Is the Telephone Still Effective for Prospecting?

It’s time we put this question to rest once and for all! I can’t even begin to tell you the number of times people ask me this question either when I'm speaking or via email.

Whenever I’m asked this question, I always ask the other person for their answer to the question before I answer it. At least 95% of the time, the response I get is "no" followed by some explanation about how they've never been able to make the telephone work. Once they finish talking, I ask them if they like getting phone calls. I get the same answer about 95% of the time: "no". Let’s cut to the chase and call out the ugly duck: the person who says the telephone doesn’t work for prospecting is the person who doesn’t like talking on the telephone. These are the people that would rather curl up in a corner and spend all day scrolling through Facebook or Instagram and somehow think they are doing their job.

These same people who shun the telephone and rely solely on social media to prospect are the same ones who keep missing their quotas. These are the people who create the turnover in the sales community.

Here are 4 reasons why the telephone still works:

1. The level of information you can exchange with a person in just a two minute phone call will be far greater than what could be exchanged in a series of emails with the same person. Not only do you get to exchange information faster, but you also have the opportunity to make sure it’s being understood properly. There’s nothing worse than an email trail that goes sideways because something is misunderstood.
2. The telephone allows your personality to come through. We’ve all been given a great personality (except maybe for the crazy uncle or bizarre aunt lurking in everyone’s family!) and the telephone is the perfect place to let it come through. Think about the time you were on a call where it just clicked because the two of you had personalities that played well with one another. Most likely, you're not going to get that with an email, unless you throw in a dozen stupid emojis.
3. The telephone has immediacy. The other person asks you a question and boom, you can answer it immediately. No need to wait for an email response. Wow! That almost seems surreal to say that an answer on the telephone can come faster than via the Internet.
4. You can move the conversation in a different direction by speeding it up or slowing it down based upon what you’re hearing. I don’t care how fast you respond to emails; your ability to talk on the phone and move immediately is a huge benefit.

There’s zero reason to shun the telephone. Of course a lot of calls go unanswered or not returned, but stop and ask yourself: is that any different than emails you send? The answer is no! The telephone works. Give it a shot, and you’ll be amazed at what you hear.

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Copyright 2019, Mark Hunter “The Sales Hunter.” Sales Motivation Blog. Mark Hunter is the author of High-Profit Prospecting: Powerful Strategies to Find the Best Leads and Drive Breakthrough Sales Results