Print Solutions December 2006
FEATURE ARTICLE
Cold-Calling—What’s Changed?
The new wisdom about prospecting for clients
By Rebecca Trela
The art of prospecting for new business is, at times, a murky science, clouded
with opposing truisms for success from ridiculous to dubious. Or at least it
has appeared that way to Mike DiSalvo, recalling a sale he scored by literally
wading through a field of manure.
“I went to a cow farm on a spring thaw day and when the farmer saw me, he
laughed,” DiSalvo says, because the Applied Business Systems sales rep from Batavia, New
York, always wears a suit when making a sales call.
“He really got me walking through the muck, because I was this fancy businessman.
They couldn
’t see that I had galoshes on, though, and when they found out there was a lot of
laughter about that, too. In fact, my outfit was the talk of the afternoon—until they bought a bunch of checks. I think they got a kick out of it.”
DiSalvo says that when he started selling in the print industry five years ago,
he heard all types of conflicting advice, addressing a changing industry
’s market in a myriad of ways. It was difficult to determine which advice to take
and which to ignore, he says, but he
’s glad he’s stuck to his guns on the coat-and-tie issue.
Like DiSalvo, many print reps who prospect for business are aware that cold
calling, or prospecting, has changed over the years. But which dicta pave the
road to success and which lead to any empty book of business?
|
Where Do Sales Come From?
Networking contacts
Existing accounts
Accounts lost to a competitor
Working through an office complex
Lead lists
Calls to ask for referrals
Inactive accounts
|
Do Your Homework
There may, in fact, be enough print business to support everyone who wants to
sell it. Some reps still find customers by walking a commercial district. But
no matter how low-hanging the fruit, time-tested strategies confirm that
preparation is always useful before contacting a potential client.
“A couple months ago, I had a guy walk into my office and try to sell me
digitally-printed business cards,” says Robb Tipton, owner of Kemah, Texas-based distributorship Star Business
Products.
“At some point in time I think he figured it out. It was pretty funny—I asked him as much as I could about digital printing, but he still didn’t leave his sales literature!”
Many sales reps find that they must re-imagine the idea of a business call as a
response to changing environs. American workers have less free time, and they
grow ever-savvier about protecting those minutes. It pays to know what
situation you
’re walking into.
“The better that they feel I understand the business I’m in and what they need, the more stress it takes off them,” DiSalvo says. “Technology is making it easier and easier to do my job, in terms of getting in
touch with my clients and with the pieces I deliver, and I try to use it to
suggest solving a problem right away.”
The level of research required to attain new customers is foreign to some
veteran print reps, who are used to shoe-leather selling. Those days are over,
says Jim Richardson, vice president of sales at Scope1 Marketing Technologies.
“You have to do some research before you get a client,” he says. “The industry is old. Seventy-five years ago, forms was such a good idea you
could knock on any door and anything you could do for them would knock their
socks off, because it was better than what they had. Now the industry has
matured. You have to be on the electronic side, and you have to differentiate
yourself in what you can do for that company that their existing rep can
’t.”
On Call
After researching the prospect, it’s time to make contact. But what’s the best way? Of course, traditional sales calls meant knocking on doors,
handing out business cards, and displaying the products the rep could provide.
Now that same visit to the potential client
’s office has become a charged, cat-and-mouse game between the “gatekeeper,” usually a receptionist, and the salesperson. Sometimes, the lucky rep will get
a decision-maker
’s name or business card; the rare call will result in an appointment. Often some
brochures get left with a prayer at the
“gate.”
This is unsurprising, says Winnie Ary, a Westerville, Ohio-based business
consultant.
“They don’t know you. You don’t know them. Why should they give you their time?” Even though she can “work a room like a cockroach,” Ary says, she makes business contacts on the phone. By innocuously questioning
receptionists, making valuable use of her time, and ruffling no feathers, Ary
determines information about the decision maker and what he or she is like.
Through clever tactics, the smart seller can get vital information. “Try calling before the switchboard opens, from about 7:30 a.m. until 9 a.m.,” Ary advises. “Or wait until it closes, at 5 p.m.” If a receptionist picks up the phone, don’t get exiled to voicemail! Ask for the person’s extension. “There is no substitute for you, and you need to talk to them one-on-one,” she stresses.
“My favorite time to cold-call is on lunch hours,” DiSalvo says, recalling the story of a time when a little nerve and a lunching
secretary allowed him to walk into a university and shake hands with the
president.
“I didn’t sell him anything that day, but when I called back, he knew me and knew I sold
print.”
Everyone in the business has a few tricks to get phone numbers or sweet-talk
prospects—that’s what makes a salesman, says Tipton. Whoever has the opportunity to get his
point across, many reps concur, will win the day.
But there’s more to making initial contact than that, says Richardson, whose associate
sales reps take an unusual tactic—they don’t even pick up the phone. Instead, they send cold emails.
This technique is not like spamming, Richardson explains—Scope1 researches the industries it would like to target, incorporates targets
who might be of interest, including referrals, and conducts research online.
“Receptionists are not as protective with an email address. Many bosses will say,
‘Have so-and-so just send me some stuff.’ That used to mean mail a brochure, but now information is electronic.” The Scope1 team emails the prospect a case study, usually a database-driven
variable print job specific to the client
’s vertical industry. It’s a practice that sets the company apart immediately, he says, and will at least
help the prospect remember who the sales rep is when he or she calls for an
appointment.
Make Friends, Because Friends Make Referrals
The best way to land an appointment is through a referral of a satisfied client.
Networking is common, so don
’t be afraid to ask your current clients for a referral, Ary says.
“I talk to all the little guys, because you don’t know who they know,” DiSalvo says. “I have a nurse whose office I sell business cards to. One doctor, just the
business cards, that
’s it. But this guy has gotten me into every doctor in Batavia. I don’t take him golfing and I don’t take him to lunch. Heck, he’s even been fired from a lot of offices in town. But he likes me and he likes my
work, and he knows just who to talk to in all those places.”
Once in the door and on the client site, the rep must quickly distinguish
himself and his capabilities.
“I have a brochure that’s intentionally very visual,” Tipton says. “People peruse information the same way—there’s a child in all of us and we like pictures. You have to come in, armed and
dangerous, and wow
‘em right off the bat.”
This is the crucial moment in time, Ary says, when it’s okay for the sales rep to showcase his wares and abilities. When you make
initial contact, sell yourself. When you make an appointment, sell the
printing.
The key to impressing his clients, Richardson has found, is by “practicing what you preach.” By not only articulating the solution but also demonstrating it, Scope1’s technology makes a powerful impact. “We actually use our own technology to personalize data and send either email,
mail or both. They can see a demo of how web-to-print works and have a
personalized piece. By that time, they get the message.”
|
Cold-Calling Maxims
If you go door-to-door, take a briefcase and a business card. Don’t leave material behind. “There is no substitute for you,” says Winnie Ary, a Westerville, Ohio-based consultant.
Get the name and position of the company’s decision maker, who isn’t necessarily the person who orders print products.
Don’t leave voice mail messages—get the person’s extension instead.
Try calling before the switchboard opens or after it closes. The decision maker
is more likely to pick up his or her extension.
Sound confident, professional, and important. Avoid phrases like “I was wondering if I might be able to” and “May I.”
Use your head, not your agenda. If you catch the decision maker at a bad time,
defer until later.
“Touch” the prospect—through email, voice mail, phone calls, handwritten notes—every eight to 10 weeks.
|
Sealing the Deal
To get in a new door, Richardson continues, sales reps must bring something new
to the table that other distributors don
’t. Many reps offer the same print products and many are friendly and helpful—what can you do that’s different? Is it a new product or a new print management solution?
“The interesting thing is, we still end up selling a lot of the traditional
products,” Richardson says, even though Scope1 sales reps lead with the digital and
e-commerce offerings. He attributes the business to the attraction of the
company
’s new and different capabilities, which communicate marketplace leadership and
innovation.
A lot of the necessary information is “boring” and “has been said a thousand times,” says Tipton. He strives for friendliness, honesty and humor to make the selling
and buying experience pleasant and refreshing.
“These people are tough nuts to crack,” he admits. “But the harder it is to get into an account, the more likely you’ll be to stay in it for some period of time.
Rebecca Trela is assistant editor at Print Solutions magazine. Email comments to
rtrela@PSDA.org.
