Cold Calling – The Death Rattle?

In the relatively new LinkedIn group New Busines Hunters, I’m seeing some of the more serious, experienced and talented folks start bobbing to the surface with stories, comments and critiques. That’s a good thing. I tend to see this as for Marketing Firms (i.e – ad agencies, pr firms, digital, experiential, and that long rattles-on list) although anyone is welcome.

Mike Lee, Managing Director at Headway Business Development in the UK started this one off – Thanks Mike! Navigate there to see his original comments, then mine along with others. http://www.linkedin.com/myGroups?trk=nav_responsive_sub_nav_groups  Neil Fawcett, managing partner at Critical Mass Communications Limited posted this today – “Great story Sean….you did it with personality…see?…you contacted a ‘future client …”

Here’s a big chunk of my take on the topic …

I knew I sensed Sean’s innate new business talent; to your point Neil, nothing succeeds unless and until you fine-tune your craft! Cold calling is not the art of making “cold calls” but having the experience, knowledge, training, self-management, charm, wit and personality to positively engage by phone with what began as a stranger and matures into a qualified prospect …

More than a few years ago when I was publishing Richmond LifeStyle Magazine, my mentor and I held serious discussions about launching a college to offer a 2-year curriculum in “professional agency sales.” Even had scouted the campus location! We got distracted but the absolute need still exists. Here and in every market.

At Richmond’s VCU Brandcenter, unless I missed it just now, there isn’t a single course devoted to “Agency New Business” – suggesting that the age-old theory that your agency’s “creative” will get you found is still how new business happens … Under what rock shall we look to find tomorrow’s agency sales people?