Cold Calling?

[vdomainhost]

Hi

Anyone tried cold calling from list generated from said Yellow Pages or to certain targetted group?

How's the result?

[Chicken]

Yellow Pages as in local cold calling? If so, I'd think it would work out pretty good, but mostly if you're local. It might work OK if you're not, but then you lose that advantage.

[blue27]

If someone comes into my business with a proposition I will listen.

If someone doesn't even have the courtesy to talk face to face they will not be welcome by me. My phone is for me to deal with clients and not to have sales calls.

[wisehosting]

cold calling full stop - I hate.

A well written letter (to the correct person name!) introducing their company and saying they will call on xx day as a follow up (unless i email to say dont bother) is much better.

It shows they have at least found out a bit about you before contacting and fore warning you.

[LetsFly]

cold calling - i see the same way as spam, i dont want it, and my phone is for me as blue said, to deal with my customers and not listen to some smuck sell me something i likely dont need anyway...

[Andrew]

Cold calling is a very effective option for generating business IF: 1) it is done by professionals who understand how to sell - especially the soft sell prospecting approach required with cold calling and 2) the quality of your data.

I dont think yellow pages, etc is a viable means of putting together a "quality" list. Ideaaly, you would pay someone for a scrubbed list of companies and contacts possessing a high propensity to buy ratio for your particular product.

Many companies specialize in this sort of data. Remember a cold call is only obtrusive if its a hard sales pitch and if you have absolutely zero requirements for said products and services. But, if you ar working from clean data, and you call someone to talk about web hosting, right when they are considering buying it - its suddenly a helpdul and timely conversation, vs an obtrusive one....

[Andrew]

i see the same way as spam

Cold calling is not the same as spam. Spam is illegal, and one company cold calling another company is not - cold calling is considered a ligitimate business practise - how effective and non abbrassive - it becomes, is up to each sales organization to implement and execute it properly....

[ldcdc]

Cold calling is not the same as spam. Spam is illegal, and one company cold calling another company is not - cold calling is considered a ligitimate business practise - how effective and non abbrassive - it becomes, is up to each sales organization to implement and execute it properly....I agree. Also, a letter/email to introduce yourself is still effectively cold calling IMO.

[Cari(dot)Net]

Cold calling is not the same as spam. Spam is illegal, and one company cold calling another company is not - cold calling is considered a ligitimate business practise - how effective and non abbrassive - it becomes, is up to each sales organization to implement and execute it properly....

Business to Business cold calling is not "Spam".

Spam is internet slang that refers to (UCE)unsolicited commercial email and (UBE)unsolicited **** email. In which some people equate it with junkmail that is delivered to your frontdoor/mailbox.

I can see how cold calling could be listed as some sort of Spam IE: if it were widely broadcasted to everyone and anyone, and was a bland recording that starts when you pick up the line.
B2B cold calling is ventured out to a specific market and that is other businesses. IE: An ISP who host dedicated servers and colocation, would call smaller hosting companies, IT companies, business who would require hosting.

I see cold calling as intrusive as a TV/radio commercial/AD, a part of everyday life, if you dont like it hang up.
Many people still do not like cold calling, however if you have the right approach, you can get people to listen to you, make a script, and practice. If you find your approach isnt working, change it. Know what kind of person to ask for, IE: Manager, CEO, webmaster, or owner. Get a nice hook to attain your listeners interest etc:

[blue27]

You can put lipstick on a pig but it will still be a pig.

I don't care how you try to justify it, cold calling is spam just in a different format.

[Andrew]

I don't care how you try to justify it, cold calling is spam just in a different format.


Thats really not an appropriate comment. B2B calling is a widely accepted practice and quite legal might I add. Furthermore, most departmental decision makers, particularly within publicly traded corporations, not only expect to hear from cold callers, it is in fact part of their mandate to take into consideration any opporunity which will benefit their company and their shareholders.

Personally, I would be pretty upset if a company was trying to contact my office manager with a solution that would save us money, and they refused to yield that call. Similarily, nothing would piss off a CEO more then hearing his subordinates refused to fully examine an option presented to them which could directly impact his bottom line.

You've got to leave personal beliefs and bias's out of this - B2B cold calling is a fundamental function in a capitalistic economy. It is in fact business owners and senior level executives that insist on receiving cold calls as well as train their staff on how to weed out the valueless offers and take advantage of the offers that will improve their business and/or bottomline.

[blue27]

Appropriate?
What is appropriate about me having to answer unsolicited phone calls when I am at my home?
I think you are very mistaken if you think a "CEO" would be upset if an employee didn't accept a cold call which is what you are implying.

My personal beliefs are that you can market your business in a responsible and non invasive way and that spam and cold calling are not a "fundamental" function in a capitalistic economy. I know of no business executive in any dealings I have ever had that would insist on receiving cold calls. Perhaps you could point out some examples.

[ldcdc]

I don't think Andrew was referring to receving phone calls at home (unless you actually work from home, and home is your office).

[blue27]

I don't see the relevance Dan.
I pay for my business line so I can make calls and receive calls from clients.
Every minute spent wasted with a cold caller is time I could be with a client.

When I turn on the TV it is accepted that because I am receiving free signals I will get commercials.
I am paying for my phone line. I refuse to accept that cold calling is a fundamental part of having this line.

[Andrew]

I pay for my business line so I can make calls and receive calls from clients.
Every minute spent wasted with a cold caller is time I could be with a client.


This is because you are a small company and answer your phones personally - to you, cold callers are a waste of time - fair enough, but, not everyones reality


I think you are very mistaken if you think a "CEO" would be upset if an employee didn't accept a cold call which is what you are implying.

Sorry, you are mistaken

My personal beliefs are that you can market your business in a responsible and non invasive way and that spam and cold calling are not a "fundamental" function in a capitalistic economy. I know of no business executive in any dealings I have ever had that would insist on receiving cold calls. Perhaps you could point out some examples.


Spam is now illegal because business owners everywhere petitioned to have it outlawed because of the negative impact it had on their business - and this was just within a few years of spamming rearing its ugly head.

I wonder aloud why B2B cold calling has never been made illegal in its 30+ years of practice - the answer is - because business owners DO NOT want it outlawed.

You really need to take a step back and take a macro view of this.

examples - I have many many examples - and I can personally name a time, early in my corporate years, when I was cold calling on behalf of tier1 IT companies. I can say for certainty that every IT manager would take and return my call - and appreciate the value I was bringing to their business. I can also say, there has been more then 1 IT director lectured fiercely by their CEO and CFO for not responding to our teams requests to open a dialogue and present value to their business and their shareholders.

By definition, the heads of respective departments are mandated to improve their efficiency and improve the bottom line. In a publicly traded company, it is actually illegal not to consider all options, especially those that represent the potential to increase return on shareholder investment. No legitimate corporation will not explore alternative options if its fiscally responsible.

Theres a reason that companies cold call, and theres a reason companies purchase products from companies that cold call...Irregardless if you personally find this inconvenient -

but, equating B2B cold calling to an ilegal activity like spamming is irresponsible at best.

[Andrew]

I am paying for my phone line. I refuse to accept that cold calling is a fundamental part of having this line.

Its really irrelavent what you choose to believe. fact of the matter is - B2B cold calling IS legal - and the reason it IS legal is because the vast majority of companies wish to both make and receive cold calls. If you want to run a business, you need to deal with this.

[blue27]

The issue is not whether or not cold calling is legal.
The issue in my post was whether or not I consider it spam. I do.

I care very little what you believe it to be. I'm sure you make great use of it and your business is so huge you never have to answer the phone, but like I said, no relevance.

Spam is spam. Un-requested solicitation is in fact spam and just because you choose to participate in it doesn't change that fact.

[Andrew]

The issue is not whether or not cold calling is legal.
The issue in my post was whether or not I consider it spam. I do.

I guess its like equating drug use to alcohol consumption - one is legal, one isnt - and everyones personal beliefs may vary

I care very little what you believe it to be. I'm sure you make great use of it and your business is so huge you never have to answer the phone, but like I said, no relevance.

Nope, Im in the same category as you - mostly, I answer our company phones - though, thankfully, I have been able to bring on some help recently. We actually havent initiated cold calling yet, but, this is because we dont have the budget to do it properly - high propensity to buy lists, qualified personelle, etc - once we have that budget, I assure you, we will utilize this very important sales channel.

Spam is spam. Un-requested solicitation is in fact spam and just because you choose to participate in it doesn't change that fact.

Spam - Definition - To indiscriminately send unsolicited, unwanted, irrelevant, or inappropriate messages, especially commercial advertising in mass quantities. Noun: electronic "junk mail".

This definition does not describe cold calling

[markblair]

Regardless if cold calling fits the exact description of spam is irrelevant in my opinion. I still think it is nothing more than a sales tactic that does not work. So I suppose I agree with the minority here. Cold calling is intrusive and is nothing more than a glorified version of spam. It's nothing like seeing commercials on TV. Plus, many of the companies I have worked for (some very large companies at that) do not accept any type of cold calls whatsoever. As a matter of fact, the last place I worked at was a rather large (publicly traded) software company and it was corporate policy to tell all people calling trying to sell something that we are not interested. If they wanted a product, they'd research it and buy it themselves. And I disagree that this is thought of as irresponsible. They have a company to run. They don't have time for cold calls.

[Chicken]

I'm not sure if any of you have worked in sales. I have worked two jobs that required B2B cold calling. Around the time the big telcos were charging $1-$2 per minute for international calls, we were offering $0.75 or less and I assure you that not only were people interested in listening to the pricing, they called me back, set up appointments, and signed on. A dollar per minute savings is something they were quite receptive to when one makes loads of international calls (in this case, faxes).

The other job was film sales and again, B2B cold calling the decision makers. This wasn't hair removal spray or penis enlargers, this was the very product they ordered and used every day. 5,000-80,000+ rolls of it. So I could save them a quarter per roll ($1,200-$20,000+), they were *very* interested. We were a wholesaler which previously only sold to retailers, but they hired me on to try to sell direct to some large, specific industries.

I'm not saying it's something that works for every industry, and by no means am I saying that everyone I called was receptive, but those that were saved a good amount of money. I had some very good relationships with these people, not quite "friends" but we'd chat from time to time, even when we weren't buying or selling things.

You might think of it as spam, but if you were about to place an order for something for your business, me thinks you might want to talk to me about that $20,000 savings. Couldn't hurt, eh?

[Andrew]

Regardless if cold calling fits the exact description of spam is irrelevant in my opinion

Sorry Marc, im not sure I understand this. B2B Cold Calling - in no way - fits the description or definition of spam - so, its totally relavent.

Lets be clear here though (and I have stated this several times throughout this thread. Proper B2B Cold calling is not dialing for dollars (ie picking up the yellow pages and calling). The OP asked about this, and clearly, although not illegal, this sort of cold calling can be a bit wasteful for both sides.

Proper B2B calling includes purchasing propensity to buy lists, having highly trained people and encorporating tracking policies and procedures to measure the effectiveness of the campaign.

Funny thing is - these lists that are purchased - how do you think they get their data? Well, the companies on these lists actually spend the time to answer questions around their business, their requirements, etc - so that the "right" companies call them with the "right" offers. Im really not so sure why some find this concept hard to grasp. Companies, especially large companies, not only cold call, but also want to receive cold calls (otherwise they wouldnt take the time to complete this data and get themselves on the propensity to buy lists)

As a matter of fact, the last place I worked at was a rather large (publicly traded) software company and it was corporate policy to tell all people calling trying to sell something that we are not interested. If they wanted a product, they'd research it and buy it themselves. And I disagree that this is thought of as irresponsible. They have a company to run. They don't have time for cold calls.


Id be really curious to know which department you worked in. As, a large, publicly traded software company - 100% guaranteed - they themselves make cold calls -

A perfect example here. Received a cold call from Microsoft the other day. They were able to save me a bundle on my spla pricing compared to what I was getting through one of their partners. Now, probably not smart to undercut a partner, but, I think their strategy with hosting providers is to bring it in house with a greater capability to monitor the reporting, etc... Anyway, bottom line is - they called, the call had value to my business, I bought... Happens all the time and is considered normal busines practise.

[markblair]

I'm not sure if any of you have worked in sales. I have worked two jobs that required B2B cold calling. It's been several years but I used to work in retail sales. Nothing like what you mentioned though as we never would have cold called anyone. Sorry Marc, im not sure I understand this. B2B Cold Calling - in no way - fits the description or definition of spam - so, its totally relavent. There's a reason I said: Regardless if cold calling fits the exact description of spam is irrelevant in my opinion. I am entitled to an opinion and I gave one. You're entitled to think I'm wrong just as I would probably do the same in return. Funny thing is - these lists that are purchased - how do you think they get their data? Well, the companies on these lists actually spend the time to answer questions around their business, their requirements, etc - so that the "right" companies call them with the "right" offers. Im really not so sure why some find this concept hard to grasp. Companies, especially large companies, not only cold call, but also want to receive cold calls (otherwise they wouldnt take the time to complete this data and get themselves on the propensity to buy lists) I used to know someone that ran a cellular phone business. Many times he would purchase lists of thousands of fax numbers so he could send his garbage to the numbers on those lists. I used to see the e-mails and hear the voice mails he'd get from the businesses he would fax. They never agreed to be on any of those lists. I'd be surprised if all companies that received cold calls actually wanted to be on those lists or took the time to get their information added to them. Id be really curious to know which department you worked in. As, a large, publicly traded software company - 100% guaranteed - they themselves make cold calls - I worked in their Information Technology department. I not only received phone calls from employees of the company but also from these sales people as well (as well as troubleshooting issues that dealt with desktop and laptop computers, servers, phone systems, etc.) They'd try to sell anything from software to servers to mainframe equipment. And every last one of them called up and asked for someone important in the company. Either an Executive or they'd request to speak with the CIO directly. Before this company made it known that they didn't want these types of calls, I would put the salesman on hold and call the Executive they were looking for. Not once did they take that call. Every time they said "tell them we are not interested." And since I'm not sure if this company ever made cold calls, I won't speculate. Just as since you've never worked for them you wouldn't know either.

[Chicken]

Yeah, retail sales is not what I was talking about.
I used to know someone that ran a cellular phone business. Many times he would purchase lists of thousands of fax numbers so he could send his garbage to the numbers on those lists. I used to see the e-mails and hear the voice mails he'd get from the businesses he would fax. They never agreed to be on any of those lists. I'd be surprised if all companies that received cold calls actually wanted to be on those lists or took the time to get their information added to them.
This isn't either. What your friend did was what I call "fax spam" businesses. Chances are, he was trying to hit the employees for services, rather than the business owner (at least that's how it sounds). A fax isn't going to do it. Ohhh, and by the way, one of the places I worked for just to sell the service of faxing (in other words, we'd sell the service to your friend who sends out faxes, something he apparently used).

What you described is different than a representative of Sprint, NexTel, or Cingular calling up the owner of a company (or the person in charge of that area) and discussing their wireless telecommunication needs for their employees.

The more innovative the offer and/or cheap the offer, service, or product, the more willing people are to listen.
I worked in their Information Technology department. I not only received phone calls from employees of the company but also from these sales people as well (as well as troubleshooting issues that dealt with desktop and laptop computers, servers, phone systems, etc.) They'd try to sell anything from software to servers to mainframe equipment. And every last one of them called up and asked for someone important in the company. Either an Executive or they'd request to speak with the CIO directly. Before this company made it known that they didn't want these types of calls, I would put the salesman on hold and call the Executive they were looking for. Not once did they take that call.
If this was a large software company, then you were probably not the one they should be calling to try to get to the buyer. They should have picked your brain about what you were using and what your needs were and then moved on to someone else.
Every time they said "tell them we are not interested."
Not asking the right questions gets that response. In some ways, I miss the old sales days, heh.
And since I'm not sure if this company ever made cold calls, I won't speculate. Just as since you've never worked for them you wouldn't know either.
Well, one would think that they probably didn't design software and then set up a room full of people to take incoming calls and wait for the orders to roll in, eh? "Any minute now Bob... like hotcakes."

[markblair]

Yeah, retail sales is not what I was talking about.

This isn't either. What your friend did was what I call "fax spam" businesses. Definitely, retail sales is much different than what you mentioned. And needless to say this person (not so much a friend but a customer at one point) is no longer in business. Plus before closing down, he was kicked off of his server (the one I use - I helped him setup a website) and hated by many people... for various reasons. If this was a large software company, then you were probably not the one they should be calling to try to get to the buyer. They should have picked your brain about what you were using and what your needs were and then moved on to someone else. In some cases they did ask me and a few others all the questions they wanted to ask the CIO. But they definitely contacted us via the wrong method. The problem was they would call the main number for the business and ask for someone in charge of <insert any computer-related product> and that's how the calls got to us. They didn't dial our number per se but they always ended up on our phones. :rolleyes: Well, one would think that they probably didn't design software and then set up a room full of people to take incoming calls and wait for the orders to roll in, eh? "Any minute now Bob... like hotcakes." :D I fully agree. I'm just not sure what methods they used to obtain the data on who to call. Let's face it, they have many sales people. Their job was to sell the products. And if they didn't sell, they lost their jobs (eventually anyway). So yes they did call businesses but again I don't know how they obtained the data on who to call. It could have been like Andrew said, businesses supplying their contact info through various means.

Also, a final note from me, I understand what you're saying Andrew about the differences of someone calling a list of names they know are somewhat interested versus someone picking up the phone book and just making calls. I know the latter one is obviously much worse. And probably the reason I don't like cold calling to begin with. But, the people that just call hoping to speak with the "right person" to make them a "better deal" are the problems. At least from my experience.

[WH-Opinions]

I personally hate it when people "cold call" my house, and I always wonder who actually gives in to these places and keeps them in business.

[duo design]

DO NOT COLD CALL!!!!! Part of your company is it's image and if you get branded badly you will lose businesses, cold calling is a sure fire way to lose potential customers who may of otherwise cald you but will then think of you as a door to door sales company, don't do it, it's not worth it. Send a card through the post with info on it, this way it does not seem like you are badgering them

[Kalypsoweb]

Cold calling in my opinion, depends on what type of business you are in...it is not for every business. And even though cold calling is probably the least effective way of attracting new clients, you can pull business from it. I have been on both sides where I was recruiting for a few years to where we would make hundreds of calls per day to get that one client, but in the sales techniques that were taught to us, we were taught the power of 1. I was also on the other side of the coin to where I was in charge of million dollar contracts for IT/communications equipment to where I would receive some of those cold calls becasue it was a good way to stay on top of new cutting edge equipment that was coming out that they were trying to push.

As a host I wouldn't make cold calls personally, however I do visit all businesses within my local area with portfolios that I have built and can be left with them explaining on how beneficial it would be for them to have an online presence since we absorb more information through seeing it than we do when hearing it.