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My first day cold calling and a new strategy.

by its
26 replies
Ok let me share my first day with you. I've started my own webdesign company (viral9.com) Today I called about 20 businesses and emailed 10. I know this isn't much but it took me longer since I did a bit of research on the companies I called, wrote out some emails and did some other work. I targeted one street of small shops. Here are my results and my thoughts.

1 business was interested and asked me to drop some information off to give to his wife.

1 took down my contact information for the future (sounded semi promising)

1 took down my contact information and was very questioning about the price, pages and what it included. They also werent the business owner so hoping to arrange a meeting with them.

1 asked me to call back tomorrow after five to speak to the business owner.

My thoughts.

I feel almost frustrated. Some of them were quite blunt in that they didn't want a website but I feel the conversation ended before I could challenge some of their doubts. One was an estate agents (dealing with hundreds of thousands of pounds) and their website is crappy for when it was first made (2002).

I feel myself getting better every call but a thought came to me.

Why don't I just get some large A4 yellow letters, make a small pack advertising my services and why they need a website, add a cover letter related to their business, address it to the business owner and post them to all these shops? It may give them a little more information than I can get on the phone. Or I could keep cold calling and work on my technique.

What do you think?

Will make more calls tomorrow. If they hang up I usually don't get a chance to mention my company name, so I'll essentially get a few chances to contact the same businesses.

Cheers for any response.
#calling #cold #day #strategy
  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    Instead of jumping from business type to business type, pick one niche and stick with it. You'll learn a lot more about them much more quickly, and be able to soon talk knowledgeably about the problems they experience.

    Instead of pushing them to buy a website from you, find out what they're thinking about their existing (or non-existent) website. If THEY believe it needs a redesign, do you think they'll be easier to talk to about it? If they don't believe it needs a redesign, is it worth it for you to continue the conversation?

    At this point, they don't care about your company name. Uncover need, first. Do they have a need for what you offer?

    Good for you for starting the process. Now do some more. It's time to learn!

    This will help
    http://www.warriorforum.com/offline-...t-selling.html
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  • Profile picture of the author shawnlebrun
    Good job taking action... this is more than many, many people would do. Going this far out of your comfort zone is something FEW people will do.

    I can relate, I used to hammer the phones back when I was a real estate agent. Sucked big time... because out of 100 calls, and most of the morning... I'd literally get a chance to talk to just a handful of people.

    To me, and maybe I'm in the minority here... cold calling is NOT the best use of your time.

    there's very little leverage... UNLESS you're able to get a list of highly targeted, highly interested leads.

    For me, when I made the switch from cold calling, to sending out direct response postcards and letters... it was like night and day.

    It freed up 4 to 5 hours a day for me, and not to mention it brought in 10 times the leads.

    For me, I focused on a part of town that always seemed to have turnover and people selling/buying houses.

    The first year after switching from cold calls to postcards and letters, my income jumped from $40,000 to $100,000+

    but here's the better part... my day went from 10 hours to about 4. Now, granted this way back in the 90's, so their may be even better ways to get ahold of people through online methods...

    but it still remains the same. Cold calling doesn't use leverage unless you're getting through and talking to decision makers... and even then, i can send out 1,000 postcards in 5 minutes. It would take me a week to make those 1,000 calls.

    Now, I'm talking about cold calls here... like Jason said, target a niche, and maybe presell them with a postcard and THEN make the call.

    When I got into copywriting, I'd often send a FedEx package to big clients and follow up with a few phone calls.

    in all you do... think leverage and "how can i reach the most people in the least amount of time"
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    • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
      Originally Posted by shawnlebrun View Post

      To me, and maybe I'm in the minority here... cold calling is NOT the best use of your time.

      there's very little leverage... UNLESS you're able to get a list of highly targeted, highly interested leads.
      Just like with copywriting, Shawn, it depends on how you do it. Lousy copy won't convert. Lousy calls won't, either.

      If you call for 3 hours one day and expect magic results, you'll be disappointed. Inconsistent calling, or the "Hail Mary" play, will likely give you nothing. You might get lucky. But you probably won't.

      If you know how to qualify--SORT, and exactly what good copy does--buyers from non-buyers, your time is used very effectively. You get to have real conversations right now with buyers.

      All the OP is doing right now is calling up a random business and saying, "Hey, you wanna buy a website?" (Just like many other designers.)

      You are right about the list. How you put your list together has a big effect on the effectiveness of your calling session. If you're fighting your list--disconnected or wrong numbers--it will be a bad experience. If you didn't pre-qualify your suspects a bit, it will be more difficult.

      The OP called an essentially random smattering of businesses that had nothing in common except geography. He did not learn anything about those businesses, and did not build on his knowledge of a niche. He made a single attempt, does not yet understand how to use the information he gained today to increase his chances of success in the future, and is looking for a way to bale out as soon as he can.

      This is like writing copy without doing any research or drafting an outline first. People seem to expect that just because they have had a mouth and a brain for years and years, they should know what to do with them on the phone. No way. This is a skill like any other.

      I hope he focuses on a niche and sticks with it.
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  • Profile picture of the author its
    I appreciate your responses but must not have explained enough. I didn't phone the random businesses with no research. Like I said in my OP I did research on the companies. Do they have a website? Who are their competition? When was it last updated? I usually opened the phone conversation with a point about their business rather than just 'want a website?'. But I still found many obstacles from people I feel I could sell in person but not over the phone. Hence my consideration of the mail possibility.

    I'm not 100% sure exactly why you think targeting a niche will help. It doesn't matter if I am designing a website for a restaurant or a small book shop I can do an amazing job that will blow all their competition away. I can write a good cover letter explaining their problems and my solutions along with some standard company information.

    How does that sound? I'm still learning as I go and appreciate every response.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
      Originally Posted by its View Post

      I appreciate your responses but must not have explained enough. I didn't phone the random businesses with no research. Like I said in my OP I did research on the companies. Do they have a website? Who are their competition? When was it last updated? I usually opened the phone conversation with a point about their business rather than just 'want a website?'. But I still found many obstacles from people I feel I could sell in person but not over the phone. Hence my consideration of the mail possibility.

      I'm not 100% sure exactly why you think targeting a niche will help. It doesn't matter if I am designing a website for a restaurant or a small book shop I can do an amazing job that will blow all their competition away. I can write a good cover letter explaining their problems and my solutions along with some standard company information.

      How does that sound? I'm still learning as I go and appreciate every response.
      You get credibility in a niche based on what you demonstrate you know about it. If you jump from thing to thing, you never get that knowledge. Now I don't mean that you know the price of tomatoes or what size wrench the plumber should use. I mean the reasons why business owners in this niche want to hire someone like you.

      They don't care that your design will "blow all their competition away." They are not going to let you play with their business unless they trust you. And right now you sound like every other designer out there when you call.

      They also don't care about your "standard company information."

      You have to stand out first. Find out about THEIR world. They do not care about yours. You are a voice on the other end of the phone who just called them out of the blue.

      When you know why business owners in a certain niche use your services, you can explain those reasons to others. They will say "Hmm, he must have helped someone just like me--that's the only way he could know what he just said!" Small business owners are especially afraid of getting ripped off by a 'one size fits all' consultant who blows through town. They want someone who understands their business.

      Who would you hire?

      The designer who says, "I can make you a kick-ass website"

      or

      The designer who says, "I work with plumbers to make sure they have a website that is a machine for converting cold visitors into hot leads--who call in for help right away!"
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    • Profile picture of the author kemdev
      Originally Posted by its View Post

      I appreciate your responses but must not have explained enough. I didn't phone the random businesses with no research. Like I said in my OP I did research on the companies. Do they have a website? Who are their competition? When was it last updated? I usually opened the phone conversation with a point about their business rather than just 'want a website?'. But I still found many obstacles from people I feel I could sell in person but not over the phone. Hence my consideration of the mail possibility.
      I would think that there's nothing you could tell a prospect about their business that would mean anything to them. In fact, you might be putting people off depending on what you say. You don't know anything about them, their situation, what they want or don't want, etc... until you ask.

      Many people here advocate pretending to be a 'marketing consultant' to businesses. What a crock of sh**. Don't be something you're not. They've likely been around waaaaay before you called and will be there way after.

      Stick to what you know. Websites. Specifically, websites that generate phone calls. A piece of mail doesn't ask questions, doesn't talk back, and costs money. What makes you think that approach will work better?
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      • Profile picture of the author its
        Originally Posted by kemdev View Post

        I would think that there's nothing you could tell a prospect about their business that would mean anything to them. In fact, you might be putting people off depending on what you say. You don't know anything about them, their situation, what they want or don't want, etc... until you ask.

        Many people here advocate pretending to be a 'marketing consultant' to businesses. What a crock of sh**. Don't be something you're not. They've likely been around waaaaay before you called and will be there way after.

        Stick to what you know. Websites. Specifically, websites that generate phone calls. A piece of mail doesn't ask questions, doesn't talk back, and costs money. What makes you think that approach will work better?
        Oh I never presume to know something. Like I could say I notice their website hasn't been updated for five years but wondered if they had any plans to re launch their website. Something like that.

        A piece of mail could work. It goes straight to the business owner, has information on why they should have a website and what it could bring. It won't change peoples mind but it may push people off the fence to contact me back. Problem with cold calling is I can tell many hang up but I get the impression with some more information they may reconsider.
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        • Profile picture of the author kemdev
          Originally Posted by its View Post

          Oh I never presume to know something. Like I could say I notice their website hasn't been updated for five years but wondered if they had any plans to re launch their website. Something like that.

          A piece of mail could work. It goes straight to the business owner, has information on why they should have a website and what it could bring. It won't change peoples mind but it may push people off the fence to contact me back. Problem with cold calling is I can tell many hang up but I get the impression with some more information they may reconsider.
          Let's think about what you're asking for a second...

          "Do you have any plans to re-launch your website?"

          No matter what you said before that sentence, in my mind you're asking for the sale right there. It would basically be the same as saying, "Do you want a website?" You can't do that and expect any sort of response. I would guess most of them say NO. If they say YES, what's your next play? "Oh, I do websites! You should hire me to do it because this, this, and this."

          The key is to get THEM to say they want to re-launch their site.

          "Hey _____. My name is _____ and I'm a local web developer. I'm calling about your website. Is it sending you enough business?"

          Now you're talking about their site. You're gathering information.

          "Do you want it to send you business?"

          "What else do you want it to do for you?"

          "I know something like this isn't make-or-break for your business. How soon did you want to get something up that will generate some phone calls?"

          The first words coming out of your mouth can't be asking for the sale. You need information first... about them, their business, their website. Then you can make the recommendation.

          A piece of mail won't say anything you can't say yourself. And doesn't give you the option to ask questions. Maybe if they're already qualified first, sure... but not cold.
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      • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
        Originally Posted by kemdev View Post

        I would think that there's nothing you could tell a prospect about their business that would mean anything to them. In fact, you might be putting people off depending on what you say. You don't know anything about them, their situation, what they want or don't want, etc... until you ask.

        Many people here advocate pretending to be a 'marketing consultant' to businesses. What a crock of sh**. Don't be something you're not. They've likely been around waaaaay before you called and will be there way after.

        Stick to what you know. Websites. Specifically, websites that generate phone calls. A piece of mail doesn't ask questions, doesn't talk back, and costs money. What makes you think that approach will work better?
        So you should blast them with features of your website design instead?

        The website is your solution. It comes at the END of the process. Not at the start.

        You are looking for businesses that are having trouble turning website visitors into customers, or prospects who dial in, for example. You help businesses that are in that situation. There are a lot of other things a website can be used for.

        Unless you want to sound like every other designer out there, and get treated like them...having everything devolve to the lowest price.

        One thing I definitely agree with here is ASKING questions to find out about your prospect's situation. Then you can match up your solution to their problem, if it's a fit.
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        • Profile picture of the author kemdev
          Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

          So you should blast them with features of your website design instead?

          The website is your solution. It comes at the END of the process. Not at the start.

          You are looking for businesses that are having trouble turning website visitors into customers, or prospects who dial in, for example. You help businesses that are in that situation. There are a lot of other things a website can be used for.

          Unless you want to sound like every other designer out there, and get treated like them...having everything devolve to the lowest price.

          One thing I definitely agree with here is ASKING questions to find out about your prospect's situation. Then you can match up your solution to their problem, if it's a fit.
          I didn't say that.

          The website is the only solution. How can that come at the end if it's the only thing you can offer? If the goal is more leads - and the website is what drives those leads - why hide the fact that you're a web developer in the beginning? I'm a web developer who specializes in helping businesses get more phone calls and leads from the Internet - why wait until the end of the process to mention anything about the website? Why not be up front about how you can help them?
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  • Profile picture of the author its
    I don't see why not sticking with a niche means I suddenly don't understand any businesses. A problem with sticking to a niche in webdesign is it's either too general to be a niche or too specific. Say my niche is restaurants. I'm now limiting myself to restaurants who are in competition with each other.

    Nothing to stop me from being open to business with no niche but still over the same targeted service. You make a good point about learning about their business. Even if I have a niche it doesn't mean I can skip this stage. So regardless of niche or not I still need to learn about their company and resolve their problems and concerns.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
      Originally Posted by its View Post

      I don't see why not sticking with a niche means I suddenly don't understand any businesses. A problem with sticking to a niche in webdesign is it's either too general to be a niche or too specific. Say my niche is restaurants. I'm now limiting myself to restaurants who are in competition with each other.

      Nothing to stop me from being open to business with no niche but still over the same targeted service. You make a good point about learning about their business. Even if I have a niche it doesn't mean I can skip this stage. So regardless of niche or not I still need to learn about their company and resolve their problems and concerns.
      You can have several niches you work in. Don't worry, I'm certain if you keep calling you'll figure out on your own why you should do this.
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  • Profile picture of the author its
    Right. Do you think I should focus on my calls or work on sending some mail with more information directly relevant and written specifically for their business?
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  • Profile picture of the author its
    Cheers again.
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  • Profile picture of the author tritrain
    How about you sweeten the deal by offering to build the first few websites for free?

    If they like take you up on it, then you've got more of your work to add to your portfolio, you've got a possible testimonial, and you may have a happy customer to spread the word. Do that a few times and you may start to build up some momentum. You could try to target your local area with a cable tv commercial. One thing that I'm considering is offering free or paid classes on how to do certain things online. You may find quite a few willing customers from within your classes, as you may have built some trust and maybe they will decide that its too much work and to just hire someone (and there you are!).

    In the meantime, you could offer your services nationally or internationally via Elance and other freelance sites. This could be a decent form of income, or maybe even a great source of income. You could even supplement your income via Fiverr and other microjob sites.
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  • Profile picture of the author its
    I'm not saying there isnt room for improvement on my calling strategy. But what I found is some people cut the line too soon or the business owners don't want to talk about a website over the phone. Something they can read in a couple minutes addressed to them. That might be enough to start a real conversation.
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    • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
      Originally Posted by kemdev View Post

      I didn't say that.

      The website is the only solution. How can that come at the end if it's the only thing you can offer? If the goal is more leads - and the website is what drives those leads - why hide the fact that you're a web developer in the beginning? I'm a web developer who specializes in helping businesses get more phone calls and leads from the Internet - why wait until the end of the process to mention anything about the website? Why not be up front about how you can help them?
      You are determining whether they have the need, budget and personality fit to be a client of yours. It's OK if they do not.

      You can talk about the website in the questions you ask, as you have mentioned. Then at the end, you match up what you can do with the problems they have which you can solve.

      Originally Posted by its View Post

      I'm not saying there isnt room for improvement on my calling strategy. But what I found is some people cut the line too soon or the business owners don't want to talk about a website over the phone. Something they can read in a couple minutes addressed to them. That might be enough to start a real conversation.
      The reason they are doing that--leaving the calls early--is because of how you are carrying them out. And as far as your mail idea goes, most unsolicited communication goes directly into the trash.
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      • Profile picture of the author Matthew North
        Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

        You are determining whether they have the need, budget and personality fit to be a client of yours. .
        Ahh Jason, I will always be here to disagree with you on this (subtle) point.

        I'm not disagreeing with your premise, but with your estimation.

        The reason why people don't buy (or already have) websites is because they do not see the advantages and personal benefits of owning one. If they did, our job would just be to create urgency to get it done.

        People that don't have websites are in the late majority or laggards in terms of adoption. Laggards won't move for all the benefits under the sun, but the late majority need to be motivated through curiosity and into interest by bringing product advantages to their awareness.

        You are attempting a zero sum game. Prospect literally is not aware of any needs that you can solve, so going in with the expectation of qualifying for these needs is.. a waste of time!

        As you have pointed out, stick to one vertical so you can become known, then use their testimonial to raise curiosity through the principle of association, AND raise their awareness with product advantages.

        Then once they are qualified you can use the product advantages to demonstrate personalized, quantifiable benefits. Getting X amount of new visitors, customers, revenue per year that far outweigh the cost of the website.

        I can see a lot of newbies banging their heads wondering what they're doing wrong. In this case this is a perfect example of not creating the need on the first call. You need to SELL the website right at the start and then you find out if they're a good fit. It takes less than 30 seconds to do, and it makes them want to hear from you, listen to you and buy from you.
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        • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
          Originally Posted by Matthew North View Post

          Ahh Jason, I will always be here to disagree with you on this (subtle) point.

          I'm not disagreeing with your premise, but with your estimation.

          The reason why people don't buy (or already have) websites is because they do not see the advantages and personal benefits of owning one. If they did, our job would just be to create urgency to get it done.

          People that don't have websites are in the late majority or laggards in terms of adoption. Laggards won't move for all the benefits under the sun, but the late majority need to be motivated through curiosity and into interest by bringing product advantages to their awareness.

          You are attempting a zero sum game. Prospect literally is not aware of any needs that you can solve, so going in with the expectation of qualifying for these needs is.. a waste of time!

          As you have pointed out, stick to one vertical so you can become known, then use their testimonial to raise curiosity through the principle of association, AND raise their awareness with product advantages.

          Then once they are qualified you can use the product advantages to demonstrate personalized, quantifiable benefits. Getting X amount of new visitors, customers, revenue per year that far outweigh the cost of the website.

          I can see a lot of newbies banging their heads wondering what they're doing wrong. In this case this is a perfect example of not creating the need on the first call. You need to SELL the website right at the start and then you find out if they're a good fit. It takes less than 30 seconds to do, and it makes them want to hear from you, listen to you and buy from you.
          This is done in your pain points/30 second commercial, in the method I use. Yes, the prospect may have no idea they have a want or need for your product or service at the very start of your conversation. That's what the pain points uncover. And the more jargon-specific to that industry, the more you actually talk about experiences they have, the more instant credibility you get. (Hence the reason to stick with one niche...once you find those pain points, you can call the crap out of it and everyone you talk to will be interested.)

          Websites are a solution. They come at the end of this process. I have sold many websites, from dirt-simple $100 ones to $60,000+ database-driven student record management solutions. We did NOT begin by talking about the website. We started by talking about the prospect's situation, and identifying symptoms of problems and issues they were experiencing now--that could be solved by a website.

          NEED - if they don't have want/need for what you offer, why would you sell to them? You'd just get buyer's remorse. They don't have to know they have need at the start...you'll uncover this very quickly if they do.

          BUDGET - if they can't pay you what you feel you deserve, why would you want to work with them?

          PERSONALITY - if they aren't going to treat you right, why would you want to take them on as a client or customer?

          I think we solve the same problem; we just have a slightly different order of operations.
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          • Profile picture of the author Matthew North
            Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

            This is done in your pain points/30 second commercial, in the method I use. Yes, the prospect may have no idea they have a want or need for your product or service at the very start of your conversation. That's what the pain points uncover. And the more jargon-specific to that industry, the more you actually talk about experiences they have, the more instant credibility you get. (Hence the reason to stick with one niche...once you find those pain points, you can call the crap out of it and everyone you talk to will be interested.)

            Websites are a solution. They come at the end of this process. I have sold many websites, from dirt-simple $100 ones to $60,000+ database-driven student record management solutions. We did NOT begin by talking about the website. We started by talking about the prospect's situation, and identifying symptoms of problems and issues they were experiencing now--that could be solved by a website.

            NEED - if they don't have want/need for what you offer, why would you sell to them? You'd just get buyer's remorse. They don't have to know they have need at the start...you'll uncover this very quickly if they do.

            BUDGET - if they can't pay you what you feel you deserve, why would you want to work with them?

            PERSONALITY - if they aren't going to treat you right, why would you want to take them on as a client or customer?

            I think we solve the same problem; we just have a slightly different order of operations.
            Great stuff. I think your thirty second commercial is similar to what I do anyway. Or perhaps we just have a different perspective on calling?

            I do go into pain points while drawing out the call at the start, keeping them engaged with small qualifying questions that lead to the discovery process.

            A big part next is to identify the implication and cost of the problem. I spend about as much time discovering needs that I do widening and going deeper into the issue. This is something I think should be talked about more actually, because understanding the meaning of the issue is what the whole sale is built around.

            Thanks for a good discussion.
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    • Profile picture of the author kemdev
      Originally Posted by its View Post

      I'm not saying there isnt room for improvement on my calling strategy. But what I found is some people cut the line too soon or the business owners don't want to talk about a website over the phone. Something they can read in a couple minutes addressed to them. That might be enough to start a real conversation.
      Maybe you just want someone to agree with you and reassure the thoughts already in your head. That's not what you're going to get here.

      If they hang up, they're not interested. If they don't want to TALK (you know, a conversation with questions and answers right now), they're not interested. There's nothing a piece of literature can say that will change their mind. There are few exceptions. If they're not interested, move on. Find the people who don't hang up and who are willing to talk right now.
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  • Profile picture of the author its
    I'm just fairly certain out of the 30 stores I have phoned if I follow some of them up with individualized letters I could get at least one more client which is worth a lot. I'm not looking for you to agree, I'm trying to explain things as best because I don't quite thing you've understood all my points (To no fault but my own explanations). I've also had many experts point me away from cold calling and towards other means. But I want to figure this out logically rather than he said she said.
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  • Profile picture of the author iLinkedin
    Originally Posted by its View Post

    Ok let me share my first day with you. I've started my own webdesign company (viral9.com) Today I called about 20 businesses and emailed 10. I know this isn't much but it took me longer since I did a bit of research on the companies I called, wrote out some emails and did some other work. I targeted one street of small shops. Here are my results and my thoughts.

    1 business was interested and asked me to drop some information off to give to his wife.

    1 took down my contact information for the future (sounded semi promising)

    1 took down my contact information and was very questioning about the price, pages and what it included. They also werent the business owner so hoping to arrange a meeting with them.

    1 asked me to call back tomorrow after five to speak to the business owner.

    My thoughts.

    I feel almost frustrated. Some of them were quite blunt in that they didn't want a website but I feel the conversation ended before I could challenge some of their doubts. One was an estate agents (dealing with hundreds of thousands of pounds) and their website is crappy for when it was first made (2002).

    I feel myself getting better every call but a thought came to me.

    Why don't I just get some large A4 yellow letters, make a small pack advertising my services and why they need a website, add a cover letter related to their business, address it to the business owner and post them to all these shops? It may give them a little more information than I can get on the phone. Or I could keep cold calling and work on my technique.

    What do you think?

    Will make more calls tomorrow. If they hang up I usually don't get a chance to mention my company name, so I'll essentially get a few chances to contact the same businesses.

    Cheers for any response.
    You should try Linkedin direct marketing, it's easy to use, you don't get frustrated and never need to cold call anymore. You can even contact thousand of Business Owners per day.
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    • Profile picture of the author its
      Originally Posted by iLinkedin View Post

      You should try Linkedin direct marketing, it's easy to use, you don't get frustrated and never need to cold call anymore. You can even contact thousand of Business Owners per day.
      I've heard about this being a good option but anyone want to save me some time and point me to a good starting guide?
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