Psychology of Cold Calling - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

Astrocloud · 05-06-2004, 01:07 PM

Yes, I know we all hate telemarketers. Only I HAVE to do it. I cold call businesses looking for the decision makers. Sometimes I get through but most often I don't.

I also get a lot of negativity.

Does anyone else deal with this? How do you handle it?

Cynthetiq · 05-06-2004, 01:14 PM

like all things you have to detach from it.

you cannot be emotionally invested even the slightest or it will eventually come out.

usually most people get out of that position before that happens.

Bill O'Rights · 05-06-2004, 01:25 PM

Ah, yes. In quest of the ever elusive "Decision Maker".

That's me, by the way. Yup, I'm a decision maker.

But, sorry man, I've got me some "Gate Keepers". What's worse, they do a wonderful job of filtering my calls.

Nothing personal, but I'm not going to take a call, if someone hasn't taken the time, to do the research, to find out who...I...am.

Dude, I gotta say, that I feel for ya. Really, I do. I know that it has to be a real son-of-a-bitch, to have to deal with arrogant asses like me all day long. But, I'm still not taking a cold call.

All I can say is...follow Cynthetiq's advice, and keep completely detached from it. Better luck tomorrow.

Astrocloud · 05-06-2004, 01:28 PM

Yup, Gatekeeper -I write that right on my lead card. My trick is to call either during lunch break for the gatekeeper or early in the morning or towards closing time.

The object being that the gatekeeper might be away and someone else will patch me through to the boss.

Sometimes after Hours works too.

Speaking of, why am I here? why aren't I on the phone?

Bill O'Rights · 05-06-2004, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Astrocloud
Speaking of, why am I here? why aren't I on the phone?

'Cause I ain't gonna answer anyway. So, ya might as well play. Right?

Astrocloud · 05-06-2004, 01:48 PM

I should also mention that there is a case sometimes that I do get through to the boss and he loves what I have BUT by asking my questions I have to disqualify him. Bill-O I bet I could disqualify you in a Nebraska second.

ratbastid · 05-06-2004, 03:53 PM

Cold calling is a numbers game. Do your very best on every call, and some small percentage of them will turn into bonafide contacts. And then some small percentage of those will turn into prospects. And then some small percentage of THOSE will become sales. And you'd better price the sale such that it pays for the product sold AND the cost of selling it!

Bill O'Rights · 05-07-2004, 04:02 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Astrocloud
Bill-O I bet I could disqualify you in a Nebraska second.

Heh heh. Nice try, Astrocloud. I gotta give ya credit there.

Tracybrian · 01-08-2005, 12:09 PM

Cold calling is the most lothsome part of my job. I have a client list that is about 2450 peps. I have to stay in touch with all of them on a periodic basis. Finding reasons to call people and talk about business is hard. My goal is to make 100 phone calls daily.

I make 10 phone calls then take a tilted brake and repeat untill I hit that quota. That has been my routine as of late.

clavus · 01-10-2005, 03:57 PM

I call call call. I don't give a crap. I remind myself that THIS isn't really work. I've done WORK, and this isn't it. It's sitting on my ass in a climate-controlled office.

Oh, and I am also one of those decsion-makers you are seeking. And if you don't tell me what you are selling when I ask you, I'll hang up on your ass. And PLEASE don't try to go around me to talk to the owner of the company. I really am the guy who makes the buying decision. Try to go around me, and you will get nowhere.

irseg · 01-11-2005, 02:21 AM

I'm a decision maker, and I've dealt with plenty of cold calls. A few tips for those of you who have to make these calls:

-You have 5 seconds to tell me in no uncertain terms what it is you're selling. If you use vague buzzwords that don't actually tell me anything, such as "we provide solutions that leverage your existing infrastructure to maximize your ROI", I hang up.

-Actually, avoid talking to technical people altogether. We're good at seeing through your bullshit.

I got a call not too long ago from an outfit that claimed they could *guarantee* top placement for any term I wanted when someone searched in Google.

Knowing this is too good to be true based on my SEO experience, I said "Cool! I'm on Google right now, give me an example of one of your clients and some keywords I can use to see them in the #1 spot."

"Uhh, umm, well this service works in conjunction with our special toolbar software."

"Oh I see, so it only works for people using spyware that hijacks their Google searches?"

"Well..It.."

(hang up)

Schwan · 01-11-2005, 02:31 AM

I used to do some journalist work for a paper for a while and before that I worked on a phone for a debt managing company. Both of these jobs required me to come in contact with a lot of negativity. At the end of the day I hated it, and I quit both of these jobs. If your really have to do it, then I guess you'll just have to bite your tongue and teach yourself. If you hate the job, and have any prospects for changing, my advice is that you should do so.

flamingdog · 01-14-2005, 11:31 AM

Yeah cold calling as a journalist is even worse than selling. You say you're a reporter, they're instantly suspicious of you. Luckily, you eventually build up a few trusted contacts, and the days of buttonholing hapless citizens - while never quite behind you - become fewer and further between.

Schwan · 01-14-2005, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flamingdog

Yeah cold calling as a journalist is even worse than selling. You say you're a reporter, they're instantly suspicious of you. Luckily, you eventually build up a few trusted contacts, and the days of buttonholing hapless citizens - while never quite behind you - become fewer and further between.

That is unless you're stuck as a street reporter in a large city, where the people and topics change every, oh, I don't know, 15 minutes, and you're unlikely to write on thesame topic twice in a period shorter than six months

SecretMethod70 · 01-15-2005, 01:00 PM

Remember, they are not rejecting you, they are rejecting the product, whatever that may be. The rejection has nothing to do with you.

Suave · 01-15-2005, 04:36 PM

I'm a market researcher, so yes I deal with it. Constantly. That's basically all my job is.

The first way I deal with it: I work as little as possible while maintaining some extra income (not the best way of doing it if you need money).

Second way: don't take it personally when they start talking shit to you.

Third way: just be prepared for the rejection.

Guthumba · 01-28-2005, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Astrocloud

Yes, I know we all hate telemarketers. Only I HAVE to do it. I cold call businesses looking for the decision makers. Sometimes I get through but most often I don't.

I also get a lot of negativity.

Does anyone else deal with this? How do you handle it?

You can always do what I did:

Find another job

Screw cold-calling...I hated every digit of every number I ever dialed.

drakers · 01-28-2005, 09:38 AM

Well I worked in a collection department at a major mortgage company, key word there is "worked". Collections is kinda like cold calling but in a different sense, you call people who don't want to talk to you AND they owe the business money. A double whammy, which sucked and I found a job that I actually like now and don't have people cussing at me.

Spritebox · 01-30-2005, 06:55 PM

You could take the Crank Yanker approach and get them to buy your product by making them feel overwhelmingly sorry for you (i.e., talk with in a meek voice with a pittiful studder and act like you have cancer or something).

If it doesn't work for sales, it would at least be comedic.

ARTelevision · 01-30-2005, 07:18 PM

As I run my department (Internet Development) I start sales initiatives when we have some space open for new projects and the tech equipment sales staff isn't focusing on Internet Development sales. And that means when I start an initiative, I make a bunch of calls - just like other staff.

I write up a script and keep it in front of me - even though I only use pieces of it. I figure the ratio to be about 20-to-1 to turn leads into prospects. And maybe one-in-five prospects will become a customer. That means making a hundred calls to create one customer. So I don't expect a lot beyond the fact that it's a numbers game.

The way I see it is that it's something to do between project work. But since I've been doing these calls for years, it's just something else to do during the work day.

I suppose what I'm saying is that if you don't have expectations that are too high, it's a lot more psychologically manageable as far as rejection and "failure" rates are concerned.

frogza · 01-31-2005, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ratbastid

Cold calling is a numbers game. Do your very best on every call, and some small percentage of them will turn into bonafide contacts. And then some small percentage of those will turn into prospects. And then some small percentage of THOSE will become sales. And you'd better price the sale such that it pays for the product sold AND the cost of selling it!

This is true. A good positive response rate is usually around five percent. That's assuming that some good effort went into making the list, you've just got to accept the fact that the great majority are going to say no, or worse. Just punch through it, keep emotionally detached and things can go very well.

How much control do you have over the marketing, could you warm the calls up with a mailing first? Most of us that make decisions are very aware of our time, and can read an info packet far faster than anyone can run through a sales pitch.

Also keep in mind that decision makers didn't get where they are by being naive or gullable, so sales gimmicks will never work with us, tell it straight and to the point or don't bother.

Final note, pleasant persistence can open doors for you.

appleseed · 01-31-2005, 06:31 PM

Man you think that's tough? I used to have a job where I sold insurance door-to-door on cold calls. Getting hostility from people on the phone is one thing, having them sic dogs on you is another! That was by far the toughest job I ever had, and I've done road construction, concrete work, and was in the military.

Astrocloud · 02-08-2005, 10:22 AM

Wow, it's been 6 months since I posted this. Since then I quit the cold calling job only to get another job making cold calls. My new business doesn't encourage cold calls but guess what -my second sales involved a cold call. -I've gotten really good at it and when I'm "in the mood" my percentage goes way up -like 30% or so.

Truthfully my clients were wanting what I had to offer and I represent a very prestigious company. They bought on the spot (also not encouraged at my company) and thanked ME for the business.

Truth is that as long as there are people who haven't heard of every product -there will still be telephone pitchers hawking their wares.

Yakk · 02-08-2005, 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SecretMethod70

Remember, they are not rejecting you, they are rejecting the product, whatever that may be. The rejection has nothing to do with you.

I actually reject cold calls period. Until cold callers send me cold hard cash for my time before the phone rings, at a rate I set, I won't be listening to them.

It isn't the product. It is the act, economics and morality of cold calling that I reject.

R3d · 02-14-2005, 04:57 PM

lol.. i used to do that type of shit for almost 2 years.. it was great fun.. no matter how mad someone was at me.. id just be nice and polite and they just seemed to get even more mad.. funny times i tell ya.. for the most part tho businesses weren't all to bad if you weren't pushy with them.. just try to get a time thats good for them.. i found the mornings were the easiest for ppl to do them

FloydianOne · 03-01-2005, 08:48 PM

Can someone explain to me what cold calling is? What are you trying to sell/do? Are they similar to the telemarketers that I hang up on everyday?

Sp0rAdiC · 03-01-2005, 11:48 PM

I had the same question FloydianOne, so I went to the all-knowing Google and got http://www.google.com/search?complet...e:Cold+Calling
So yeah, looks to me like people calling trying to sell stuff... is that right?

Yakk · 03-02-2005, 07:48 AM

Cold Calling is calling to sell something without having being solicited to call them.

It is taking someone else's time in order to make a profit for yourself. Such transactions have unpaid for negative externalities, which distorts and damages the economy, and are in my opinion immoral.

FloydianOne · 03-02-2005, 08:50 AM

How are they different from telemarketers, or are they? Sounds kind of like you guys try to call the "big whigs" of companies rather than calling residential homes during my dinner time and interupting my family... etc. etc. am I correct?

SPQR · 03-04-2005, 12:12 AM

This is an interesting thread, as I've had some recent experiences involving cold calling. I cold call companies in order to encourage their participation at a university career fair that my organization puts together; unfortunately, we've just started doing career fairs so our contact list isn't very large or well established.

The biggest impediment I find is simply people do not pick up the phone. It makes me wonder what it is that HR or staffing people do all day away from their desks. This forces me to eventually leave a message, which vastly cuts down on the success percentage, since no one wants the extra work of having to call back. Does anyone have any advice for more successful cold calling in this type of situation?

05-06-2004, 01:07 PM	#1 (permalink)
Astrocloud Apocalypse Nerd	Psychology of Cold Calling Yes, I know we all hate telemarketers. Only I HAVE to do it. I cold call businesses looking for the decision makers. Sometimes I get through but most often I don't. I also get a lot of negativity. Does anyone else deal with this? How do you handle it?

05-06-2004, 01:14 PM	#2 (permalink)
Cynthetiq Tilted Cat Head Administrator Location: Manhattan, NY	like all things you have to detach from it. you cannot be emotionally invested even the slightest or it will eventually come out. usually most people get out of that position before that happens. __________________ I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not. What's the best nation in the world? DO-NATION!

05-06-2004, 01:25 PM	#3 (permalink)
Bill O'Rights will always be an Alyson Hanniganite Location: In the dust of the archives	Ah, yes. In quest of the ever elusive "Decision Maker". That's me, by the way. Yup, I'm a decision maker. But, sorry man, I've got me some "Gate Keepers". What's worse, they do a wonderful job of filtering my calls. Nothing personal, but I'm not going to take a call, if someone hasn't taken the time, to do the research, to find out who...I...am. Dude, I gotta say, that I feel for ya. Really, I do. I know that it has to be a real son-of-a-bitch, to have to deal with arrogant asses like me all day long. But, I'm still not taking a cold call. All I can say is...follow Cynthetiq's advice, and keep completely detached from it. Better luck tomorrow. __________________ "I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do because I notice it always coincides with their own desires." - Susan B. Anthony "Hedonism with rules isn't hedonism at all, it's the Republican party." - JumpinJesus It is indisputable that true beauty lies within...but a nice rack sure doesn't hurt.

01-10-2005, 03:57 PM	#10 (permalink)
clavus pow! Location: NorCal	I call call call. I don't give a crap. I remind myself that THIS isn't really work. I've done WORK, and this isn't it. It's sitting on my ass in a climate-controlled office. Oh, and I am also one of those decsion-makers you are seeking. And if you don't tell me what you are selling when I ask you, I'll hang up on your ass. And PLEASE don't try to go around me to talk to the owner of the company. I really am the guy who makes the buying decision. Try to go around me, and you will get nowhere. __________________ Ass, gas or grass. Nobody rides for free.

01-15-2005, 01:00 PM	#15 (permalink)
SecretMethod70 Human Administrator Location: Chicago	Remember, they are not rejecting you, they are rejecting the product, whatever that may be. The rejection has nothing to do with you. __________________ Le temps détruit tout "Musicians are the carriers and communicators of spirit in the most immediate sense." - Kurt Elling

05-06-2004, 01:28 PM	#4 (permalink)
Astrocloud Apocalypse Nerd	Yup, Gatekeeper -I write that right on my lead card. My trick is to call either during lunch break for the gatekeeper or early in the morning or towards closing time. The object being that the gatekeeper might be away and someone else will patch me through to the boss. Sometimes after Hours works too. Speaking of, why am I here? why aren't I on the phone?

05-06-2004, 01:48 PM	#6 (permalink)
Astrocloud Apocalypse Nerd	I should also mention that there is a case sometimes that I do get through to the boss and he loves what I have BUT by asking my questions I have to disqualify him. Bill-O I bet I could disqualify you in a Nebraska second.

05-06-2004, 03:53 PM	#7 (permalink)
ratbastid Darth Papa Location: Yonder	Cold calling is a numbers game. Do your very best on every call, and some small percentage of them will turn into bonafide contacts. And then some small percentage of those will turn into prospects. And then some small percentage of THOSE will become sales. And you'd better price the sale such that it pays for the product sold AND the cost of selling it!

01-08-2005, 12:09 PM	#9 (permalink)
Tracybrian Crazy Location: Tracy, ca	Cold calling is the most lothsome part of my job. I have a client list that is about 2450 peps. I have to stay in touch with all of them on a periodic basis. Finding reasons to call people and talk about business is hard. My goal is to make 100 phone calls daily. I make 10 phone calls then take a tilted brake and repeat untill I hit that quota. That has been my routine as of late.

01-11-2005, 02:21 AM	#11 (permalink)
irseg Junkie Location: Florida	I'm a decision maker, and I've dealt with plenty of cold calls. A few tips for those of you who have to make these calls: -You have 5 seconds to tell me in no uncertain terms what it is you're selling. If you use vague buzzwords that don't actually tell me anything, such as "we provide solutions that leverage your existing infrastructure to maximize your ROI", I hang up. -Actually, avoid talking to technical people altogether. We're good at seeing through your bullshit. I got a call not too long ago from an outfit that claimed they could guarantee top placement for any term I wanted when someone searched in Google. Knowing this is too good to be true based on my SEO experience, I said "Cool! I'm on Google right now, give me an example of one of your clients and some keywords I can use to see them in the #1 spot." "Uhh, umm, well this service works in conjunction with our special toolbar software." "Oh I see, so it only works for people using spyware that hijacks their Google searches?" "Well..It.." (hang up)

01-11-2005, 02:31 AM	#12 (permalink)
Schwan A boy and his dog Location: EU!	I used to do some journalist work for a paper for a while and before that I worked on a phone for a debt managing company. Both of these jobs required me to come in contact with a lot of negativity. At the end of the day I hated it, and I quit both of these jobs. If your really have to do it, then I guess you'll just have to bite your tongue and teach yourself. If you hate the job, and have any prospects for changing, my advice is that you should do so.

01-14-2005, 11:31 AM	#13 (permalink)
flamingdog Still fighting it.	Yeah cold calling as a journalist is even worse than selling. You say you're a reporter, they're instantly suspicious of you. Luckily, you eventually build up a few trusted contacts, and the days of buttonholing hapless citizens - while never quite behind you - become fewer and further between.

01-15-2005, 04:36 PM	#16 (permalink)
Suave Twitterpated Location: My own little world (also Canada)	I'm a market researcher, so yes I deal with it. Constantly. That's basically all my job is. The first way I deal with it: I work as little as possible while maintaining some extra income (not the best way of doing it if you need money). Second way: don't take it personally when they start talking shit to you. Third way: just be prepared for the rejection. __________________ "Few people are capable of expressing with equanimity opinions which differ from the prejudices of their social environment. Most people are even incapable of forming such opinions." - Albert Einstein "Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools, because they have to say something." - Plato

01-28-2005, 09:38 AM	#18 (permalink)
drakers Psycho Location: IOWA	Well I worked in a collection department at a major mortgage company, key word there is "worked". Collections is kinda like cold calling but in a different sense, you call people who don't want to talk to you AND they owe the business money. A double whammy, which sucked and I found a job that I actually like now and don't have people cussing at me.

01-30-2005, 06:55 PM	#19 (permalink)
Spritebox Insane Location: Charlotte, N.C.	You could take the Crank Yanker approach and get them to buy your product by making them feel overwhelmingly sorry for you (i.e., talk with in a meek voice with a pittiful studder and act like you have cancer or something). If it doesn't work for sales, it would at least be comedic. __________________ it's all nice on ice alright and it's not day and it's not night but it's all nice on ice alright

01-30-2005, 07:18 PM	#20 (permalink)
ARTelevision I change Location: USA	As I run my department (Internet Development) I start sales initiatives when we have some space open for new projects and the tech equipment sales staff isn't focusing on Internet Development sales. And that means when I start an initiative, I make a bunch of calls - just like other staff. I write up a script and keep it in front of me - even though I only use pieces of it. I figure the ratio to be about 20-to-1 to turn leads into prospects. And maybe one-in-five prospects will become a customer. That means making a hundred calls to create one customer. So I don't expect a lot beyond the fact that it's a numbers game. The way I see it is that it's something to do between project work. But since I've been doing these calls for years, it's just something else to do during the work day. I suppose what I'm saying is that if you don't have expectations that are too high, it's a lot more psychologically manageable as far as rejection and "failure" rates are concerned. __________________ create evolution

01-31-2005, 06:31 PM	#22 (permalink)
appleseed Tilted Location: Wisconsin	Man you think that's tough? I used to have a job where I sold insurance door-to-door on cold calls. Getting hostility from people on the phone is one thing, having them sic dogs on you is another! That was by far the toughest job I ever had, and I've done road construction, concrete work, and was in the military.

02-08-2005, 10:22 AM	#23 (permalink)
Astrocloud Apocalypse Nerd	Wow, it's been 6 months since I posted this. Since then I quit the cold calling job only to get another job making cold calls. My new business doesn't encourage cold calls but guess what -my second sales involved a cold call. -I've gotten really good at it and when I'm "in the mood" my percentage goes way up -like 30% or so. Truthfully my clients were wanting what I had to offer and I represent a very prestigious company. They bought on the spot (also not encouraged at my company) and thanked ME for the business. Truth is that as long as there are people who haven't heard of every product -there will still be telephone pitchers hawking their wares.

02-14-2005, 04:57 PM	#25 (permalink)
R3d Insane Location: Sask, Canada	lol.. i used to do that type of shit for almost 2 years.. it was great fun.. no matter how mad someone was at me.. id just be nice and polite and they just seemed to get even more mad.. funny times i tell ya.. for the most part tho businesses weren't all to bad if you weren't pushy with them.. just try to get a time thats good for them.. i found the mornings were the easiest for ppl to do them

03-01-2005, 08:48 PM	#26 (permalink)
FloydianOne Crazy	Can someone explain to me what cold calling is? What are you trying to sell/do? Are they similar to the telemarketers that I hang up on everyday?

03-01-2005, 11:48 PM	#27 (permalink)
Sp0rAdiC Insane Location: VT	I had the same question FloydianOne, so I went to the all-knowing Google and got http://www.google.com/search?complet...e:Cold+Calling So yeah, looks to me like people calling trying to sell stuff... is that right?

03-02-2005, 07:48 AM	#28 (permalink)
Yakk Wehret Den Anfängen! Location: Ontario, Canada	Cold Calling is calling to sell something without having being solicited to call them. It is taking someone else's time in order to make a profit for yourself. Such transactions have unpaid for negative externalities, which distorts and damages the economy, and are in my opinion immoral. __________________ Last edited by JHVH : 10-29-4004 BC at 09:00 PM. Reason: Time for a rest.

03-02-2005, 08:50 AM	#29 (permalink)
FloydianOne Crazy	How are they different from telemarketers, or are they? Sounds kind of like you guys try to call the "big whigs" of companies rather than calling residential homes during my dinner time and interupting my family... etc. etc. am I correct?

03-04-2005, 12:12 AM	#30 (permalink)
SPQR Upright	This is an interesting thread, as I've had some recent experiences involving cold calling. I cold call companies in order to encourage their participation at a university career fair that my organization puts together; unfortunately, we've just started doing career fairs so our contact list isn't very large or well established. The biggest impediment I find is simply people do not pick up the phone. It makes me wonder what it is that HR or staffing people do all day away from their desks. This forces me to eventually leave a message, which vastly cuts down on the success percentage, since no one wants the extra work of having to call back. Does anyone have any advice for more successful cold calling in this type of situation?