How many of you have found in your career, the need to cold call?

I have heard some small business people insist that they've never knocked on doors or picked up the phone book with the Yellow Pages in their lap, but I would have to believe that that is rare. Scads of articles and books are written about the best way to go about cold call and how to turn a cold call into a warm call - but whatever the temperature, you are still having a conversation with someone you've never met.

Today I found an article on the 25 Rules to Grow Rich -not stinking rich, but comfortable. Something I am sure we all strive for.

There are some interesting pieces of information; some new and some not so new, but what struck me was number 5:

Never hire a roofer, driveway paver or chimney sweep who is going door to door.

I think the point of number five is that there are some things better left to a professional to whom you've been referred. I think I read somewhere that 80% of consumers trust a reference from a friend enough to make a purchase. That makes sense. If someone we trust says "oh, ABC Company was really professional and affordable" we tend to believe them.

Last year when I was doing repairs and upgrades around the house in anticipation of putting it on the market, I took the referral of a friend for a guy to fix our cement walk and raise our stairs. He was great.

If the real point of number five is that it is better to do business with someone who is referred to you, then do we ever have a chance of gaining the trust of a new prospect by cold calling?

When you've sought a vendor for your business, do you ever consider the random mailing that came unsolicited or the phone call that came out of the blue? Or do you ask a colleague who they've used?

As a sales person - does it make sense spending hours with the phone book and the phone calling blindly in hopes of a hit? I know it is a numbers game, but would our time be better spent seeking someone to help open the door? Is that the purpose of Linked In?

I don't have answers here, just questions.

Someone I really respect in my field, Peter Bowerman, is a strong advocate of cold calling. He's devoted huge sections of his first two books to the mechanics of growing your business through cold calling.

What do you think?

Deborah Chaddock Brown
Writer, Hater of Act of Cold Calling