Cold Calling? Not for me or you or anyone whom we want to be kind to

Let’s discuss cold calling for a moment.

Many of us have done it, and I’d venture to say, those of us who have, absolutely HATED it! It is not a kind thing to do…getting someone out of the bathroom to listen to a “solicitation” about how they MUST buy a new vacuum cleaner system, because theirs will soon be obsolete! Do you really want to do such a thing to friends, neighbors or even strangers?

How about those lovely telephone surveys? “This is just going to take a moment of your time, Sir. We are seeking to better the home-baked pie industry, and are wondering if you might have a friend we can call and ask about their opinion of apple versus lemon pies…oh, and may I please mention who referred me?” (yeah, they’ll be sure and jump right ON that one as they are grabbing the toilet paper, flushing and pulling up their trousers!)

Ok so those cold calls that bug you, me and anyone else regarding pies, vacuums, satellite dish units, home-business opportunties, do not promote human kindness nor friendship. In fact, hounding someone’s phone to sell your product or service, is rather RUDE and not appreciated by pretty much anyone is it? So, how then, CAN we promote our products without using lead calling lists and numbers?

Well, let’s not use that sales method anymore. What we CAN do, is use the telephone in order to follow up on information we have sent our prospects, or better yet, information that they have requested from us. In fact, I’ve had experience in telephone jobs for over 20 years and hands-down, the calls where I just simply say to you, “Mrs Brown, I’m calling to be sure your information arrived ok that you requested from X, Y, Z company,” are the EASIEST and least-invasive ways to talk with people about what you have to offer!

See, this way of “gentle” approach, works for even the shyest person. If you are not someone who likes making phone calls to talk about your business, it’s so much easier to first, just drop a newsletter or information about your product or service into the mail to your list members, and then give a follow-up call, being friendly and kind and caring. This way, the person stays off the defensive and is more likely to at least listen to what you have to say to them.

This way not only feels less “cold” but also is more integrous overall. I am all about honesty and integrity when I do business or just live life. Try to stick with doing “follow-up” calls about the information you have sent out, rather than springing an unexpected sales-pitch on some poor person who had to run out of the restroom out of curiosity of knowing “who in the world is ringing me NOW?”

~Laura