4 Sales Lessons I Learned from Robocalls

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It seems like the only time my personal cell phone rings anymore, it’s for a robocall! These calls are obnoxious and invasive and are doing nothing to help achieve better sales results for the organizations that they represent. Here are a few reasons why everyone hates robocalls, and how to make sure your sales calls are completely different:

1. Robocalls are impersonal. When a company uses a robocall to contact you, that’s a sure sign that they don’t know you and they don’t care about you. You’re just a phone number that they’re hoping to magically transform into a sale. Do your sales calls sound like that too? Are you treating your customers like robots, or are you putting that authentic human touch into every call? Cultivating a relationship with your sales leads over the phone can be a daunting task even for a competent salesperson. You’re certainly not doing yourself any favors by bombarding entire area codes with a sterile, pre-recorded message. If your goal is to alienate the vast majority of your potential customers, then cold-calling them with a robot voice at dinner time will work like a charm.

2. Robocalls are often irrelevant. How often have you gotten a robocall that was selling something that you actually needed or wanted? Probably never, right? This is why your sales calls need to be relevant. Do your research first. Be as thorough and diligent as possible when you’re gathering information on your sales leads. Once you’ve ascertained some promising contacts, go into each sales call with a good understanding of the prospect’s needs. This is especially important for B2B lead generation and marketing. If you’re selling to another business, it’s crucial that you can demonstrate a working knowledge of the other company and be prepared to explain in clear terms why your product or service will help improve their business.

3. Robocalls are disturbing and sound false. Every robocall I’ve ever heard was annoying at best or unsettling at worst – they sound like they’re trying to frighten people into making bad financial decisions. Make sure your sales calls are warm and inviting, not off-putting. Try to spark a dialogue. Most people like to talk about themselves and their work, so try to put an emphasis on the prospective customer. Instead of subjecting them to a dry, scripted monologue, you’ll probably get better results if you keep the overall tone of the call as natural and conversational as possible. Ask plenty of follow-up questions so the other person knows you’re interested and engaged in the discussion.

4. Robocalls don’t take your schedule into consideration. There’s not exactly an established “best time” to make a sales call, but it doesn’t hurt to stay flexible and always act as courteously as possible when interacting with potential clients over the phone. Be respectful of other people’s schedules. Not everyone has time to hear your sales pitch. They might not even be expecting your phone call! Be cognizant of when you’re calling. For example, if you’re selling to restaurants, be mindful of when those establishments are open for business – evenings and weekends are probably not great times to call them up to try to make a sale, but early afternoons on the weekdays might be more appropriate. If you’re selling productivity software to accounting firms, be mindful of their busy schedules during Tax Season. If you’re selling consulting services to publicly traded tech companies, be aware of their quarterly reporting deadlines, major industry conference dates, or other busy times of year when they might not have the time and bandwidth to be receptive to a sales call from you.

Sales calls still have an important place in today’s fast-paced, technologically-sophisticated business environment. As so many companies’ operations become increasingly automated and digital, there’s something pleasing and reassuring about dialing a number and getting a real person on the other end of the line. As slick and convenient as online tools can be, when you hit a snag and need some special assistance, it’s comforting to know that there are still people out there ready to talk you through it. I am firmly in favor of businesses keeping the human element intact with their sales calls – and putting the robocalls on hold.

Al Davidson
Al Davidson is the founder of Strategic Sales & Marketing, a "leading light" among lead generation companies, delivering B2B lead generation and b2b appointment setting services for clients ranging from local small businesses to the Fortune 100. Since 1989, the company's sales agents have generated over 7 million sales leads, and created millions of dollars for clients.

1 COMMENT

  1. As a customer, I personally really hate robocall, especially the ones that call me on or after work hours. I always block their numbers. Talking about robocall, I have also read an article about someone who sued Time Warner Cable because of multiple robocalls that he gets, and won! I think people who have problems with robocalls might find this useful.

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