What do you do in this cold-calling situation?

50 replies
Sorry I would have had a more informational title but I couldn't fit enough characters.
What are you supposed to do when you're calling a small business and a employee asks why would you want to speak with the owner?

Ex:
"Hello, this is [YOUR FIRST NAME]. I would like to speak with [BUSINESS OWNER FIRST NAME & LAST]."
"Why?"

I'm writing a script for my cold calling, I've never done this before. What are you supposed to do when a employee asks this?
#coldcalling #situation
  • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
    Jason thanks for your private message. Sorry that I can't reply via PM but I don't have 50 posts yet.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Jason's answer is going to be better than mine. But I say my first and last name as though I'm important. Believe it or not, I don't get "Why" very often.

      When I do, I laugh and say "Don't worry, nobody's in trouble. (Some reason, any reason). Is he in ?"

      For example;
      "Hi This is Claude Whitacre calling for Tony. Is Tony in?"
      '"Why do you want to talk to him?"
      Me- "Don't worry nobody's in trouble (as if that is answer enough), I'm a speaker and I had a question for him. Is he in?"

      My giving that answer as though it should be enough, gets me in 90% of the time. (I mean, including the ones who don't ask anything)

      Beyond this point, I take on questions that Jason Kanigan asks.
      And as soon as Tony is on the line, I just start asking questions. But I do give my name out as though it means something, and that's a little different.

      This is actually just out of habit, and I know I'll be in for a learning experience with just a few more posts here. I'm glad you asked your question. It's one I hadn't considered.

      I use Kanigans approach nearly word for word, (after he taught me) except for the fact that I use my name.
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      • Profile picture of the author impro42
        Originally Posted by Claude Whitacre View Post

        Jason's answer is going to be better than mine. But I say my first and first name as though I'm important. Believe it or not, I don't get "Why" very often.

        When I do, I laugh and say "Don't worry, nobody's in trouble. (Some reason, and reason). Is he in ?"

        For example;
        "Hi This is Claude Whitacre calling for Tony. Is Tony in?"
        '"Why do you want to talk to him?"
        Me- "Don't worry nobody's in trouble (as if that is answer enough), I'm a speaker and I had a question for him. Is he in?"

        Me giving that answer as though it should be enough, gets me in 90% of the time. (I mean, including the ones who don't ask anything)

        Beyond this point, I take on questions that Jason Kanigan asks.
        And as soon as Tony is on the line, I just start asking questions. But I do give my name out as though it means something, and that's a little different.

        This is actually just out of habit, and I know I'll be in for a learning experience with just a few more posts here. I'm glad you asked your question. It's one I hadn't considered.

        I use Kanigans approach nearly word for word, (after he taught me) except for the fact that I use my name.

        That's a pretty good strategy
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    • Profile picture of the author John Durham
      Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

      Jason thanks for your private message. Sorry that I can't reply via PM but I don't have 50 posts yet.
      Its a shame that Jason didnt share his answer with all of us here...
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      • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
        Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

        Its a shame that Jason didnt share his answer with all of us here...
        He just linked me to some threads he's posted on the subject in the past, very helpful ones.

        He apparently wants to use his "2,000th post" on something big.
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        • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
          Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

          He just linked me to some threads he's posted on the subject in the past, very helpful ones.

          He apparently wants to use his "2,000th post" on something big.

          this is your SIG.

          "Java, C#, C++, PHP, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, JQuery, VB.NET, MySQL, Graphic Design
          PM me with your email if you need help with anything."


          if you want some advice, help or even discussion, contact me via PM when you have a few min...

          i am also a coder... even though you and i think that it is special, nowadays it is not.

          I assume based on your posts, you want to make money.

          that is more then fair in my eyes.

          but, you have things you need to learn if you want to do it here.
          contact me, i can an will help you as best as i can.
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          • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
            Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

            ....
            As much as I would love to contact you via PM I can't, I do not have 50 posts.
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            • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
              Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

              As much as I would love to contact you via PM I can't, I do not have 50 posts.
              I will PM you an email. and a skype tomorrow,
              I have work tonight or i would do it now.
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              • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
                Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

                I will PM you an email. and a skype tomorrow,
                I have work tonight or i would do it now.
                Thanks, I'll make sure to hop on & check the forums tomorrow after school. I have to go to bed.
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        • Profile picture of the author John Durham
          Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post


          He apparently wants to use his "2,000th post" on something big.
          Im sure of it.

          This makes me want to change some plans I had... Im seeing "John Webster" the guy whose remark turned me into an ass wooping telemarketing champion. some will get that and some wont.
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          • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
            Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

            Im sure of it.

            This makes me want to change some plans I had... Im seeing "John Webster" the guy whose remark turned me into an ass wooping telemarketing champion. some will get that and some wont.
            " I do "


            ..................
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        • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
          Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

          He just linked me to some threads he's posted on the subject in the past, very helpful ones.

          He apparently wants to use his "2,000th post" on something big.
          Not to toot my own horn here...but I PM'd you, and offered to help you and teach...didn't hear back.

          You need to get used to calling then go for the sales IMO. I can help with both
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          • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
            Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

            Not to toot my own horn here...but I PM'd you, and offered to help you and teach...didn't hear back.

            You need to get used to calling then go for the sales IMO. I can help with both
            not to toot MY own horn

            but he doesn't have enough posts to PM you yet ...
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  • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
    I've never had anyone ask me WHY I was calling the owner. I've done this for 8 years. If someone asked that I'd say "if he's not available, when should I call him back, this is Melissa." Just redirect them. If they are being tough or acting like a gatekeeper, hang up and call another time.

    This isn't really an issue you'll run into often. Most likely you sound unsure of yourself, or you hit one call on your first day that scared you (so keep dialing), or you're overthinking this before you even start calling...it's not likely to happen.
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  • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
    I never use my last name to get through the gatekeeper.

    I also don't ask for a last name , unless they ask me the last name.

    With my tone, i just act like i a SUPPOSED to be calling.

    works like a charm.


    Example:

    Hey, This is Ken, is jim still available?

    Hey, This is Ken, is jim still in?

    ect, i get bored easily.. i say all kinds of silly stuff...
    most of it works.. because i ACT , and SOUND.. like i am supposed to calling
    and kinda in a hurry, and a little put off that i even have to make this call.
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    • Profile picture of the author vndnbrgj
      This is what I say as well....

      Sometimes after that I say.... "I'll hold"
      And then just go quiet.


      Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

      Example:

      Hey, This is Ken, is jim still available?

      Hey, This is Ken, is jim still in?

      ect, i get bored easily.. i say all kinds of silly stuff...
      most of it works.. because i ACT , and SOUND.. like i am supposed to calling
      and kinda in a hurry, and a little put off that i even have to make this call.
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      • Profile picture of the author DavePalermo
        When they ask why tell them it's a courtesy call.
        Puzzles the smart asses every time.....
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        • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
          Originally Posted by DavePalermo View Post

          When they ask why tell them it's a courtesy call.
          Puzzles the smart asses every time.....
          really ? that works ?

          I would imagine all kinds of alarm bells would go off for the receiver.
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          • Profile picture of the author DavePalermo
            Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

            really ? that works ?

            I would imagine all kinds of alarm bells would go off for the receiver.
            I had what seemed to be a young kid answering the phone just yesterday.
            They don't know better.

            Then again I have stopped using that in general.
            It's old and outdated.....

            I just threaten them if I don't get the owner.....
            Now that works every time!!!!!
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        • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
          Originally Posted by DavePalermo View Post

          When they ask why tell them it's a courtesy call.
          Puzzles the smart asses every time.....
          Dave; No disrespect, man. If it works, it works. It would puzzle me too. And then I would ask "OK, what is this about?". And it would then be much harder to talk to me. Unless you have a great added comeback.

          Maybe it's the way you sound when you say it.
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      • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
        Originally Posted by vndnbrgj View Post

        This is what I say as well....

        Sometimes after that I say.... "I'll hold"
        And then just go quiet.
        I knew there was a reason to go to this forum this morning!

        "I'll hold". I love it. it solves so many problems.

        It actually sounds like "We are now on hold, so your job is to get me Bob. This call is important."

        It used to be (100 years ago) effective to say "This is long distance". Now, if someone said that to me, I'd laugh. But "I'll hold"? I'd get my boss. Great stuff.


        Added later; Ken Michaels said; "Hey, This is Ken, is Jim still in?". I love the "still in" part. It sounds like you just talked to him a short time ago, and want to continue the conversation. Or that you knew he was in earlier. Two big "gets" for me today. Thanks.
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  • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
    Well, I made my first call. It was a complete failure and my script was broken because the employee claimed to be the owner.

    I was calling a auto repair store, not trying to be sexist but I don't think a female would own one of those. The small shop didn't display their owner's name upfront so I had no way of knowing.

    Is this a common trick? I didn't know what to do.
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    • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
      Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

      Well, I made my first call. It was a complete failure and my script was broken because the employee claimed to be the owner.

      I was calling a auto repair store, not trying to be sexist but I don't think a female would own one of those. The small shop didn't display their owner's name upfront so I had no way of knowing.

      Is this a common trick? I didn't know what to do.
      G o back to basics.

      What i mean is this... what business do you know the most about ?

      auto repair... restaurant... something else.

      Start there.

      You will know the lingo, you will know when some one is BS'ing you ...

      You will know exactly how to help them... while sounding
      confident and authoritative.

      If you dont have a specialty niche.

      Pick one.. any one.. and record the conversations.

      call 1000 business in ONLY that niche.

      by the time you make it to the end, you will be as close
      to an expert as one can expect with out being in the bizz.


      and then you can sound confident and authoritative.
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      • Profile picture of the author mojo1
        Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

        G o back to basics.
        If you dont have a specialty niche.

        Pick one.. any one.. and record the conversations.

        call 1000 business in ONLY that niche.

        by the time you make it to the end, you will be as close
        to an expert as one can expect with out being in the bizz.


        and then you can sound confident and authoritative.
        This is some of the best darn advice yet.

        It just makes so much sense to not hop around until you've mastered their unique lingo.
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    • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
      Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

      Well, I made my first call. It was a complete failure and my script was broken because the employee claimed to be the owner.

      I was calling a auto repair store, not trying to be sexist but I don't think a female would own one of those. The small shop didn't display their owner's name upfront so I had no way of knowing.

      Is this a common trick? I didn't know what to do.
      Did you ask for the owner? Did you stumble? When she caught you offguard did you freak out? All normal, but it will get better with each call...
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      • Profile picture of the author Jacob Anthony
        Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

        Did you ask for the owner? Did you stumble? When she caught you offguard did you freak out? All normal, but it will get better with each call...
        Melissa's spot on there OP! It does get better with time. It's like learning to ride a bike, you fall off but you just get back on again and learn from each time you fall off!!!
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        • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
          Sounds bad but I only was able to contact 5 clients today throughout an hour. My target today was the local plumbing area.

          Out of the five however, three were interested enough to give me the owner's contact email. So far within 45 minutes one owner has responded. All other businesses in that industry are closed.

          I'm doing this: http://www.warriorforum.com/offline-...y-3-weeks.html
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  • Profile picture of the author vndnbrgj
    Did you stop after one call?
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    • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
      Originally Posted by vndnbrgj View Post

      Did you stop after one call?
      Yea. What sucks about cold calling for me is that I get home from school at around 4, and I only have until 5:30 to make cold calls then like 90%+ of the businesses I want to call are closed.
      I was stuck writing the script until around 5:25. It took me until 5:28 to muster up the courage to do the call. I'm hoping to improve my confidence in cold calling.
      Tomorrow I'm hoping to at-least call 50.

      Though I've always wanted to do online marketing there's simply too much competition & it's way too hard to be found. I thought I would turn to offline marketing to fix this.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
    Tomorrow...call 150, without stopping for more than a 5 minute break at a time (when needed). You'll get better and see that it's not as scary as you think. They are just people, talk to them.
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    • Profile picture of the author John Durham
      Originally Posted by Mwind076 View Post

      Tomorrow...call 150, without stopping for more than a 5 minute break at a time (when needed). You'll get better and see that it's not as scary as you think. They are just people, talk to them.
      Exactly, try this: Not pulling ANYTHING...Just say why you are calling to 150 people. Less thinking, more dialing.Less being self conscious, more communicating.

      You arent calling to be a superstar, you are calling to ask an honest question and get an honest answer.. Honestly self consciousness, is really self "centered" ness. Its about getting down to finding out what you want to know,. Im not interested is one of those things you want to know.
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  • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
    Alright I'll take the advice, I really don't know if I can do 150 calls in 1hr 30 mins but I will do my best.
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    • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
      Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

      Alright I'll take the advice, I really don't know if I can do 150 calls in 1hr 30 mins but I will do my best.

      learn time zones, and then you can make that volume under any restraint.
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      • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
        Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

        learn time zones, and then you can make that volume under any restraint.
        I'm not 100% sure that I'm allowed to do out of state work on my sole proprietorship. I'll have to check.
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    • Profile picture of the author John Durham
      Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

      Alright I'll take the advice, I really don't know if I can do 150 calls in 1hr 30 mins but I will do my best.
      Making 150 calls is simply "humbling yourself" to success, if you approach her humbly she will bless you...but if you approach her like "Im too good to make 150 calls" then she will show you that you arent, and tell you to come back when you are humble.

      Im not speaking directly to you saying you are self centered meanwalrus, I dont get that from you at all. its just a rule in my head today that I want to express.

      When a person thinks that something is wrong when they dont succeed for a few calls, it means they think more highly of themselves than the successes they look up to in a sense.

      In my own example, I will make a fool of myself to get a message across, and do it all the time here at the warrior forum,because the message is important. Im more concerned about reaching people than looking cool and collected.

      On another note, there are alot of people who come to the warrior forum wanting to have stripes they havent earned, and they either give up, or the forum humbles them. You have to be willing to be broken by success.

      Ps. I have a head cold though, so maybe Im not thinking too clearly. In any event, no matter how many times you fall off the bike, if you want to ride you got to get back up.
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      • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
        Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

        Making 150 calls is simply.....
        I see your viewpoints on things. This is actually really good advice, thanks.

        For some reason, before the last few months, I used to think that mental motivation had little to no effect on success. I guess it's safe to say I was very wrong.
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        • Profile picture of the author John Durham
          Originally Posted by MeanWalrus View Post

          I see your viewpoints on things. This is actually really good advice, thanks.

          For some reason, before the last few months, I used to think that mental motivation had little to no effect on success. I guess it's safe to say I was very wrong.
          I guess I could say it simpler like this; Just dont pressure yourself so much, put all the pressure on the system of cold calling success. The law of numbers. You will get to where you can bend it to your will later, but for now, put all the work on the numbers...They will:

          A: Give you a sale for running them.
          B: Teach you everything you need to know along the way.

          Once you have succeeded some then you will be more apt to picking up different "techniques"... For now though if you will jst love the process, and be willing to keep saying hello to people, you will get some success. Its the law, and it cannot be any other way.

          Just say Hi, and ask your question and really pay attention to the answers, you will see opportunities. You cant sell everyone, but if you keep going you will see someone you can sell.
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          • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
            Originally Posted by John Durham View Post

            I guess I could say it simpler like this.....
            So you just mean talk to the owner, say hi, and then explain what you're willing to offer? That's it?
            That doesn't seem like it offers too much success compared to having an actual script prepared.
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  • Profile picture of the author JerrickYeoh
    I might said that i have something to noticed your business owner which regarding business opportunities. You only want to speak to business owner which is decision maker make it sound that they have no right to ignore your call other than their business owner.

    I believe the employee might think you must be something urgent or serious to speak to their owner.
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  • Profile picture of the author brik2500
    LOL....usually when I start cold calling with a new technique I FALL FLAT THE FIRST 5 CALLS!!!!

    It's hilarious....but my mentor told me to use the 'difficult" phone calls to get better....


    ALSO: I never introduce myself....."hey is Walrus there?"

    "Who's calling?"

    "Jim."


    Like someone said before.....your intonation is important.....

    BEST

    Brik
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    • Btw how many calls max can you handle a day?.
      I managed to do something like 60-70 , if I tried to do more I started getting confused and emotionally drained...
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  • Profile picture of the author BillyParadise
    Don't worry, he doesn't owe me money (yet )
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    • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
      Thank you for the replies, I can regularly check the forum at school using my cell phone however I have to sneak it as cell phones are "disallowed", so I typically do not have enough time to respond.

      I would also like to more directly say thank you for the advice on cold calling in certain situations and tactics to address these.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jeremy Bratcher
    As a former gatekeeper I can tell you, if someone asks why you need to speak to the owner. Just tell them and they will usually put you through.

    Don't just go into your pitch but simply state it is a business call.

    If this doesn't work, I would say "NEXT!"

    This comes from my extensive experience in 20+ cold calls. :p
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  • Profile picture of the author Darrall59
    I usually tell them the people moved out a month ago that way they wont do it again
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  • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
    Hence the reason I gave him my email address in it
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    • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
      [DELETED]
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      • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
        No, I'll take smart and pretty I wasn't calling you creepy, you know that!
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        • Profile picture of the author MeanWalrus
          @Mwind076

          When you said "We offer training & services" the keyword paying money clicked into my head. Money is the one thing I don't have right now. I'm going to have to just get by with what people are willing to share without a pay.
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  • Profile picture of the author Mwind076
    I do plenty of consulting and advice giving without getting paid...
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