Why prospect? 

• All sales-driven companies are challenged by the constant need to find new business
• Not all prospects respond to traditional lead-generating mechanisms of direct mail, advertisements and trade shows
• Referrals are great, but businesses can't depend on them for a consistent flow of new business
• Companies need to be proactive with prospecting efforts in order to level out the usual peaks and valleys that are typical in sales
• You shouldn't wait for customers to come to you - You should go out and get them

Why use the telephone to prospect?

• Don’t overlook one of the most powerful prospecting and business-building tools available, the telephone - You can reach more prospective customers, in less time, for less money, and it works
• On the phone you can reach as many potential prospects in 1 or 2 hours as a field sales person can see a day
• It's widely known that a field sales call can cost hundreds of dollars - Sales realized from telephone prospecting activity dramatically reduce your cost of sales expense
• Executive level decision makers are becoming increasingly comfortable with the telephone, and are more accepting of using the phone for purposes of discussion and decision making
• You can eliminate "no-interest" suspects quickly, keeping your prospect "funnel" full, and allowing your sales people to focus their time and effort on selling
• Consider your business and the things that have been hard to do - Just because they were difficult does not mean they weren't useful and productive. Your competitors may consider cold calling too difficult or demeaning and not consider it as part of their overall strategy - You should  

Can't my sales or administrative staff make the calls?

Yes, but consider carefully the following points:

• Sales people are trained to sell and typically aren't the most effective prospecting resource - They don't like cold call telephone prospecting, and resist doing it
• To find 4 to 5 quality prospects can mean 80 to 100 well executed calls, and can take 10 or more concentrated hours of calling to accomplish - Anyone poorly trained, inexperienced, or reluctant to make the calls will probably feel rejected and announce that the program isn't working
• What about scripting? Script writing or preparing call guides is time consuming and requires experience - It can be a daunting task for the untrained, and can spell disaster for a program if done incorrectly
• Implementation of a program requires time and focus - It can add responsibilities to your already heavy workload and redirect attention away from your core business priorities
• Telephone prospecting is accountable and measurable, and will yield results if implemented correctly, done consistently, and is managed by career professionals
• There is something about being able to cold call - Are the people more bold or tough-skinned? Maybe they have a stronger will or fewer inhibitions. Cold calling is not for everyone, and entrusting the work to those that aren't predisposed to it may cause management to lose faith in the concept

 If I choose to outsource the calling effort what are some of the advantages?

• Calls are made by our experienced and trained career agents
• In the long run it can cost less than developing an in-house campaign
• You won't incur the expense of advertising, interviewing, hiring, and managing personnel
• You won't have the expense of employee compensation, benefit and incentive plans
• You won't have the overhead connected with office space, furniture, computer and phone equipment
• You won't incur added expense if/when turnover occurs
• You pay only for hours worked on your campaign, no vacation, holidays, or sick days
• You can eliminate Management time and expense - It takes a highly skilled manager to train, monitor and ensure productivity of a successful program