A Devious Cold Calling Technique!

by sebastianlatina

Posted: 13 years ago 20 replies

INTERNET MARKETING

Last night I was enjoying my time with my family, playing with my daughter, all of a sudden I get a phone call from this person, taking me away from my family for about a half hour. He asked to speak to me, saying he was interested in my Company. I assumed he found my info via one of my websites.

He started out saying he's new to the industry, having only 1 month of experience, and would like to get detailed info on my company. He asked questions, I answered them, all of a sudden he asked me if I buy leads online, which I affirmatively said NO. "Buying leads is a waste of money & time" is what I told him. He said he can offer me leads at a discounted rate (50 cents per lead).

Now this guy though I was a fool. I've been on the other side making cold calls to people in the past (something I will never do again, I'd rather speak to qualified people).

I know the whole technique of cold calling:
1. Ask people about their business and interests, which establishes trust and some sort of rapport.
2. Once you've established that trust, gear them towards your business.

The problem with this technique is that it's great to establish trust, however by pitching another business immediately negates that trust (I'm sure he was trained that this isn't spam because he's offering help to other marketers). I don't think anyone has ever told this guy or any members of his company that people don't like to be sold, however people love to buy. It was blatantly obvious I was being sold something.

I was skeptical from the start of the conversation. So I answered all of his questions, telling him how much I love my business. Once I noticed him going for a sale, I stepped it up a notch and promoted my business more aggressively (however in a nice way).

This sort of technique works on the inexperienced. It doesn't work on people who've been there and done that. If you've decided to go this route, please reconsider. Cold calling leads which you have paid for is a horrible marketing method. You success rate is bound to be low, so it's really not a question of $ cost per lead, it's time cost per lead. Spend your time learning how to attract customers to your business the correct way.

#calling #cold #devious #technique

Alexa Smith

Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by sebastianlatina

Spend your time learning how to attract customers to your business the correct way.

Many people in your line of business have built hugely successful businesses doing nothing other than what you refer to here as "cold calling", and have successfully and reliably duplicated that, too. It doesn't get much more "correct" than that.

Originally Posted by sebastianlatina

Cold calling leads which you have paid for is a horrible marketing method.

This - as the sweeping generalisation to which you've inflated it - isn't right at all.

You're perhaps familiar with the name of Todd Falcone, in your industry?

If they're people who have recently expressed genuine interest in a home-based business opportunity, and are waiting to hear back from someone about that, they're not too "cold" at all, really. That's about the "warmest calling" you can do.

Nobody can be a specialist at everything, and the "lead-generation function" of one's business is a perfectly reasonable and practical one to outsource to someone who is a specialist. Many people have achieved great and lasting success this way.

Many say that "cold calling doesn't work", because that's their own experience, often having bought poor-quality leads which were not as described. There are other, better ways of doing it, too. The technique you refer to above is certainly both devious and stupid, but it's entirely illogical to try to generalise as you've done above and extend that to cover all lead-buying.

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RentItNow

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Alexa Smith

Reminds me of Glen Garry Glenross. Brilliant movie. Brilliant lessons. "Coffee is for closers!"

I've been on both sides of this as well. I had an opening line that went directly to their largest pain and gave them hope at once. I would ask them if they wanted help finding a tenant (Landlord). Almost never heard a no and they wanted more info (of course they did, they were dying for tenants).

However, I was not the cold calling type, more the in person sales guy. Yet I use that cold calling lesson to this day in IM.

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sebastianlatina

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Alexa Smith

Many say that "cold calling doesn't work", because that's their own experience, often having bought poor-quality leads which were not as described. There are other, better ways of doing it, too. The technique you refer to above is certainly both devious and stupid, but it's entirely illogical to try to generalise as you've done above and extend that to cover all lead-buying.

I've received a lot of cold calls here in my home being in this industry. Many of them have a similar technique in which I described above. I agree there are many out there who have success in cold calling and yes I have heard of Todd Falcone however I have not research his training yet. Generalizing was wrong on my part and thank your for correcting that. Putting that money and time to other methods of generating leads will give you more in return for your time and efforts. The calls you make to leads in which you have generated yourself have a much great chance at converting into a sale or to a partner.

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Alexa Smith Banned 13 years ago

Originally Posted by sebastianlatina

The calls you make to leads in which you have generated yourself have a much great chance at converting into a sale or to a partner.

You're still generalising, Sebastian, and you're still mistaken.

Many very professional, very successful teams/groups of people in your industry have consistently found the opposite: that the calls they and their substantial groups make to leads they're bought in have a greater chance of converting than those they've self-generated.

That's why so many have abandoned their own lead-generational efforts in favour of outsourcing that function of their business to specialists.
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70chevelleSS

13 years ago

Originally Posted by sebastianlatina

This sort of technique works on the inexperienced. It doesn't work on people who've been there and done that. If you've decided to go this route, please reconsider. Cold calling leads which you have paid for is a horrible marketing method. You success rate is bound to be low, so it's really not a question of $ cost per lead, it's time cost per lead. Spend your time learning how to attract customers to your business the correct way.

As someone that's made his living for many years in the telemarketing area, i would have to respectfully disagree with your comment. If you are talking about calling out of the phone book, then this probably won't be extremely successful. Leads can be extremely targeted in telemarketing, so much so, that you'd be amazed at the the cost per order you can operate with using the right offer and right list. Do most people "love" to be called at home? Not really, but if you provide them with a good service or value on something that they are peripherally interested in, if you can keep them on the line for more than 30 seconds, you stand a very good chance to make a sale. Just like internet marketing, telemarketing is a numbers game. You just have to skew the numbers in your favor by knowing your market and how to pick the right offer to sell.

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David Hood 13 years ago

Telemarketing is a huge industry, so I imagine there is money to be made. I think this is something that isn't a thing most people would want to do, but if you invested time in learning techniques to target a specific market with a product that caters to them, It could be quite profitable.
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Jeremy Barker

13 years ago

I actually got a call the other day and didn't get to answer the phone. When I checked the voicemail it said that "This is so and so and I would like to speak to you about this opportunity in your area that you have prompted for more information on". I called him back just to see what this was and make sure he did not have a credit card number or something for me and when I spoke to him he did not even remember calling me and leaving a message.

A quick tip for everyone out there that conducts business in this (bad) manner:

1) Don't call someone saying that they have signed up for more information on something if they haven't. (People are not stupid)

2) At least remember the name of the person you are leaving messages.

LOL!

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sebastianlatina

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Jeremy Barker

That's funny, how embarrassing for that person. Good point though. It's something obvious and simple however I wonder how many times this has happened to people.

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Dave Rodman

Banned 13 years ago

I don't think it's that difficult for a company to measure the profitability of a telemarketing center, so it must be making them money.

In regards to the technique he used, I think it's kind of silly personally. Sure, it keeps you on the phone longer, but it just gets you more pissed off that he misrepresented himself.

But finally, people are too quick to blab their mouth about the business. Some guy calls you randomly, asks you questions about your business, and you answer? How do you know that guys not a competitor??? Trust me, when I was younger and a bigger pr*ck, I gathered information about my competition in sneaky ways and used it to completely undercut them. That was when I was a youngster though.

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sebastianlatina

13 years ago

Originally Posted by Dave Rodman

But finally, people are too quick to blab their mouth about the business. Some guy calls you randomly, asks you questions about your business, and you answer? How do you know that guys not a competitor??? Trust me, when I was younger and a bigger pr*ck, I gathered information about my competition in sneaky ways and used it to completely undercut them. That was when I was a youngster though.

The info I gave him could be found online. Thanks for your response.

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MichaelParsons

13 years ago

Why do you get those blue envelopes with the coupons in them once a month? You just throw them away, right?

Why do you get those robocalls asking you to "Press 9" to take action? You just hang up, right?

Why do you get these advertisements on websites? No one really clicks on them, do you?

Then why do companies engage in these "worthless" tactics?

Because they are not worthless, and can make a lot of money if done correctly...

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James Clark

13 years ago

To the Op,

Cold calling does work. It just depends on how you do it. I have a friend who makes cold calls at the Chamber of Commerce meetings. She is a SEO Writer. When the members come to the meetings they are looking for something. All you have to do is find out what kind of problems they are having.

In the old days salespeople would do a lot of cold calling. My understanding of the process is the following. The purpose is to get names and then go back to the office and try to sell the appointment.

When you a trying to build a territory from scratch you have to find people to talk too. And this is the best way to go about the process. And sometimes you actually get in to see someone. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that cold calling is a thing of the past.

But the word on the street is that no one buys leads anymore. The person who called you must not be to smart.

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sebastianlatina

13 years ago

Originally Posted by James Clark

Well in this situation, you've already had a conversation with the person, in order to find out what kind of problems they are having. In this situation, at least they know who you are. It's not really a cold call anymore. I really like this method. Congrats to her and her success in this method. It did not cost her a dime to generate that lead and she's found a void to fill in her potential customer/partner. That's a great start.

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Jon Tees 13 years ago

I personally prefer using reverse telemarketing. I get people to call me and then I proceed to either sell them a product or get them to join me in my business opportunity. The only people I would actually call would be leads, I generated myself or people who found me and went ahead with joining my business online just as a way to welcome them and see if they had any questions or needed any help. In seven years I have never purchased a single lead nor have I known anyone who has.
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Marvin Johnston 13 years ago

I see some comments about cold calling and telemarketing, and telemarketing is just one way of doing cold calling.

My problem is with telemarketing in general ... it is another form of interruption marketing. I very much equate cold call telemarketing to going up to someone and throwing a pitcher of water on them ... well, I sometimes think of other things ... it steals someones time.

Here in the US they have a Do Not Call list; using "but you didn't opt out" as an excuse for calling sounds just plain stupid.

A study I once read about showed that interruptions in work flow can take up to 20 minutes to recover. My (anecdotal) experience is about the same. Anyone who thinks interruption marketing is okay is someone who also could care less about their prospects.

Marvin
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- Alexa Smith Banned 13 years ago
  
  Originally Posted by Marvin Johnston
  
  My problem is with telemarketing in general ... it is another form of interruption marketing.
  
  It can be.
  
  It depends on whether or not the people being called have requested the call.
  
  If not, then I completely agree with you.
  
  The problem here, though, is that the OP is mistakenly equating "cold calling" with "lead buying", and is generalising from one to the other.
  
  The reality, of course, is that they're often two completely different things: one is intrinsically "permission-based marketing" and the other isn't. The "bought-in" leads against which the OP is urging people are typically people who have requested contact.
  
  Thanks
  
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  myob 13 years ago
  
  Without question telemarketing is often misused, as also (and even more so) are many other marketing techniques, including IM. But for those primarily in online marketing, it is difficult to fathom just how vast other marketing methods really are. Online marketing actually is quite miniscule by comparison.
  
  Marketing in general, is not one-dimensional; there are many facets to it. If all you have in your tool box is a hammer, then of course marketing is not much more than just pounding nails. But the telemarketing industry is very much alive and vibrantly profitable. And in a very real sense the marketing of leads is just another niche market. Effective telemarketing and proper use of leads are additional marketing tools.
  
  Here are some stats from DMA (Direct Marketing Association), although they are dated it gives a better picture of the other world out there offline.
  
  Telemarketing Industry Stats & Facts
  
  Thanks
  
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theemperor 13 years ago

Yep it's like the old "only 31 left", "or offer only available until midnight" technique that we are all so use to - but it still works because most people aren't aware that it's just a tactic.
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Adrianne_ 13 years ago

I don't see anything devious or horrible about calling leads. I personally know several people who only use this type of marketing to build their business and they are making 6 figures incomes and are training their networks to do the same. I compare it to the glass half full / half empty syndrome.

Leads are no longer "cold" when they fill out a form requesting more info about something. If they key in an accurate phone number, this indicates to me that they are expecting a call back. I'm amazed at the number of leads I've called and ask them has anyone contacted them yet and they say no. Some have told me they requested info 2 or 3 months ago and I'm the only one that called. Waste of time? Absolutely not!
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Jon Tees 13 years ago

One other factor to consider when cold calling/telemarketing is that although the person you are calling may be receptive to you and your offer their significant other (if they have one) may not be. The person (significant other) may do the following things to try and sell block you.

1. Yell at the person you are calling to get off the phone and hang up
2. Take the phone from the person you are calling and slam it down in an angry manner ending the call.
3. Get on one of the other extensions and curse you out while telling the person you are calling to get off the phone.

There obviously isn’t anything you can do about this as some people absolutely hate being called at home/having their loved ones called and despise people who would call them at home attempting to sell them anything.

I called someone once and got a very angry and hateful call back from the person’s wife who scolded me for waking her sleeping baby and threatened to report me to the district attorney if I ever called them again. She also insulted me using words I don’t wish to repeat, I could feel the hate in her voice she acted as though I invaded her personal space.

This wasn’t just a lead it was someone who signed up to join my downline and I was merely calling to welcome them and offer assistance. I dropped the person like a hot potato after the nasty call back I received even though they themselves weren't the one who called.
It just reeked of unprofessionalism and someone lacking a backbone to speak for themselves.
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A Devious Cold Calling Technique!

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