Yet, of all this content that I consume, do you suppose that somewhere along the line I run into conflicting opinions? All of the time. What do I do then? How can I learn when my teachers are in disagreement? With so many voices saying different things, who should I listen to?
Not too long ago, a discussion was raised on Paul Castain's Sales Playbook LinkedIn Group, one of my favorite online communities, regarding the validity of "cold calling" today. Most of the people offering their opinions viewed cold calling as an out-dated practice that only amateur sales people still use. This advice flies in the face of advice from Anthony Iannarino, possibly the most profound blogger on the web, who insists that cold calling is not just a good idea but rather something that we are ethically obligated to do as sales people. Both sources are valid. Both of them I highly respect. Who should I listen to?
Last month, I wrote a post on cold calling. Which side did I take? Did I follow the Uncle Paul entourage or did I side with Anthony Iannarino? Neither. I took my own side. I argued that, while initiating relationships is just as important today as it always has been, creating a personal brand prior to a cold call in something we should be constantly striving for. My view is somewhat of a hybrid of both sides of the argument. But, it isn't either side's view; it is my view. Whose voice did I listen to? I listened to my own.
Look outward for advice, but inward for permission. I would encourage everyone to learn everything they can from as many sources as possible. The bigger the pool of insight you have to draw from, the better decision you will be able to make. Yet, when all is said and done, you and only you will be responsible for the behavior you engage in. You can't say, "I'm only doing what so and so said" or "I can't do that because so and so said that I couldn't." You are the end of the line. You can get all the advice in the world but none of those advisors can set you on a course of action. Others can give you advice, but only you can give yourself permission.
What will you give yourself permission to do today? What advice will you follow? More importantly, what advice will you contradict? There are so many voices out there. By all means, listen to what they're saying. But when the time comes to take action, there is but one voice that matters: your own. What is the voice inside telling you today? Will you listen?
Your own.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! "Look outward for advice, but inward for permission."
ReplyDeleteThanks for including my thoughts in your post, Doug. As to cold calling, I stand by everything that I have written, including a couple posts you didn't mention, namely the posts I have written about warm calls.
ReplyDeleteShould you do some research before you call your dream client? Sure. Should you have some ideas about how you might create value? Absolutely. Research isn't something new. But that is all about you feeling confident picking up the phone; you are warming it up for you.
From the client's perspective, some salesperson they don't know still interrupted their day with a phone call--it's still a cold call to them. So salespeople should warm it up if they must, but they should also make the call.
You are right to seek your own truth and follow you own path. It's nice to work on establishing a brand that precedes you. But for many salespeople, the results they need can only be obtained by aggressively prospecting now using every method available to them . . . including our beloved cold call.
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Thank you for your thoughtful comment.
ReplyDeleteI agree. What really matters to buyers is whether or ot you are truly offering something of value. It doesn't really matter if you're already acquainted somehow. You can be the buyer's own brother and still be wasting her time! I think the reason buyers don't like cold callers is that they don't trust them. Perhaps that's why sales people hate cold-calling too--they have to build trust, and that's a lot of work!
For most sales people, I think a healthy mix of prospecting methods is best. There are a great number of sales people who have made a nice living merely from referrals, and I applaud them for that. But most sales people need a little more business than referrals can offer. At some point, every sales initiate conversation, open a relationship, and create value from scratch. That's just what we do.