Never a Cold Call–Always and Introduction
By Paul McCord

I'm a salesman. I sell sales training, management consulting, coaching and
speaking presentations. My clients are companies, individual salespeople, business
owners, and business and industry associations.

I prospect. I have to if I want to stay in business. I, like every other salesperson,
am constantly looking for potential new business.

I also market my services and myself. I have to invest a significant amount of my
time and effort in getting my message out to potential clients. The marketing I
engage in takes many forms--from writing articles to giving interviews to writing
newsletters to attending events and functions to networking and seeking referrals.

In other words, my business is exactly like yours. I engage in the same activities
you do. I face the same obstacles, the same setbacks, the same disappointments,
and enjoy the same victories.

Whether you sell insurance, parking lot maintenance, copiers, communication
systems, or the most sophisticated computer networks, business-to-business selling
is in its essence the same for all of us. The details are different. The process may
be vastly different. The sales cycle may be months or even years apart. But the
basic essence is the same, and the most basic is you have to have a prospect that
will accept your efforts to connect with them.

Like almost every other salesperson, I must use the phone to connect with some of
those prospects. Nevertheless, I refuse to make cold calls. In my opinion, there is
hardly a more worthless use of time and energy than cold calling. Cold calling is
time consuming for the salesperson and it immediately signifies to the recipient of
the call that the person making the call isn't an expert in their field because most
prospects assume that true experts aren't sitting at a desk pounding the phone.

Yet, that creates a dilemma for me–there are prospects I can't find a way to reach
without picking up the phone and calling them. Despite being a strong advocate of
referral selling, networking, and developing referral partnerships, those methods,
no matter how expertly I implement them, just can't get me to every possible
prospect that I'm interested in reaching.

Not having a way to connect through other means and refusing to cold call presents
a bit of a problem.

Fortunately, there is a solution that allows me to NEVER make a cold call. In fact, it
almost always allows me to begin establishing a relationship with the prospect that
I can expand and nurture over time. In addition, this simple method allows me to
gather a wealth of information about the company, their needs, their plans, and in
many cases, key information about the person I'm about to speak to before I evermake the call. Before I call, I know whom I'm calling, why I'm calling, and I have a
very good idea of where the conversation will be going.

Moreover, seldom do I have a voice mail message go unreturned.

What is the incredible system I use?

Actually, it is so simple and so obvious I almost hate to admit it. But it works. It
takes the pressure off me, as well as off the prospect. When I call, I'm simply
doing follow-up work, fulfilling my obligation to one of the prospect's employees.

Once I've identified a company to approach about any of my services, I do my
homework. I call three or four of the company's salespeople. My hope is to speak
to a salesperson that has been with the company for only a short time, to another
who is an old hand with the company, and one who is a top producer.

When I speak to these individuals, I am upfront with the purpose of my call. I let
them know who I am, why I'm calling them, what my intentions are regarding
calling the company about my services, and request their permission to ask them
some questions about the company and their experience with the company.
Seldom does anyone refuse speaking with me. If they do, I'll just call another
salesperson within the company.

I ask a number of information gathering questions such as:
· what type of sales training the company provides
· their personal evaluation of the quality of the training
· whether training is provided by outside vendors on in-house trainers
· if they use outside trainers, what companies do they use
· what training needs do they see the company has that aren't being met
· who in their opinion I should speak to about training
· if there is anything else I should know prior to calling the person they
suggested I call
· prior to ending the call, I ask for permission to use their name when I make
the call.

Three or four short calls–each will only last a very few minutes–gives me a
tremendous amount of information about the company and potential opportunities
for me. Often I learn a little bit of personal information about the person I'm about
to call that helps me connect with them. Typically, at least one and often two or
three of the individuals will not only give me permission to mention their name, but
will encourage me to call, giving me a referral into the company. Now, I've not
only upgraded the call from a cold call to a warm call, but I've upgraded the warm
call to a referral.

When I do call the company, I use the introductions provided by the salespeople to
break the ice and gain credibility. Those introductions turn the call into a
conversation about their needs and observations rather than a sales pitch.If I am directed to voice mail, I don't panic. I don't hang up without leaving a
message. I don't leave some misleading message hoping to trick someone into
returning my call. I leave a very brief factual message that introduces myself and
mentions that salesperson X and salesperson Y asked me to call about some issues
that concern them. I almost always get a return call.

Naturally, the person I'm calling wants to know how and why his or her salespeople
encouraged me to make the call. Again, I don't beat around the bush. I tell them
that I was doing my homework prior to making my introductory call. The fact that I
was willing to spend time learning something about the company, their needs, their
salespeople, and their processes tends to impress the person with whom I'm
speaking.

Seldom do salespeople take the time to be prepared before making a call. Seldom
do they find a way to turn a cold call into a referral. So unusual is it that when
someone calls who is fully prepared, the impression is not only positive but also
deep and lasting. Furthermore, by demonstrating my ability to find a positive,
honest and effective way to connect with them that pricks their interest and almost
demands they pay attention to me, they make the connection that I just might
have something of value to teach their sales team.

Naturally, I don't turn every call into a sale. I do, however, begin the process of
developing a positive and trusting relationship that will, hopefully, turn into a sale
in the future.

My method of reaching the prospects that I otherwise cannot find another way of
reaching doesn't allow me to make tons of calls. I give up quantity for quality. And
to tell you the truth, I'd much rather have an introduction to a quality prospect than
sit and pound the phone hoping that sooner or later I'll fall into an appointment.

No matter your product, you too can find individuals within your target companies
who can give you the information you need–and their endorsement when you do
make the call. Getting past gatekeepers and gaining the prospect's interest doesn't
have to be a game of deception or manipulation. Investing a little time before
calling your prospect opens doors, eliminates resistance, pricks interest, and helps
begin the relationship building process.

You virtually never have to make another business-to-business cold call. With a
little bit of research and effort you can turn almost every cold call into a referred
call. Give it a try, it makes life much easier and making those calls much more
enjoyable–and productive.


Paul McCord is a leading authority on prospecting, referral selling, and personal marketing.
He is president of McCord and Associates, a Houston, Texas based sales training, coaching,
and consulting company. His first book, Creating a Million Dollar a Year Sales Income:
Sales Success through Client Referrals (John Wiley and Sons, 2007), is an Amazon and
Barnes and Noble best-seller and is quickly becoming recognized as the authoritative workon referral selling. His second book, SuperStar Selling: 12 Keys to Becoming a Sales
SuperStar has just been released. He may be reached at
pmccord@mccordandassociates.com or visit his sales training website at
www.powerreferralselling.com or his highly popular Sales and Sales Management Blog at
http://salesandmanagementblog.com


Copyright 2008, Paul McCord. May be reproduced without change, with proper attribution
and brief bio. Notice of when and where article is to appear to
pmccord@mccordandassociates.com