Wilmington (N.C.) Sunday Star News
  Sunday, December 10, 2000

Speaker To Offer Tips On Overcoming Cold Call Phobia
by Josiah Cantwell

For some salesmen, the idea of cold-calling is the scariest thing in the business. The idea of phoning strangers or visiting them unannounced can be intimidating.

But many people, from life insurance salesmen to small business owners, need to develop sales skills.
Denise Ryan of Fayetteville will lead a seminar Monday called "But I Hate to Cold Call" at the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce.

Last week, she was down in Orlando leading a sales and marketing session for Army recruiters, who may be more familiar with how to storm a hilltop position than how to get teenagers to sign up for ROTC. She was describing to them the characteristics of Generation Y (well-behaved, will be social activists) and advising them to use their cadets to sell ROTC.

On Monday, Ms. Ryan will say her advice is to avoid cold calling altogether, but not by calling in sick.

She'll give tips on how to transfer a cold call into a follow-up contact with a warm prospect. 

She knows about the fear of cold-calling. After receiving her MBA at the University of South Carolina with a concentration in small businesses as a staffer at the school's Small Business Development Center - she spent 10 years as a fund-raiser for various non-profits. Her employers included art museums, a downtown development organization and even a zoo, which is neat. When people say "The place were I work is a zoo," how often is that actually true?

She also sold pagers for a while, and her boss would tell her to walk in and cold call.

Nobody wants to see a salesman who walks in off the street," she said. So she developed strategies to warm up the cold call.
One technique is to mail something first. Not just an easily tossed sales come-on, but something that can get a conversation rolling.  

Ms. Ryan is a motivational speaker who also provides training on sales and leadership. Her company is called FireStar. So when she's getting ready to make a pitch, she sends a piece of "fireball" candy in the mail.  

When she calls, people remember getting the candy and she's off to a good start.  

She also advises sales folk to make a point of attending functions such as Chamber of Commerce mixers and the like. But be sure to mix. "If you're going to go with a friend and stand in the corner all night, don't bother," she said.

Set goals. When Ms. Ryan goes to a business/social function with a buddy, they compete to see who can meet three people first. Then they introduce each other to their new contacts.
Once you've met a business person and chatted them up, it's easier to get that sales appointment, she said.

And chatting is important. "Eighty percent of all vendor selection decisions are made because the client likes the sales person," Ms. Ryan said.

She said a good handshake is important-"not that wimpy wet fish, or when you just get the tips of their fingers." It takes an average of seven contacts to make a sale, she said, so it's important to make a good impression and maintain it.

Other tips: Get your name out there. Try writing for targeted publications, or come up with a compelling topic and offer yourself as a public speaker for groups like Kiwanis or Rotary clubs.

If you're phone calling, pay attention to your telephone technique. A monotone voice won't elicit a very enthusiastic response.

The sales component is vital to any business, she said.
If you're starting a computer repair business and you're without any clients, you've got to be able to sell," she said.

The cold-calling seminar is at 2PM on Monday at the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, sponsored by the Chamber and Cape Fear Community College's Business Industry and Government Center. To register, call Vera Weiss at 762-2611, extension 209.

Josiah Cantwell is business editor of the Sunday Star-News and the Morning Star. Call him at 343-2329 or (800) 272-1277, or e-mail him at josia.cantwell@wilmingtonstar.com.

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