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The Effectiveness Of "Door Knocking" On Businesses Today

by DesmondTan
8 replies
Dear Friends,

How effective is going door to door soliciting offices in an office building today? I remember the fax/photocopy machine salesmen used to do this all the time in the past, although i am not sure about whether they do it today.

Certain factors to consider include:

1) Receptiveness of the gatekeeper
2) Security (whether anyone is going to chase you out of the building)
3) Approach to use to "open" the door (Eg. I am here to conduct a survey- Can i see the person in charge of this office)

I would appreciate it if people who use this method of prospecting can share their 2 cents on this topic:-)

Thanks!
#businesses #door knocking #effectiveness #today
  • Profile picture of the author Rearden
    It works great; arguably better than phone prospecting.

    The secret to getting past all those obstacles is prospecting in mass amounts.

    A multi-millionaire life insurance agent preaches 30 cold approaches daily in person, asking for life insurance appointments. This is in between the 3-5 appointments you have already booked.

    The same cold approach applies easily across any sales profession.

    I would wager there are less folks going belly-to-belly than ever before. Especially for web design.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    This is a SKILL not something you can just "run out and do."

    I have shared this article a few times
    48 Hours with the King of Cold Calls, Market Research and Strategy Article | Inc.com

    It's a goodie. I smile every time I read it.

    You need SKILL to cold walk effectively. (The "Little Unsure" technique works well.) You need the right thing to say when you walk into an office. You need to be able to handle a little "No Thank You" feedback. You need to be ready for when you DO reach a decision maker.

    Lying to get the door open is not cool. They will remember that. The fact that you are already thinking you have to "trick your way in" is not a good sign.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      This is a SKILL not something you can just "run out and do."

      I have shared this article a few times
      48 Hours with the King of Cold Calls, Market Research and Strategy Article | Inc.com

      It's a goodie. I smile every time I read it.
      Jason; Thanks for the link. You saved me looking it up. I love the boldness it takes to cold call in person. The tremendous skill that good cold callers have.


      Originally Posted by Jason Kanigan View Post

      You need SKILL to cold walk effectively. (The "Little Unsure" technique works well.) You need the right thing to say when you walk into an office. You need to be able to handle a little "No Thank You" feedback. You need to be ready for when you DO reach a decision maker.

      Lying to get the door open is not cool. They will remember that. The fact that you are already thinking you have to "trick your way in" is not a good sign.
      Yeah, I used to use surveys with consumers, and it worked pretty well. But if you really want to be told to leave my store;

      Pretend that you are shopping, and waste my time...finally asking "So, who processes your credit cards?".

      Tell me you aren't selling anything. I may say "That's too bad, because I buy a lot from salespeople. Too bad I can't buy anything from you. Thanks for coming in" (I've said that several times)

      Want me to listen to you?

      Say "Hi, Mr. Whitacre. I'm ___, are you with a customer (or are you in the middle of something) or do you have a minute?"

      "What is it?"

      "I help retailers....(Whatever it is). Do you want to know more?"

      And you know what? I just might. And now I'm listening.

      Never hide that you are selling something. All businesses sell something. And buying is half of what businesses do.
      ------

      I love James Hickey's USP. "I create sales and leads for businesses, that already have a website"

      I might say "Hi; I create sales and leads for businesses who already have a website. Do you want to know more?". You know what? They just might.
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      See..I cold canvased door to door for 30 years. And after several years, it dawned on me. I'm not selling, I'm selecting. My goal was that one nice guy at the end of the day, that would like to talk to me, and qualified to buy from me...if they wanted to. One. And so my job was just finding that guy.

      Sometimes it took 3 doors, sometimes 20. My average was one presentation for every 6 doors opened.

      Imagine, a mystical genie appears to you, and says "In the next year, you will sell 500 of your product. I have controlled the minds of these 500 customers. They will just say 'Yes" when you present to them. They aren't aware of the spell, but it's unbreakable. All these people are in your area. All are going to buy from you. At the end of the year. The spell will be broken, and you'll be on your own".

      Now...what will you do? You'll immediately go out and find those 500 "sure sales".

      Will you wait a few months, getting lists...studying market trends? No, you'll not waste a minute. Why? Because there is a pot of gold out there, if you just find it. So speed is important.

      And that's what going door to door is, just finding those sure sales.

      Just go out and find them
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  • Profile picture of the author internetmarketer1
    This thread is just taking off.

    True. Walk ins are tough, and though it requires a lot of skill, sometimes all you really need is the right approach and the right business owner.

    Do not go into this kind of marketing if you aren't ready. Go through this thread, beginners, before you ever venture out into doing any type of in house door to door selling.
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  • Profile picture of the author Arehman
    Not very much effective as mostly the Admins of the office don't even convey the message to boss. It will be more effective in terms of houses then offices.
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