Interrupting prospects won't likely put them in a buying mood, so why do companies still do it?
Last year a guy from Stockton cold called me to pitch me on his cold calling skills. He could drum up new business for me, pronto. Here's how things went:
- Me: I'm not seeking new business.
- Him: But more leads wouldn't hurt, right?
- Me: They do if I have more requests for services than time to provide them.
- Him: Oh really. How do you manage that?
- Me: There's alot of info at our website. I don't cold call because it interrupts people.
- Him: Oh, I'm interrupting you?
- Me: Yes. You are irritating a decision maker by interrupting them.
- Him: I totally understand. I'll call back.
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Sometimes I am blind to the fact that there are pros who still rely on an outbound-only approach. On Wednesday you'll have a chance to hear both sides of the issue as Google+ hosts a debate on the topic of "Does Cold Calling Still Work?"
To me, cold calling is "interruption marketing." Someone has purchased or scraped a list, calls out of the blue, and starts the sales pitch. That doesn't put me in the mood to buy whatever the caller is selling. In fact, it's a real downer for him if he gets me on the line. And yet, some folks say cold-calling produces some of the highest-quality leads (albeit at a remarkable cost in dollars and brand equity).
The debate will discuss whether inbound marketing tactics such as search engine optimization are more effective than outbound marketing tactics. On the debate panel are Mike Volpe, Chief Marketing Officer at HubSpot; Kenneth Krogue, President and co-founder of InsideSales.com; and Anneke Seley, CEO at Reality Works Group. Derek Singleton, managing editor of B2B Marketing Mentor, will moderate. The debate will begin at 11am Pacific (1 pm Central) Time. To watch online and ask your own questions, visit the Singleton's Google+ page.
Bets?
