Is Cold-Calling Dead?

Cold-calling is dead! R.I.P. cold-calling! Date of death TBD! Well, okay, perhaps it's not entirely dead, but that all depends on who you speak to (pun intended). Since the dawn of time, entrepreneurkind has been trying all manner of ideas and tips to get people to buy their products. The entire dynamic of business, of consumerism, hinges on the idea of trade - you provide something, and you get money for it in return. Before the days of social media, SMS, email marketing, and even websites, cold-calling was one of the sharpest weapon's in a business owner's arsenal.

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But, it's 2020. The era of fibre broadband, Tesla, and the iPhone. We surely don't need cold-calling now, do we? Well, it may not quite be as dead and buried as you think. So many business owners forget the basic truth that many of the old school forms of marketing were among the best. That's why at 3SIX5 Digital, we pride ourselves on being a leading Kent digital marketing agency, by encouraging you to think outside the box, and explore diverse forms of marketing. It's also important to consider the merits of your marketing, so here is the case for and against the death of cold-calling.

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Cold-Calling is Dead! - The Case For

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It is perhaps easy to list some of the key reasons why cold-calling is often viewed as dead. Perhaps the biggest problem for cold-calling as a concept these days is that consumers like to be in the driving seat when it comes to engagement. These are some of the main reasons why cold-calling is widely regarded as obsolete for the modern business:

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It's not enough anymore

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These days the very concept of cold calling is simply not enough. Consumers need to feel as though they have a connection with a brand or business in order to get involved with them, and this is something you just cannot get with cold-calling.

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It's irritating

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Another common reason why it could be argued cold-calling no longer works is that it's irritating. People have so much these days that consumes their attention, and they often find unsolicited calls to be annoying and unprofessional.

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It's not good for morale

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You also have to think about your staff, and how demoralising cold-calling can be for them, with very few sales, and probably a fair amount of hostility to greet them as well.

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Cold-Calling Isn't Dead! - The Case Against

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However, you could also make the argument that cold-calling is not dead. After all, are television adverts dead? Are business cards dead? Is word-of-mouth dead? The key to cold-calling is how you are doing it, and this is what you have to master..

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Use inbound cold-calling

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Did you know that statistics suggest more than 80% of customers have accepted meetings with sales people based on correspondence initiated by cold calling? The key here is that you need to make sure you utilise inbound cold-calling - the idea here is to make sure you do your research and target the right people to cold call.

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Become a problem solver

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American entrepreneur Eric Ries once said, "Success is not delivering a feature, it's learning how to solve a customer's problem." And this is something you can apply to cold calling. As above, you need to do your research, but targeting those relevant customers whose problems you can solve, increases your chances of success when cold-calling.

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Whether or not you believe cold-calling to be dead entirely depends on your business strategy and philosophy. We certainly feel there is still a place for it, just as long as it is used effectively. We try to be the best Kent digital agency we can be, and this involves us helping and encouraging a diverse marketing portfolio, which could well include cold-calling, alongside a multitude of other ideas that you feel fit your business.