Hi Adjoua,
I worked on the phone for 22.5 years, 15 of those years were in cold calling. Unless you can be yourself and sell, have a way of working on the phone while sticking to a script, unless you like talking with (or just to) people...unless you can take rejection, name calling and ear abuse, I wouldn't suggest it.
Also, you need a lot of time to explain SFI, etc. and some calls can take ages to end. (You want to be nice and friendly, not brush people off like pet hair off a shirt.)
One day I called a home, asked a young man for ("Mrs. Name".) He said, "Just a minute", there was a pause and a metal whistle was loudly blown into my left ear. My left ear was left numb for almost 4 hours.
I couldn't begin to tell you how many times I had a phone slammed down in my ear, how many times I was called names, even the ways they said them. People you call can be nice, even very nice, but you can not be prepared enough for the mean ones.
I think, if you want to cold call, you might want to create a short but still explanatory script about SFI, PSAs, even TripleClicks. Get the person involved - you ask questions, they answer, you garner their interest so they ask questions. Maybe you can give them your gateways.
Make notes as you call - with whom you spoke, what was said, if you gave gateways or if you must call back. (More time on calls, calling them back.) By making notes, you have something to refer to (believe me, you'll need it) and they might want a refresher, too. (And you will know if they had lied.) You can also use your notes for when (not if, think positively) they sign up.
I don't know if you've heard of buying phone lists for cold calling but there is no guarantee with those. You still get "no", "call me back" and "I have to think about it" responses as you call and fish around for "yes!" I have worked for employers who bought cold call lists and the so-called "leads" were no good. I say, be careful.
The time of day when you will be calling will be when? You might start at 10 a.m., work until lunch, call again from 1 p.m.-3p.m. Until someone will be home at 3:30, someone else will be back from shopping at 4 (give them time to unload everything), someone else yet will be home after 5 then 4 people want to be called after dinner. That's good for 7 p.m. until who-knows-when. You need time to eat, work and oh yeah, have a shower or a bath. Try to find enough time to go for a walk/drive, even to the bank, or to email your friends.
You could try it, see how it goes. I think you could come up with a better way, really. And you'll have your life! (To say the least of your ears.)
I wish you much luck and success.
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Hi Adjoua,
I worked on the phone for 22.5 years, 15 of those years were in cold calling. Unless you can be yourself and sell, have a way of working on the phone while sticking to a script, unless you like talking with (or just to) people...unless you can take rejection, name calling and ear abuse, I wouldn't suggest it.
Also, you need a lot of time to explain SFI, etc. and some calls can take ages to end. (You want to be nice and friendly, not brush people off like pet hair
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