Recently, I read a story on LinkedIn that begins with the writer's friend complaining that a salesperson called their cellphone. The friend was outraged that a salesperson would call his mobile number to pitch him. The writer of this story suggested that it is difficult to reach people at their work phone, and that email no longer works. This leaves us with the question of how exactly one should sell using no form of communication.
In the past, the phone book was the primary data source for everyone, and your phone number was included unless you made it private, which was uncommon. But those who might complain about sales calls to their mobile phone may not know that, in the not-so-distant past, some of us made real cold calls, which meant walking into the client's office and asking to see them. The rule was that if you had a meeting, you had to walk into the buildings to the left, the right, and across the street.
There is a certain type of individual that hangs a "No solicitors" sign on their door to prevent them from being pitched. This sign is essentially a welcome mat for salespeople as it suggests they have been identified as prospects and are likely to buy.
For as long as there has been something to sell, salespeople have had to communicate their offerings. As long as salespeople have been communicating, some portions of their prospects have complained.
Navigating the Decline of Traditional Sales Channels
Imagine a salesperson struggles to find anyone who picks up their work phone and still needs to acquire a first meeting. The overwhelming number of underwhelming emails has caused the recipients to delete them at first glance. According to the outraged person who received a call on their cellphone, that point of contact should be forbidden. It is the most intimate of our mediums, as it is never more than a foot away from its owner. For most people, it sits next to them even during sleep, and it accompanies them to the restroom. We can imagine the outraged party would also not welcome a text message.
What is left is something like renting a kiosk at the local mall and offering samples to those who pass by the sad collection of salespeople.
Perhaps LinkedIn is the answer, and for those who know how to use it, it can be helpful. But out of the 800,000,000 profiles, most of us have been accosted by what must be 200,000,000 scammers, spammers, and oblivious pitchers. Is this somehow better?
Innovative Selling Tactics Beyond Modern Platforms
I don't know the outraged party in the LinkedIn story, but we can guess this person works for a company. It would be interesting to know what mediums their sales force uses to reach their contacts. It is clear this person isn't a salesperson, but if he has a paycheck, it comes to him because his company has clients, who were acquired by a salesperson who interrupted their contacts to schedule meetings about improving their results.
I wonder what mediums the outraged friend would recommend were he the vice president of sales? How would he acquire the meetings that create the opportunities he would need to reach his goals?
Reassessing the Efficacy of Inbound Marketing in Sales
Everyone loves inbound marketing. It is an excellent way to acquire people who are already interested in what you sell. The problem, however, is that inbound alone doesn't allow most companies to reach their goals. Most companies chasing growth must use both inbound and outbound.
For as long as there has been an inbound and outbound, some of us have been all-bound, using every medium available, starting with the phone. The phone’s unique value is that it is the only medium that is not asynchronous. Even those who provide the tools for inbound still use outbound.
Embracing Uncertainty and Learning in Sales
Yesterday a salesperson from Source Whale called me on my cellphone. As a person who causes others to make cold calls, I took his call, as I should. Because I already have a solution in place, I didn't need what he was selling. Despite this, I kept his email, and I accepted his LinkedIn connection. If something changes in the future, which is an absolute certainty, I want to have alternatives ready to investigate.
What salespeople offer their prospective clients is an opportunity to improve their results. We also provide a conversation about solving a problem that harms their results. Like the salesperson that called me, the outraged person is now aware of another approach to something he is doing now.
One reason some of us work in sales is because we find meaning in helping other people, even if we must interrupt them on their mobile phone. What the outraged friend may not know is that, except for a new salesperson, most of us have long been desensitized by the word No.
Crafting Effective Sales Pitches and Offering Value
Perhaps, the outraged friend took a call from a poor salesperson, who didn’t offer to trade something of value to the contact. There are ways to make a cold call about the contact. The friend may have had the bad luck of a sales rep using an increasingly deranged approach to a cold call. You should want your client to find you polite, professional, and an expert and an authority, someone you would be happy to know should you ever have a problem.
The future of cold outreach will change. But until that future arrives, salespeople will need to use the mediums we have access to now, even if it triggers the grouchy folks unhappy to hear from a salesperson.
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