going through a huge pile of no's
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  • They have small success rate.. Better use ur resources on SEO + Telemarketing (For hot prospects)
  • Yes but for hyper clear, persistent folks.

    Tactics work if you believe on deepest levels.
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  • Hi Claude,

    Well...it was a few decades ago!

    Savings Plans - making appointments (back in the day we used the local telephone directory with a twist - we started at the back because so many others were using directories we assumed starting with the A's).

    Charity Raffle Tickets - making sales by phone

    Advertising - making appointments and making sales by phone


    I'm sure it won't have escaped your attention that my wonder technique was very much based on the books by Bill Good.

    In my time it was "Prospecting Your Way To Sales Success" - which became "Hot Prospects."


    Steve
    • [1] reply
    • Steve; I've read the Bill Good prospecting books. Good stuff.

      I get it now.

      Pure cold calls (not selected at all) to set appointments? I did it as well for years.

      It was very easy to get rid of me on the phone. I just wanted to get that one great guy that I could show my product. Yeah, if you're cold calling for appointments, and your leads (names) are free and unlimited, it makes sense to just sort out the few great prospects.

      After just a year or so, I figured out that it took me a couple of hours at least to make a sale in person, so I wanted to make sure they were likely to buy before I made the trip.

      And raffle tickets are a very simple, low dollar one call sale.

      Where a cold caller might want to keep a person on the phone, establishing rapport, is if they are selling on that phone call, or are trying to sell on a subsequent phone call....and if the actual presentation is relatively short.

      Also, if you paid for the lead, which was already marginally qualified...you would put maximum effort into every lead, because they are pre-qualified, already showed interest, the lead wasn't cheap, and you have a limited list to call.

      And...when selling over the phone, it really does usually take several calls (of long conversations) to finalize the sale.

      Even Jordan Belfort (The Wolf Of Wall Street) finally said that they usually closed a sale on the 3rd call.

      But even selling in homes, knocking on doors, I didn't try hard at all to gt in the door. I was very easy to say "No" to at the door, or before I presented my product...and very hard to say "No" to, when I was closing, because I wasn't making a return trip.

      Good stuff in this thread, I think.
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  • Very, very good point on making the extra special effort on pre-qualified leads.

    As you said they usually come at a price and as they have at least an interest in the product or service it's well worth persisting.

    When it comes to the "close" - I think I hold the view that after 3 attempts it may be time to call it a day.

    Because something was well astray with the presentation, or the prospect has some kind of objection, possibly a bias or whatever and they just won't let go of it.

    Yes, I know, I know the adage is you don't get a sale until the 7th close...(but by this time I probably don't want or even deserve the order!).


    I might have one final shot and say something like " At this stage most people want to go ahead, have I
    done something, or missed something that has upset you in anyway?"

    If they spill the beans then it can usually be handled.

    Unless they say, "Sorry Steve, our company policy is we never, ever do business with people born in Glasgow, Scotland"

    In which case I'm f*****.


    Steve
    • [1] reply
    • When I was selling in home, and had already invested a couple of hours in the presentation...I would continue to close as long as I could tell they were thinking about buying...or getting closer to buying. If they started pulling away (repeating objections, losing the warmth in their voice) I knew I had lost the sale. But I could keep at it for another hour, if I saw that they were going to buy.

      But I eventually learned to just segment out the people that were highly likely to buy from me (for various reasons) and usually it was just one attempt or two that did it.


      That whole "It takes 7 closing attempts to get a sale" claim originally came from the 1950s advertising business. An agency did a focus group, and found that it took an average of 7 (or sometimes stated as 5) repetitions before the average person remembered the brand name..

      That eventually got passed around and got repeated. So now it's a variation of
      "Customers have to see 5 ads before they will call"
      "It takes 7 closing attempts before they buy"
      "It takes 5 calls before they make an appointment"
      "It takes an average of 7 visits before they buy"

      And it gets passed around like gospel. But it had nothing to do with sales at all. Just brand name recognition.

      Now, the truth is, some sales require repeated closing attempts, some require repeated calls for an appointment, some require a few follow ups....

      But it's all over the map, depending on the offer, the prospect list, cold call or qualified lead, inbound or outbound marketing, how many people you have to talk to, whether it's one sale you are after, or building a relationship...etc.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • I can often tell within a few minutes if a prospect is likely or unlikely to buy (there are exceptions and a few surprises).

    But if in my heart of hearts I know that a prospect will genuinely benefit from and can afford the product or service I would certainly go the extra mile or hour - hopefully with a coffee or tea refill(s).

    Of course on a cold call it's unlikely I would know this ( it applies to "qualified" appointments).


    Also I've always disliked the word "objection" I much prefer "concerns."

    And a sale is only really worth getting for both the prospect and the sales person if all these are all handled.

    If not, and even if you close the sale, you can get a very anxious and at times a very "difficult" client.


    Steve


    P.S. You can of course deal with most "concerns" during the presentation again showing that 7 closes is usually never necessary.
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • [2] replies
    • The last few years I was selling my local online marketing service for $5,999......

      I would either get no objection..or one. That's if they bought. Because these sales involved substantial work on my part (to fulfill), I really only wanted people that were eager to get started.

      But these are people that I qualified heavily before I started my presentation. And most had either read a book I wrote, or watched me speak from the stage. They were pretty pre-sold by the time I talked to them.

      Yeah, these aren't really "Objections", more like questions or efforts to put off a decision, without breaking rapport. I don't know why we call them Objections, they rarely are.
      • [ 2 ] Thanks

    • The first few "objections" are usually just a smokescreen or attempts to blow you off. When you get past that, the real "concerns" begin to appear. That's when you begin to connect with your prospect.

      It can take a looooong time to really make that "connection", so the average salesperson looking for "low hanging fruit" hardly ever gets into any effective communication.

      For example, in my cold calling, 80% of the initial sales comes after 5-12 contacts.

      I average 4-7 no's per call, and less than 2% of initial calls results in a sale.

      This may sound like a rather dismal outcome, but when the competition gives up, that's when I'm just warming up.

      In my marketing niches, the competition is quite intense. I have found that cold calling is the fastest way to crash through obscurity.

      Getting lots of no's also makes you well known. Even the "no's" will often check you out online after a call.

      I call this "targeted cold calling with intent". I use this strategy for targeting specific influential business professionals and decision makers who generally have large networks for potential referrals. For me, it is well worth it.

      One of my early mentors told me a story about a young man who had a reputation for picking up women with little more than a crude one line proposition. Of course, he got slapped a lot - but he also closed a lot (got laid).

      So, just keep smiling and dialing! Some will, some won't, so what ... next.
      • [ 2 ] Thanks
  • One way to blast through the smokescreens of "false" No's - or any No...

    Is having a spellbindingly good but short opening pitch.

    Not the usual "Hi, I'm so and so, from where and where - how are you, how's your day going blah, blah blah."

    (yes, many may say it helps with rapport but as the prospect doesn't know you - a neon light can furiously flash in his or her head saying "get rid of the salesperson!")


    But a quick "Hi" and straight into the incredible, unique and irresistible benefit or offer your product or service has.

    Can fuse the warning light, blow away any cobwebs and grab people's interest, attention and curiosity.

    Not a bad idea to finish the 10 -15 seconds worth of wonder words with an open ended question.

    Making it a touch more difficult for the prospect to say "No."


    Steve
    • [ 2 ] Thanks
    • [2] replies
    • It doesn't help rapport at all. It's irritating when solicitors use small talk to open a call.

      Cold calling (in fact any phone call) is an interruption. Don't make it worse by wasting their time with small talk.

      Rapport building isn't a step in the sales process, it's woven throughout the call. Rapport develops as you go along.
      • [ 3 ] Thanks
    • Banned
      Love it. : ) Thanks Steve.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • Yes, a cold call has likely broken rapport before it had a chance to start.

    Build it up by getting on with the pitch and not letting the prospect feel you are being disingenuous with the "how the devil are you" stuff.

    The sooner they realise you genuinely have something of great value for them the better.


    Steve
  • There are so many ways to cold reach your clients if cold-calling is not your thing. It's not dead though, you just need to be really good at it. I personally suck at cold-calling and hate it, but still got to do it among other things to get clients.

    One thing that people usually forgets that calling someone is interrupting whatever they are doing. Be super brief what you are offering and try to book a meeting (face to face, Skype or a phone meeting) where they got more time to concentrate on the topic. And if they are just not interested, move on to the next one.

    It's all a numbers game like you said. Do emails and DM's on social media as well.
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • To me selling always has been and always will be a numbers game.

    Of course we would very much like to close every sale - but we won't.

    The way I came to terms with this was realizing that "closing" was great - after a bit of effort you have a perfect prospect now a delighted client - a very pleasurable way to make your income.

    The "pain" was getting to the "perfect" clients.

    But look at the maths.

    Let's say on average, no matter what - you get a sale after ten calls (i know the numbers vary but average them out).

    And the sale earns you $1,000.

    So, each call - including the 9 "go away and don't come backs" and the 1 "Yes what a bazzing product, I want it now!"...

    Made you $100.00.

    Da Daa.

    Very soon you're never bothered about the "No's" - they are all making you money.


    Steve


    P.S. You can look at it another way - usually a successful sale is fun, a good chat and everybody is happy - who needs to be paid for that.

    You're really been paid for putting up with all the rejections.
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • Agree with everything you say...

    And as every "metric" is tracked which they should be (or you lose all sense of direction).

    This is knowing the "numbers."

    My way of explaining it is a "numbers game."

    Sounds a bit more fun - which for me always helps.

    Not to be confused with being blaise or frivolous.

    Selling is important - the service or product must be sold.

    I just want it to be as enjoyable as possible - a really good "game" where everybody wins.

    A "get lost Steve" prospect isn't hassled and neither am I - and an "interested" prospect gets exactly what they want.

    Which creates a goodly income for me.


    Steve


    P.S. Texting hadn't been invented when I was cold calling! - but it's a heck of a good idea to send one regardless of the outcome of the call.

    Cements the appointment or sale.

    And can turn a "No" into a "Yes."
    • [ 2 ] Thanks
  • Cold calling is still affective. I follow a straight line formula when attempting to sell on the first call.
  • I wouldn't have thought it to be affective still so I'm quite surprised. No judgment on it - I just neverarelypick up a call from numbers I don't know
    • [1] reply
    • Most people don't pick up their phone from unknown callers. But they will almost always check out a website left on voice mail. Frequent additional value-added calls left on voice mail adds incremental familiarity.
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  • You may know that the more conversations you have with prospects the faster you will get business. Even though you know that, I want to know to what degree you live it. ~
    Djukich, Dusan. Straight-Line Leadership: Tools for Living with Velocity and Power in Turbulent Times (p. 50). Corporate Reinvention and Associates. Kindle Edition.

    In my photography business, I use to get business by cold calling but seldom have to make a cold call any more thanks to the Light-up LED Shirts I wear when in prospecting mode. Often people will ask me about it or I simply walk up to them saying... I see you noticed my shirt... here's a brochure that explains but before you leave can I get your opinion on which of these poses (Show iPad Photo Album) do you think your child would like best?

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  • It depends what you selling and which is the traffic source . People do not like to get call for same product every day when they need it once in a month
  • My opinion: Yes it was, still is and probably will always still be effective. You never know unless you try. The client might be very interested in the product/service you are offering.
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  • Cold calling is still effective but you should follow certain rule and regulations. And is totally depend on customers that he is interested or not. So I think it is not best but still, it working.
  • I think it's weird that most of this thread talks about "cold calling" = outbound. We're in the age where you can get a civilian car to drive you anywhere because you joined an app on your phone (no calling required).


    Isn't outbound marketing supposed to be email now?


    That said, I've had my fair share of success and failurez with outbound email marketing. was looking for some insight...


    For example, how can you find CEO emails for free or low cost? I have to find at least 3k emails per month. Rocketreach and other providers have insane prices like $400 for only like 100 to 350 emails found.


    Does anyone know how to find CEO emails for cheap? I don't mind doing the legwork, but it's just that finding 100 ceo emails takes over 2 hours, and that's just not efficient.
    • [2] replies
    • Who says...?

      Pay someone. My research assistant is pretty cheap and would come out cheaper that the price you quote. $400 is about 3 days work...

      However, it probably won't do you much good. Most CEOs I know don't read their emails. Their assistants do the reading and only pass on what's relevant. And marketing messages are rarely, if ever, relevant...

      Want to get in front of an inaccessible CEO? Find someone who already has their ear. And get them to introduce you...
      Start with existing clients.

      Edit:
      Just saw those numbers
      If I were employing you, I'd be more interested in the number of sales you make, not some random number of emails...

      If you're in the US, the libraries have a free database of companies (referenceUSA), with contact details. All you need is a library card. Each search is limited to 250 entries, however you can do multiple searches, so could come up with 3k emails in a few hours... Not all have emails, but I'm sure you could find enough...
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • If you don't consider that legwork, then what exact work are you willing to do to get what you want? 3k emails at 100 emails/2hr is 1 week of working only 8hr days.

      Sure there might be other ways, but I just found it curious that you said you're ok to do the work, but in the same sentence said you don't want to work 1 week to hit your target.
      • [1] reply
  • Now the cold calls have turned into cold leaves. I can not say good or bad. Finding a mailing address is easier now than a phone number.
    I think that the cold vocation helps cold sending. It's like a couple for your success. Build your strategy and try all different. Because everything depends on you, your are copyrights and your speech technique.
  • Cold Calling to a direct sales pitch is dead.

    Cold Calls to WARM UP a Prospect and offer Help with "what's in it for them" still works.
    • [3] replies
    • I'll be sure to let all the companies doing it successfully right now...know that it's dead.
      • [ 3 ] Thanks
      • [1] reply
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    • Help get the word out to reduce my competition. Tell this to everyone you know, and have them pass it on to everyone they know.

      Yup. That's another excellent way to kill time and sales.

      "Samson killed a thousand with the jawbone of an ass. That many sales are killed every day with the same weapon."
      - Don Daniels
      • [ 2 ] Thanks
    • The basics of selling has never changed. So-called "old school" tricks and assault techniques practiced by amateurs and gamers for quick profit never was a sustainable model, no matter what "tool" or "communications device" was used.

      On the other hand, establishing "trust" and "credibility" through positioning and online social gimmickry (ie, brand management) before even attempting to make a sale is every bit as misguided as much of the old school sales nonsense. Such a "new" approach is mostly promoted by self-annointed gurus with their own systems to sell.

      In sales, people actually do buy you first - not the product. But the product (or service) is what reinforces the communication connection and helps build the relationship. That has not changed since Cuneiform laptop tablets were first brought to market.

      An old-timer sales mentor of mine told me more than 30 years ago to engage prospects quickly by selling them something, not positioning or blubbering warm fuzzies. Sell products to find prospects, not find prospects to sell products.

      The goal should always be to quickly get a qualified decision, not waste prospects' time pussy-footing around. Sales is far from being a numbers game. Every contact results in a sale - either you get a sale or you get sold.
      • [1] reply
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  • My 1st experience selling over the phone was in the 1970's.
    At that time 50 calls was plenty to reach enough decision makers directly.
    Making 500.00 a week in 1970 was pretty good!

    How many calls do we have to make today?
    On the 1st phone call, what % are we able to reach the decision maker?

    If these #'s are different today, then something is different.
    Something has changed.
    I think cold calling to a direct sales pitch dose not happen as much now.
    • [1] reply
    • Are you talking about cold calls to residents? businesses? Are you selling on the phone call, or setting an appointment for an in person sales call?

      The reason I ask is that calling to make appointments to business owners still works just fine. Caller ID changes things. Do Not Calls lists change things.

      But there are still plenty of businesses that primarily sell to small business owners by cold calls.

      I get between 15 and 20 a day....most are robo calls, but maybe 5 are in person...I wouldn't get the calls if it weren't profitable.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
      • [1] reply
  • Is buying a list of leads in a particular industry considered cold calling? I've purchased opportunity seeker leads from a reputable company, and the majority of the numbers were accurate, plus the people remembered filling out a form to request more info. I would say this type of lead calling is definitely effective. You just have to be consistent in order to get the results you want.
    • [1] reply

    • Yes, a "cold call" is one you make to someone who isn't expecting a call from you. It is usually made to a compiled list of names and phone numbers.
  • Telephone Position from Craigslist :

    " BASE SALARY- Starting at $31,200K/YEAR plus DAILY CASH and determined from your past marketing experience, industry, and potential. The average earner makes $75k/year. Our top earners make over $130K/YEAR!!!! "

    They sell to realtor's and use social proof . Telling Prospects so and so business is involved, to build trust and credibility.

    cold calling still works, is fast, inexpensive and anyone can do ok if they hit the #'s.


    Link to Craigslist Ad :
    https://portland.craigslist.org/clc/...921653343.html
  • Yes, the method is still as effective as it was decades ago. The only difference is that you need to sound natural and behave as if you just wanted to thank the recipient. Many other factors such as the time of making the call, the product you trade in and the client still determine the success of cold calling. Consider combining it with the latest marketing methods which are more sophisticated.

    I also want to add that cold calling will give you some results. In fact, when you use modern tools, you will be able to not only know what the customer thinks but also what you need to do to make them buy more. So, called calling is not dead and is here to stay even though very few people are using it in the modern digital world.
  • I was never real successful with telemarketing.
  • Cold calling is not dead -- but perhaps what constitutes a passable standard of call has increased.

    Thnk back to when there was no such thing as internet marketing, how reliant we were on salesmen for discovering new products and product knowledge.

    Today we have so many different choices of media available there simply isn't the time to listen (or be noticed) behind the constant background of noise.

    There simply isn't the time to listen to someone who doesn't immediately: get our attention, as well as our interest or curiosity. And it makes sense why most people fail at this because it takes precision, skill, and determination.

    I've always considered cold calling like walking along a tightrope, or cutting along a thin line. You move one step after the other, with your previous step supporting the next one. In other words, the first 10 seconds on the phone buys you another 10 seconds more and so on.

    Unlike sending cold emails or doing social media marketing, much of the success of cold calling is the person doing it. When I was in an office selling social panels, we had a rotating door of agents leaving and joining the company. This was despite each agent following the same script to the same people selling the same product. Some people simply sounded better on the phone, or could answer objections better, had a smoother closing style and so on.

    The truth is that there are hundreds of different optimizations you can make to your cold calls to make them for effective, such as practicing delivery, memorizing rebuttals, product information etc. And all of these 1% things add up to either succeeding or failing at cold calling. In other words, there's a lot you can work on, even if you were using a verbatim script, that would massively influence your chances of success.

    Think how much tweaking you can do to a single piece of copy and say that "copywriting doesn't work". Well that's what you're doing when you say that "cold calling" doesn't work. No. It doesn't work FOR YOU, with what you're doing and how you're doing it.

    But I will admit that the world is becoming a more competitive place with businesses receiving more phone calls and marketing offers than ever, yet this is more of a complaint and about marketing, than it is cold calling.
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  • Cold calling is still not a thing of the past. If we could connect to people in a way that we don't look at them as strangers but as opportunities to make good friends, cold calling can be turned into an effective strategy.
  • Does anyone have "The great telemarketing report" by John Durham with the script? I don't see the attachment on the original post
  • If you have to cold call to get client get a new business. Think about it. How good is your offer if you have to cold call?

    Yes.Simply have clients come to you. Why would anyone sit and cold call?
    Advertise...make them jump through hoops and pre qualify. You get to talk to people able and ready.
    One close is worth 1,000 cold calls.
    Cold callers. What a sad profession.
    People peddling it are usually selling courses on it. Ironic.
    Take a step back and think about your business module.

    Agreed. If you have to resort to cold calling me I will never do business with you.
    • [1] reply
    • I want to address that.

      I see the same thing. Someone selling courses on how to use Facebook to make money, but they aren't selling it on Facebook.

      But the two biggest names in sales training...Jordan Belfort and Grant Cardone both use cold calling to sell their high end programs. They have banks of cold callers. Highly profitable. And of course, they are trained by the best in the business.

      So it works incredibly well selling sales training.

      The fact that you wouldn't buy from a cold caller just makes you one of many. I almost never have, but a great cold caller can keep my attention.


      Added later;
      By the way, I paid Jordan Belfort for his weekly sales training online. I'm a great prospect for his high end training (It sells for $2,000, and i already have it from another source)...but he hasn't had one of his people call me to upsell me. I'm a tad disappointment in him.

      I have proven that I like his training, and am willing to pay for it. I have proven that I'll buy training on essentially cold calling over the phone. I have proven that I'm a "Highly Likely" prospect for his high end sales training.
      I would estimate that about 30% of the people who have my buying history...would buy his high end training..or pay thousands of dollars to attend a live event....if they were called on the phone.


      Same with Russell Brunson. I have proven that I will spend money on what he sells. I have proven that I'll buy repeatedly, and pay a monthly subscription for his advice. I'm a Highly Likely Prospect for his coaching services. But....no call so far.

      I should be getting cold calls from these guys. Practice what you preach.

      But no, I still get the Viagra calls every week because I bought it once, 25 years ago.....THOSE guys will never give up. I take my hat off to them. They don't quit.

      And..I'm disappointed that I'm not getting calls for hair replacement, Testosterone replacement, dental implants, weight loss programs, dating memberships....all of which I should be getting because i once indicated that I'm a middle age man trying to get my MOJO back.

      If I sold hair transplant services, and I had a list of 10,000 guys that bought Viagra...I'd make a fortune calling these guys with related offers. So could anyone else.

      Cold calling only fails when you're calling the wrong list, with the wrong offer....or you're lazy.

      If Belfort or Brunson ever had a person on their team call me, I'd say "It's about damn time!".
      • [ 4 ] Thanks
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  • Maybe you're doing it wrong or you might don't have the correct numbers that you are dialling.
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    • [1] reply
    • Direct sales (including MLM), real estate agents, car dealers, and most home care services are experiencing very high contact rates because more people are at home than ever before because of the pandemic.

      In particular, record numbers of people are either working from home or starting home businesses, and the home office equipment and technology sectors are seeing massive growth.
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
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  • 177

    It seems as if the era of cold-calling has passed... or am I just doing it wrong? I've called plenty of businesses over the past week and I'm either just ringing through, or people aren't interested at all.