As creative freelancers, we’re often very good at talking persuasively to potential clients on paper or on screen. After all, that’s what we get paid for!
But ask us to PHONE a prospect and pitch our services… and we cringe.
We’re not alone. Just about every independent professional I’ve ever met hates the idea of making prospecting calls.
Consider this email I received from Jack B. just a few weeks ago.
“Hey Steve. I read your blog and was hoping you could help me with a problem. You see, I’m an experienced copywriter — and know how to do that job well. But when it’s time to call on prospective clients, I have a mental block. I’m a writer; not a salesperson. And I just feel uncomfortable calling someone on the phone and blowing my own horn. Can you help?”
Well, before I tell you how I answered Jack’s question, let me share with you my thoughts on cold calling.
It’s NOT the best way to promote your business.
Why?
First of all, cold calling doesn’t position you as an in- demand professional. (Think about it. If you were in- demand, why would you need to make prospecting calls?)
Secondly, it can be a very tough grind. After an hour or two of cold calling, you’re going to feel mentally exhausted.
(By the way, if you disagree with me, please share your opinion in the comments section below ! I want to hear from you!)
However, cold calling does have its advantages.
The technique is, by far, the fastest and least expensive way to promote your services.
You could pick up the phone right now, make calls to a list of prospects, generate some interest, and perhaps even get a new client. All within just a few hours.
You certainly can’t say that about direct mail, networking or other forms of self-promotion.
In fact, I know many freelance professionals who make prospecting calls regularly as part of their self-marketing plan — and do very well.
So it may not be the best way to promote your business, but it is a GOOD way — if done correctly.
So how do you make an effective cold call?
Here’s how I replied to Jack’s email.
“Hi Jack. You say you’re not a salesperson. Well, that’s true. You’re not. So don’t even try to be one. Don’t phone prospects and try to sell yourself. Instead, simply call and politely — and confidently — introduce your services. Say something like this:
“‘Hi. I’m an experienced copywriter specializing in ________ . I just wanted to give you a quick call to introduce my services. If you or a colleague need any copywriting help, I’m available — at least until my schedule is full. Would it be okay to send you an email with more information on my services?’
“Jack, I’m sure you can say the above, or something like it, in a conversational way that doesn’t make you sound or feel like a pesky salesperson. A good number of the prospects you call will agree to receive your information by email. As for the rest, I can assure you that 95% will be friendly and polite.”
Well, that’s the advice I gave to Jack. No need to read from a hard-sell script. Just introduce yourself and your services. It’s painless — and you’ll end up making more and better cold calls. You’ll chat with some prospects, generate some interest and eventually (or immediately) get a new client.
Cold calling works. If you do it right.
______________________
Steve Slaunwhite is the co-editor of The Wealthy Freelancer. His latest book is The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Starting a Web-Based Business.
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I agree – cold calling works, but not if you call thinking you need to be a pushy salesperson. It’s important that you know your purpose when you are calling – usually for me it is to set an appointment to discuss how our services can solve a problem for the potential customer. Cold calling (or prospect calling) is a very effective way to introduce your company, enhance your image, and begin creating relationships when done right.
Hello Steve
Part of my freelance work requires making large amounts of cold-calls to the media with news stories, and I’ve used the skills I learnt there to apply to any type of cold calling.
My advice to Jack is that while cold-calls can be time consuming, they can lead to very good, and long relationships.
The key isn’t to try and sell yourself to whomever you’re calling, but rather, to find out what the needs are of the person you’re calling.
You’re not, after all, trying to convince them to use something they don’t want. You’re calling to find out if they need services like yours.
With that in mind, I find the best approach is to always ask questions.
Phone up, briefly introduce yourself and ask who is the right person to talk to about services such as yours. (“Hello, I’m Jack – I’m a freelance copywriter. Could you tell who would be the right person to contact regarding using freelance copywriters please?”)
I find most people are usually very open to helping another person find something if they can, and will often provide extra information, such as they don’t regularly use copywriters, or they go through an agency, or this is the person, but call them in the afternoons – mornings are bad etc.
Once you do find the right person, again, ask questions – be sensitive to their needs and how they run their business. (“I’m calling to see if you you use copywriters. Is this a good time to talk? — When would suggest I call back etc?)
Engage the person in a conversation. How often do they use copywriters? Is there a time when they are more in demand? What type of copywriting do they need the most (and if yes, you can say, well I just did a very similar job…)and at the end as if there’s an application process – how does one submit one’s information for consideration etc?
Get to know and understand the company’s work patterns and tides, so you know when you’re being helpful, or when you’re calling at a dreadful time. And when you know they’re going to be busy, drop them an email saying you know this is their busy time, do they need assistance?
The more you present yourself as someone who is sensitive to their needs, offering to help them, and less as someone who just wants to push your needs on them, the more you can build a long lasting relationship.
Lastly, remember, every single job has an element of sales. A copywriter is trying to sell the idea they’re working on – through clear prose, persuasive writing, concise editing etc. So don’t associate “sales” with door-to-door knocking and offering a widget. You’re doing sales already.
You’re just using those muscles differently now, by asking what your prospective client needs and seeing if there’s a fit.
Best of luck!
PS – I’m actually in demand for my work, but I often cold-call to find new clients that can provide the best relationships and the best fits, and drop the other ones which are overly demanding, too labour internsive, too disorganized etc, or to expand into new areas of interest.
So to a prospective client that might ask “well, you can’t be in demand if you’re calling me” my reply would be “actually I’m very interested in your company and what you do and wanted to see if there might be any opportunities to work together”
Sheryl and Alexander,
Thanks for the tips and advice on cold calling! I learned a couple of new things.
Granted, I am quite new to freelancing and seem to be specializing in a slightly unusual area. I have had much more success in getting business by making calls than any other method. Of course, they aren’t exactly cold calls.
I write email newsletters (among other types of copy) for small businesses. When I think my service might work well for a company, I look for their website and check to see if they already have “sign up for our newsletter” on there somewhere. If they do, I sign up. If they don’t, I call, explain what I do and why it might work for them, and offer to make a sample. Then I call them back to see what they thought of the sample.
It has worked more times than not.
I am going to take the contrarian position on this. I don’t think it works or at least not well. I agree that you might have some luck from time to time taking the soft sell introduction approach, but that is probably not the norm, at least it never was for me. I used to work for a consulting company years ago where we used heavy cold calling for 6 months straight doing 50-60 calls a week after a mailing and I think we got one new project out of it eventually. I think the other issue you run into is the sheer number of people that screen their calls with voice mail and will never call you back.
Personally I am a huge fan of networking and most of my new work comes from networking and referrals. I also work hard at building up my brand and do some direct response stuff like email, direct mail, and occasional pay to click to augment my pipeline. However cold calls have never been in there and I doubt it ever will be.
If you’re in a situation where you HAVE TO generate some business fast, then cold calling may be a viable option. But in the long-run, the right strategy for most freelancers is to consistently use 3 – 4 higher-impact (and more pleasant) tactics to generate leads.
Of course, if you don’t mind cold-calling (or even like it), go for it! But for the rest of us…
For Ed Gandia:
What are the three to four higher-impact, more pleasant tactics you suggest copywriters use for generating business as opposed to cold calling?
Here’s another question for everyone: Knowing that it’s easier than ever to screen out calls, is cold e-mailing a better option than cold calling? Or do you want to establish a voice-to-voice connection first?
Hi Jeff! Good question. I would first try the following:
* Tapping both your personal and professional network
* Direct mail campaigns offering a special report, podcast or any type of information that’s perceived as valuable, timely and relevant to your target audience and positions you as an expert in your field.
* Going deeper with existing clients, if you work with only one individual or division of a larger company
* Smart local networking (meaning you go only to events that are rich with potential clients, and you get involved with organizations that cater to your target market)
* Social media (employing Twitter, Facebook and other tools to add value to others and help position you as an expert in your field)
These are much better options than cold calling. But again, if you have NO work and need to get work pronto, add cold calling to the mix until you get where you need to be. Just make sure to add these other elements to your marketing mix now so they can start working and you won’t go hungry again.
Of course, if you enjoy cold calling (some people do), then by all means… do it.
Thanks, Ed, for these suggestions. I will incorporate these into my business plan going into 2010.
Thanks, Jeff! Glad you found them helpful. Good luck!
Hi guys, I just wanted to counterpoint Michael Temple’s post above for people who might be reading the comments section after the post (as I often do).
Ultimately, Michael was doing heavy cold calling from a BUSINESS – this means he was working a sales pitch, but the moment a business name is dropped, people often attribute it with an undesirable sales pitch.
This article is for Freelancer’s, not business workers. A freelancer calling up often receives better results than someone on behalf of a company. How often do people hang up the phone as soon as they’ve heard ‘my name is blah and I’m calling on behalf of company blah’? Many do.
Unfortunately Michael’s experience is not in the right context for this article.
Bane – When done wrong, I’ve seen cold calling be as ineffective (and downright demotivating) when used to promote your own services as when used to promote a company’s services. Just because you’re calling about your own services doesn’t automatically mean you’ll get better results. It’s all about the right list, the right script, the right approach, and a smart call to action.