No Guts , No Glory ( Or Money ):
How To Be Smart About ‘ Cold-Calling ’ To Fuel NEW Appointments With Qualified MSP Prospects
I still remember the first sales job I ever had , working for the hardcore telemarketing department of a company doing in-home sales for frozen meat . You can ’ t get a much harder sales gig than cold-calling random people at night while they ’ re having dinner and dealing with the kiddos ’ homework to try to convince them to book an appointment with a sales guy in a suit to sell them 6 – 12 months of frozen meat … and THEN sell them a freezer once they realize they just bought six months ’ worth of hamburger .
However , getting that job and SUCCEEDING at it was one of the BEST things I ’ ve ever done . It taught me how to take a HARD no and keep dialing and prospecting — something that stops 90 % of all the so-called “ sales professionals ” out there . They ’ re afraid to prospect .
Look , no one likes making cold calls . Out of the list of things I ’ d like to do today , it ’ s right above getting a root canal without Novocaine . But here ’ s the simple reality : No new conversations with new prospects mean no new appointments . No new appointments mean no new sales and no new clients .
Of course , cold-calling isn ’ t the only way to get appointments . As much as possible , you SHOULD be using EDR ( educational direct response ) marketing like I develop for my clients to drive inbound leads . But when you couple that
WITH smart , strategic “ cold-calling ,” you can get 2 – 3 times the results . Here ’ s how …
Step 1 : Get Over Your Fear .
Why is it that the sales profession is the largest consumer of motivational material ? How many engineers , administrative assistants , carpenters , electricians , or CPAs feel they need that type of training to do their jobs ? ( Answer : none .) Also , why do more than 80 % of the salespeople who start in a sales position end up leaving sales for some other job or profession ?
It all stems from fear . They have emotional weakness and NEED to be liked . They avoid confrontation of any kind and feel queasy about asking people for money ( or even talking about money ).
I find unsuccessful salespeople obsess over the “ nos ” and “ not interested ” responses they get . They take it VERY personally . I get asked , “ What should I say when they say NO ? What do I do ? What am I doing wrong ?” For the most part , these people aren ’ t doing anything inherently wrong — they ’ re simply discovering a truth about marketing and selling : The VAST majority of prospects are NOT legitimate buyers ( qualified prospects ) of what you ’ re selling . In fact , here ’ s how it breaks down :
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