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Yellowpages vs Paid List for Cold Calling

by ej155
16 replies
For those who have had great success with cold calling for web design, seo, etc, (1-4 conv rate), have you found that Yellowpages was a good list online to scrape and call?

Or are paid list better?

What are your experiences?
#calling #cold #list #paid #yellowpages
  • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
    You get what you pay for. Free lists are regurgitated and not worth anything...hence their price.

    Yes, you will get SOME leads/appts, but not as many as you would on a list you pulled and paid for, and it will take you much longer to sift through the crap.

    If you try to squeeze something out of nothing, you'll end up with nothing.

    That's my opinion as an appointment setter for years, calling all types of lists daily.
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    • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
      Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

      You get what you pay for. Free lists are regurgitated and not worth anything...hence their price.

      Yes, you will get SOME leads/appts, but not as many as you would on a list you pulled and paid for, and it will take you much longer to sift through the crap.

      If you try to squeeze something out of nothing, you'll end up with nothing.

      That's my opinion as an appointment setter for years, calling all types of lists daily.
      I started with nothing, grew an empire from nothing. So I respectfully disagree.

      I haven't found any difference. Your conversion rate over time is going to most likely be the same. However... you will notice a slight difference with a paid list that gives you a name of the contact.

      It's just a slight adjustment of the pitch... thats the only difference in my opinion. Then again, I'm not a cold calling expert, just a guy that makes sales from it.
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      • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
        Originally Posted by iAmNameLess View Post

        I started with nothing, grew an empire from nothing. So I respectfully disagree.

        I haven't found any difference. Your conversion rate over time is going to most likely be the same. However... you will notice a slight difference with a paid list that gives you a name of the contact.

        It's just a slight adjustment of the pitch... thats the only difference in my opinion. Then again, I'm not a cold calling expert, just a guy that makes sales from it.
        You can disagree if you want, and I stated that it was my opinion. However, facts are facts, and I've done it many times to prove a point to clients. If you sit down and call the phone book you WILL (eventually) make sales/appts (I said that earlier). I'll make them a lot faster and have much more of them by pulling a targeted list that is scrubbed already and has a guaranteed connection rate.

        Pitch is nothing if you aren't getting people (and the RIGHT people) on the phone.

        Paid lists don't always contain contact names, and most lists that have them (paid or not) aren't right anyways. I don't need a contact name, no good caller does, we can find that out on our own.
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        • Profile picture of the author iAmNameLess
          Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

          You can disagree if you want, and I stated that it was my opinion. However, facts are facts, and I've done it many times to prove a point to clients. If you sit down and call the phone book you WILL (eventually) make sales/appts (I said that earlier). I'll make them a lot faster and have much more of them by pulling a targeted list that is scrubbed already and has a guaranteed connection rate.

          Pitch is nothing if you aren't getting people (and the RIGHT people) on the phone.

          Paid lists don't always contain contact names, and most lists that have them (paid or not) aren't right anyways. I don't need a contact name, no good caller does, we can find that out on our own.
          I'm clearly not selling coaching or claim to be an expert, but like you said, facts are facts. My experience gives me the facts I need to know that there is no difference. That's all.. I don't need to offer coaching, or products, I already know my stuff, I make my money in the real world.

          It doesn't matter if you're calling out of the phonebook, a list from infofree, a list from yelp, a list from a magazine, it doesn't matter...

          That is the truth. My conversions are the same, no matter what. It doesn't change.

          A paid list, still contains businesses in the phone book. A paid list, still is only about 88-90% accurate. Infofree is about 88% accurate when it comes to numbers and about 90% accurate when it comes to addresses.

          Maybe there is a paid list service that gives super amazing results that you can share with us. Maybe I'm wrong..

          Not wanting to argue or anything... I just truly don't believe it makes any difference.
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          • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
            Originally Posted by iAmNameLess View Post


            Maybe there is a paid list service that gives super amazing results that you can share with us. Maybe I'm wrong..

            Not wanting to argue or anything... I just truly don't believe it makes any difference.
            Sorry, I didn't see this...when we recommend that someone buy a list we send them to Sales Genie or List Giant. List Giant is our preference, they have amazing customer service, pricing and are wonderful when you pull something wrong (of your own doing) or find a niche that isn't coded right etc, they will give you back some numbers. They also do walk throughs when you are new, and are very involved in helping you. Their lists have proven to work very well for us for over 2 years now. Also, you can call them and find out (before you buy a block of numbers) if they can pull a list based on your critera, which is normally what we have clients do. On the off chance they don't have the right parameters for a client, we then go with Sales Genie.

            I don't have magic lists, or magic providers...I just know what I'm looking for, and know what to tell clients to look for when purchasing a list.
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        • Profile picture of the author digichik
          Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

          You can disagree if you want, and I stated that it was my opinion. However, facts are facts, and I've done it many times to prove a point to clients. If you sit down and call the phone book you WILL (eventually) make sales/appts (I said that earlier). I'll make them a lot faster and have much more of them by pulling a targeted list that is scrubbed already and has a guaranteed connection rate.

          Pitch is nothing if you aren't getting people (and the RIGHT people) on the phone.

          Paid lists don't always contain contact names, and most lists that have them (paid or not) aren't right anyways. I don't need a contact name, no good caller does, we can find that out on our own.
          If the lists you are calling from don't have the contacts name, and you say you don't need a list with the contacts name, because you can get it anyway, then you list is no better or worse than the phonebook. You getting sales or appointments comes from your skills and not from the list.

          Your point isn't exactly logical or correct.
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          • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
            Originally Posted by digichik View Post

            If the lists you are calling from don't have the contacts name, and you say you don't need a list with the contacts name, because you can get it anyway, then you list is no better or worse than the phonebook. You getting sales or appointments comes from your skills and not from the list.

            Your point isn't exactly logical or correct.
            My point is both logical and correct. The phone book is just that. A list of businesses. Most paid lists are targeted because YOU set the parameters (employee size, SIC code - multiple levels, $$$revenue, zip), they are not old recycled lists (if you get them from the right providers), they have guaranteed connection rates, you can re-pull if you find that they are not the best, and overall, you get what you pay for. When you can pull a yellow pages list and target it as much as I can pull a paid list, I'll listen to you. Otherwise, you're busy enough calling BS numbers and I'll leave you to that while I actually work.

            Not ALL paid lists have names. Most do. A bigger portion of them have a WRONG or old name...so we don't require names when someone sends us a list. IF there is a name, we'll try it, but the majority of the time, it's not the right contact on a paid list. If there is a name on a previously called or highly targeted list, it's usually correct.

            My skills mean nothing on a crappy list. I can't make appointments appear when there are disconnects, old numbers, wrong numbers or a list full of businesses that are NOT in the niche I need to target.

            I stated originally, and again, and now AGAIN...you WILL make appointments off a crappy, internet scraped or yellow pages type list...eventually you will. If you get a paid for, targeted, newer list, you (or me, or anyone else no matter the skill level) will get MORE appointments faster and easier.

            No one is going to give you a medal for struggling through a crappy list and making appts. Make it easier on yourself or whoever is calling and get a good list.

            Seriously, this is a matter of answering the OP's question - which is better, internet scraped or paid - and he asked for OUR experiences. My experience is years of calling (over 8 now), and continued calling for clients. Unfortunately it seems that people don't know about lists but are offended when you tell them that they should pay for a good one (because they don't want to or can't afford it). You shouldn't write off other people's experience because you don't know how or don't want to do it.
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            • Profile picture of the author digichik
              Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

              My point is both logical and correct. The phone book is just that. A list of businesses. Most paid lists are targeted because YOU set the parameters (employee size, SIC code - multiple levels, $$, zip), they are not old recycled lists (if you get them from the right providers), they have guaranteed connection rates, you can re-pull if you find that they are not the best, and overall, you get what you pay for. When you can pull a yellow pages list and target it as much as I can pull a paid list, I'll listen to you. Otherwise, you're busy enough calling BS numbers and I'll leave you to that while I actually work.

              Not ALL paid lists have names. Most do. A bigger portion of them have a WRONG or old name...so we don't require names when someone sends us a list. IF there is a name, we'll try it, but the majority of the time, it's not the right contact on a paid list. If there is a name on a previously called or highly targeted list, it's usually correct.

              My skills mean nothing on a crappy list. I can't make appointments appear when there are disconnects, old numbers, wrong numbers or a list full of businesses that are NOT in the niche I need to target.

              I stated originally, and again, and now AGAIN...you WILL make appointments off a crappy, internet scraped or yellow pages type list...eventually you will. If you get a paid for, targeted, newer list, you (or me, or anyone else no matter the skill level) will get MORE appointments faster and easier.

              No one is going to give you a medal for struggling through a crappy list and making appts. Make it easier on yourself or whoever is calling and get a good list.

              Seriously, this is a matter of answering the OP's question - which is better, internet scraped or paid - and he asked for OUR experiences. My experience is years of calling (over 8 now), and continued calling for clients. Unfortunately it seems that people don't know about lists but are offended when you tell them that they should pay for a good one (because they don't want to or can't afford it). You shouldn't write off other people's experience because you don't know how or don't want to do it.

              Why the chip on your shoulder with just about every post you make, perhaps take it down just a notch, none of this is personal.

              It is you who is discounting the experience of others. We have successfully used the Yellow Pages to make money. I fully realizes one can make sales from a paid list, but I don't need it to make sales or get appointments. The Yellow Pages work., and work well.

              My cold calling experience is over 20++ years and I can take the yellow pages and go toe to toe with a paid list. I do know about paid lists and have probably forgotten more than you now know. The Yellow Pages is a List! Get this, it's compiled of business listings, broken down into niches.

              Yes, I've used paid lists. Every business you call on a paid list has, most likely, been called by other companies and individuals about web services(web design, SEO, etc.) Thus, even a paid list is a re-worked list. How do you think services like Sales Genie put together their lists, they scrape them from various sources, then merger the information. So why knock scraped list, when that is what you are paying for, a scraped list.

              Making appointments and closing sales on the telephone is all about your script, your skill level, your confidence, and your mood. The caller must be in a positive mood, have a good script, have knowledge of how to create a rapport with the gatekeeper, get past the gatekeeper, qualify the prospect, overcome objections, and close the sale or the appointment. Then the are subtler skills like pace, accent, etc.. You wouldn't fast talk someone in Nebraska, whereas, if you don't talk fast to someone in New York you may get dialtone. In the south you may need to kibbitz more, because that is a part of their culture. A newbie learns these things over time. Again, the Yellow pages or a paid list has nothing to do with it.

              To the OP, you can take the Yellow Pages and get PAID, making calls to the businesses listed in it. You don't need to buy a list, you can if you'd like but it's not necessary to get started.
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      • Profile picture of the author digichik
        Originally Posted by iAmNameLess View Post

        I started with nothing, grew an empire from nothing. So I respectfully disagree.

        I haven't found any difference. Your conversion rate over time is going to most likely be the same. However... you will notice a slight difference with a paid list that gives you a name of the contact.

        It's just a slight adjustment of the pitch... thats the only difference in my opinion. Then again, I'm not a cold calling expert, just a guy that makes sales from it.
        I have to agree with you IAN. I have done cold calling for more years than I care to admit to, and I have found the conversion rate basically the same. The difference comes in the level of the callers abilities, confidence and mood.
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      • Profile picture of the author John Durham
        Originally Posted by iAmNameLess View Post

        I started with nothing, grew an empire from nothing. So I respectfully disagree.

        I haven't found any difference. Your conversion rate over time is going to most likely be the same. However... you will notice a slight difference with a paid list that gives you a name of the contact.

        It's just a slight adjustment of the pitch... thats the only difference in my opinion. Then again, I'm not a cold calling expert, just a guy that makes sales from it.
        I have to agree with nameless here.
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  • Profile picture of the author John Durham
    In all fairness, it would help to have more detail about the type of list mwind is using, maybe she has some amazing source thats different...but I have found that as long as you have the biz owners name there isnt much difference. As Iam says, you just change your pitch a bit if you have no name. In b2b scrubbed or not scrubbed makes no difference. There is no DNC.
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    • Profile picture of the author ej155
      Thanks guys for sharing your insights, the WF is a goldmine of information to those who harvest it and take action!
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      • Profile picture of the author Sue Bruce
        Arguing about paid or free really boils down to EXPERIENCE and ABILITY. I'm fortunate to have people who are both. It's really a waste of money to buy lists, for me, when these people would rather use free resources and are superstars doing it.

        Sue
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    • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
      Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

      In all fairness, it would help to have more detail about the type of list mwind is using, maybe she has some amazing source thats different...but I have found that as long as you have the biz owners name there isnt much difference. As Iam says, you just change your pitch a bit if you have no name. In b2b scrubbed or not scrubbed makes no difference. There is no DNC.
      We use everything...depends on what clients give us. We call infofree, yellow pages, lists that are put together by a client with google searches, and paid lists from multiple providers (salesgenie, list giant, manta, D&B...).

      I think maybe in your experience, it may not be a difference in b2b because you've had multiple callers in your call centers and even dialers to eliminate some of those dud numbers.

      However, when you're dialing on your own (because it's just you or you and another person), a paid list is the way to go once you can afford one.

      Again, my opinion - which is what the OP asked for. I think it's great that he's getting many answers, however, people that don't have the experience of calling EVERY kind of list, don't need to pipe up about those they don't know about.

      You can't give advice for or against something you've never used.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
    Yet again I stated it was MY opinion...which he asked for. So remove your own chip before spouting off. Your way is great for you, mine works wonders for me.
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  • Profile picture of the author vndnbrgj
    It depends on your target market.

    I use both as a hybrid.
    I use a scraper to tell me how much someone is spending on the phone book.
    Then, cross check that with a paid list. (I personally need for detailed info)

    When they match, I call...
    To each their own I guess.
    Mine is more tedious, but it works....
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