Cold Calling: Separate Yourself from the Bad Guys
credit: ~*Gillian*~ on Flikr
When people tell me that their freelancing business has been slow, I suggest that they pick up the phone and start making calls. Reason: Since cold calls have worked well for me, I encourage others to try them as well.
Talk about kicking the proverbial hornet’s nest. I’m often treated to a diatribe on how much the person hates being cold called.
And I can’t help but agreeing. Why? Because cold calling has a much-deserved bad reputation.
You’ve probably had a family dinner interrupted by those telemarketers who call households between 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. They know you’ll be home. And that you’re probably trying to enjoy a meal with your family. The fact that they’re calling at a bad time just doesn’t seem to register.
While some of these dinner-interrupting calls may be from legitimate organizations, more than a few are from scammers. Just keep an eye on your caller ID for a few days, and try this experiment:
While the phone is ringing, enter the number on your caller ID screen into your favorite search engine. If the call is from a scammer, the search results will point to consumer protection websites like:
http://800notes.com
http://www.callferret.com
http://www.callwiki.com
http://www.numberinvestigator.com
http://whocallsme.com
In just a few days of watching my own caller ID, then checking the numbers on the just-mentioned websites, I found that I was contacted by scammers offering:
- Free government grants. Ever applied for a government grant? I do business with university faculty members who have. Every one of them says that Uncle Sam is a pretty tough guy. He doesn’t hand out grants like Halloween candy.
- Help with tax problems. If you find yourself in this unfortunate situation, you’re better off dealing with a tax accountant or attorney you already know, not some stranger calling on the phone.
- Health insurance. One of my most frequent callers is an outfit that has the same initials as a large U.S. government agency. And this particular agency is not in the business of selling any kind of insurance.
- Fabulous opportunities to change telephone companies. If you take one of these calls, be very careful what you say. Many people report that their phone service was changed without their consent. You’ll sometimes hear this practice referred to as “slamming.” And, yes, it is illegal for U.S. telephone companies to do this.
- Lower interest rates on credit cards.
In addition to the scams listed above, have you ever gotten those calls that are nothing more than a series of fax tones? Annoying, aren’t they?
Or how about those phone messages in which the caller just leaves a first name and nothing more? Thinking that it’s from someone you know, you dutifully return the call, only to find that your call goes to a business, and then the person on the other end launches into a sales pitch. To which I say, “Why can’t they leave a proper business message, which includes the first and last name and the company name?” There’s no need to use deception on a business call.
Tip: Spend a few minutes at those consumer protection websites, and you’ll find that the same phone numbers keep cropping up. That’s because scammers keep changing their pitch – last month it was health insurance, this month it’s lowering credit card interest rates, and who knows what it will be next month?
“Do Not Call” and You
With all of this bad behavior, it’s no surprise that the United States Federal Trade Commission’s Do Not Call Registry was created. Individuals can add a home or mobile phone number on-line: https://www.donotcall.gov
Please note that there are several Do Not Call exemptions, and one of them applies to you. Here they are:
- Charitable organizations
- Politicians
- Political parties
- Survey takers
- Business-to-business sales and marketing. This is where you, the freelancer, fit in. If you’re making prospecting calls to non-consumer entities like businesses, government agencies, and educational institutions, you’re exempt.
Please note that the B2B exemption doesn’t mean you can act like one of those pitch-switching scammers or the high-pressure salespeople who refuse to take “No” for an answer. You know those people – you tell them “No” and they treat it as an objection that must be overcome as they roll down the road to the Closed Sale.
Unlike the scammers and high-pressure folks, we’re not trying to close the sale on the first call. Rather, we’re calling to introduce our services, and, if the person on the other end sounds interested, we may set up an appointment. I say “may” because many of us are able to do business without ever meeting our clients face to face.
How to Separate Yourself from the Bad Guys
Feel better about trying the cold-calling route? Good. You can find some very lucrative clients this way. I know I have.
But you’ll still need to separate yourself from the sleazeballs who are also working the phones. How do you do that?
- Offer a legitimate product or service. This is by far and away the best thing you can do, whether you’re cold calling or selling from a retail storefront.
- Be good at what you do. If the people you’re calling ask to see samples of what you do, can you send them to your website, where they’ll see sparkling examples of your graphic design, copywriting, or photography?
- Don’t keep calling and calling and calling. That’s what the scammers do. . If someone says “no,” take their word for it. Call someone else. If you have a well-defined Ideal Client Profile, you won’t run out of leads anytime soon.
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Photo credit: Some rights reserved by ~*Gillian*~
Great post Martha!
Another way to separate yourself from the annoying cold caller is to research the company/person you’re calling. Say something that will tell them that you’ve done your homework.
Also, don’t start off by telling them about your services like you’re shoving it down their throat. Instead tell them how your services can help them increase sales, get more clients, earn more money, etc.
There is a reason DO NOT CALL exists, because cold calling is harassment. If every freelancer and business owner thought like you the phone would be ringing off the hook. Under no circumstances do you want to cold call. If you’re having trouble maybe it’s time to pickup a job. Haven’t you ever been called when you’re in the middle of something? Completely breaking your concentration for a fabulous time share….. ughh
Another important point is to be prepared for the call. If someone calls me, then I know they got my information from somewhere, and I don’t want them to stumble through my name and other things… they should be prepared to engage and not waste the time of the person at the end of the line.
I believe this has already been mentioned in a previous article, but Danny is absolutely correct. There’s nothing more embarrassing than stuttering when you have a good lead & the recipient asks you to go on after your initial greeting.
Great post. And Danny’s right. If you use direct call marketing, you need to make sure you’ve got relevant and up-to-date information to hand.
Samat’s point is a good one: you need to do your homework. I’ve had some success in the past by taking that a step further, choosing businesses I particularly want to work with and making an offer based on the homework I’ve done. The offer can be sharing an idea you’ve had that might be valuable for their business, or even an offer to take them for coffee and give them as much free advice as you can in half an hour.
I think the key to the success rate I’ve had, though, is due to three factors: choosing the client carefully, doing my homework, and offering them something for free.
I’d urge everybody to consider permission-based marketing.
Unless you have permission to call (done business in the past, information request, etc.) why would you insult the recipient with an unsolicited phone call?
There are much better, time-considerate, cost-effective and targeted ways to grow your business.
If you still think you need to cold call to grow your business, get off your chair, and meet prospects in person.
@Ryan and the Truth:
When someone is starting out, or struggling to find work, and there are bills to be paid, cold calling is a fast way to get some gigs.
You can’t say the same about permission marketing, referrals, SEO, social media, word of mouth, and many other marketing strategies.
No, it’s not the best long-term solution. But if you have to get some work right now cold calling can work quite well.
Martha the article writer here.
Last week, I exchanged e-mails with a guy who said that word-of-mouth referrals just weren’t working for him the way they once had. So, he was going to branch out and try cold calling.
Among other things, this guy’s a 3D designer. And, oh, is he good. As in, a portfolio-to-die-for good.
It was the sort of portfolio that doesn’t come along very often. And, if I were someone in his target market, I’d be thrilled to get a cold call from him.
I’ve read many blogs about the advantages of cold calling, but thanks for pointing out some cons about it. I guess it depends on how the strategy can be used with good timing.
…I think they call it cold calling because it gives people the chills when thinkin about it (it does me anyway)!
I definitely would not cold call with a specific planned script as that will definitely turn the customer away, but I do not think it is an issue if you offer a service that may be of value and you are relational to their business during the call. I have yet to do this, but currently receive calls at a business. I will admit that we let cold calls go to voice mail, but if what they leave on the voice mail is of interest we are more likely to return the call. So as you said definitely leave a professional voice message because that may be another lead opportunity if no answer to the phone.
Cold calling is for lazy people who do not want to get with social networking. Using social networking methods is not forceful and intruding. I get such calls and it cuts down on my productivity all the time. A waste of time and I do not encourage it.
I was tricked into a cold-call last Thursday morning. I got a call from a woman who hosts a radio show about small business owners. She said she wanted to interview me for her show and to give her a call back. I’ve had people make this request before and called her back, after viewing her website. Nothing snazzy, but legit… until…
“Hey, Tisch can you click on the ‘Advertise’ link for me?” She started going over the various packages, some of which included being interviewed on her show. I said, “so you’re selling advertising?” She said it was so much more… Okay… she was selling infomercials.
When she felt my irritation, she added to it by offering a right-now discount for what she called “…Action Takers. Are you an Action Taker, Tisch?”
Yeah, I took action and hung up the phone.
@Tisch: I would have done the same thing that you did.
Why? Because there’s no need to use deception on a business call. Ever.
If you’re like the person who rang Tisch and you’re calling to sell ads, then say so. If you’re ashamed to say that, then find another line of work.
I think cold calling totally ruins your positioning with any potential clients that actually do talk to you. Trying to sell yourself to someone who doesn’t know you, wasn’t thinking about you, and would not have contacted you otherwise is NOT going to help your case in the long term. Once you’re perceived as a “vendor,” which is exactly how you’ll be perceived if you call THEM, is not going to do anything for your fees, your terms or the way you are treated.
Get ‘em to come to YOU. It makes all the difference in the world.
Especially if you want to be perceived as the expert in the situation. And especially if you don’t want to work for peanuts.
There are much better, time-considerate, cost-effective and targeted ways to grow your business.
Cold calling works and dont let anyone tell you otherwise!
It’s interesting to see all the debates about cold calling.
The biggest thing that people forget is that many starting freelancers can’t afford to wait months for ‘networking’.
And honestly, for me, who knows no one in the industry and is THAT much of a newbies, I find ‘networking’ more insulting than cold calling. I understand word-of mouth referrals, but basically making friends with someone in order to get a job?
I would be really insulted to find that someone was talking to me in order for me to introduce them to X without saying so up front. Yes, that’s how I view networking.
Then again, I’ve also helped open a small business, and I would answer cold calls. I said no most of the time, but we often needed help, and would try to do it ourselves instead of hiring someone. Getting a call from someone who does what you’re trying to do is a major relief. Mind you, I hate telemarketers, who call my private phone, but when I was running a business, I didn’t mind the freelancers calling me.
think cold calling totally ruins your positioning with any potential clients that actually do talk to you. Trying to sell yourself to someone who doesn’t know you, wasn’t thinking about you, and would not have contacted you otherwise is NOT going to help your case in the long term. Once you’re perceived as a “vendor,” which is exactly how you’ll be perceived if you call THEM, is not going to do anything for your fees, your terms or the way you are treated.
Get ‘em to come to YOU. It makes all the difference in the world.
Especially if you want to be perceived as the expert in the situation. And especially if you don’t want to work for peanuts.