Social Media Monitoring and Engagement Specialists - 6Consulting - Radian6 » Latest Posts Social Media in sales » RIP Cold Calling

I learned through Twitter that this man has ideas. This man is saying that.

jowyang Talking to @6consulting (he's in London) about blog design, twitter and social media on Skype --he's got interesting ideas.


Social Media Monitoring and Engagement Specialists - 6Consulting - Radian6 » Latest Posts Social Media in sales » RIP Cold Calling: "Cold calling has been served notice, a new era beckons and with it an altogether different way of working. Social networking has arrived and will soon replace cold calling as the predominant method of prospecting in business.

Helge: I agree. I've changed. Most calls I make are based on a request. Actually, I make very few regular phone calls during a working day.

I have profoundly changed the way I do business and have firmly embraced social media and the networking possibilities it has created. To that end I have reduced to a very small percentage the amount of time I spend cold calling.

Helge: I like to write in advance. This also goes for Skype calls. I send a chat message to ask if a call is okay.

As someone who has been in sales all of my working life, has been a sales director and managed large teams of sales people, I know many people will think that there is no replacement for activity, specifically picking up the phone. Yet, no matter how intelligent you are about cold calling, it is what it is – speculative, scatter gun selling, not to mention costly and increasingly ineffective.

Helge: Calling to complete strangers doesn't lead to much...

Bad image

Cold calling has a bad image, forever associated with double glazing, and I believe the whole process has run its course. Over the years the return on investment from a team of cold callers has gradually diminished; much like the internet killed press advertising revenues so will social networking see the demise of large sales floors with people standing on desks, ringing bells or plucking £10 notes from washing lines (just some of the things I have seen in many years involved in telesales)."

Helge: Call Centers are trying to continue something that isn't needed anymore.