Defrosting Those Icy Cold Calls
“Hello. Is there anyone in particular I might show my portfolio? I’m freelance.” This was my opener when calling a large agency where chances of showing my work were slim to none. Inevitably, the person answering the phone was taken aback that I did not seek to hide my purpose or intent; plus I was asking for their help in reaching the right person. Ad agencies will frequently assign portfolio reviews to one art director who will either let you pass go or dismiss you with a handshake, so it’s not always possible to research the facts. Getting your work out in front of the hiring public is a task you will face for most of your professional life, and the cold call is a key point to master. For some folks, making a cold call is possibly the worst feeling in the world. They are, afterall, risking immediate rejection and that hurts. It shouldn’t hurt, though, because the basis for rejection is nothing personal—they don’t know enough about you to make it personal. Keep that in mind and fear will fly out the window.
The second tip for making a cold call less painful is what I call the Fifty-Fifty Save. Everything is a 50/50 proposition; the results of your cold call will either be yes or no in all of their various shades of gray. That means there’s a 50/50 chance you’ll get to show your book, a 50/50 chance you’ll land a new client, a 50/50 chance they’ll keep you in mind for the next job. They will or they won’t and that largely depends on the quality of your work. For me, cold calls have resulted in some long time friendships that keep me growing both professionally and personally. The added option to those cold calls; you, too, may make valuable friends.
Some friends in the business were slow to take to cyberlife. I, on the other hand, was smacked in the face by another friend I cold called in the eighties. Dennis Meyler was the guy who took care of the Art Director's Club of Houston Job Board, so I had to call him when I was looking for a job. When computers took over the industry, he told me to “get on the computer or take up flipping burgers for a living because you’ll be out of a job.” I took his advice and always listen when he speaks, or er . . . emails. My other cold call friend is Richard Laurence Baron III who was the creative director at a pretty famous Business-to-Business (B2B) ad agency in Houston. I called him up and asked if he would he give me some pointers on my work. I had been freelancing for 4 years when I showed my
book, mostly for small businesses that barely had budgets. One brochure in my portfolio was what the client demanded, not what I thought was best. He said, “So, you decided to roll over instead of fighting for what you know is right?” Richard taught me the importance of doing a good job instead of appeasing an uneducated client. After all these years, I wonder if he’s noticed that I took his advice to heart. I would’ve missed both of these friendships had I not made those cold calls.
My third tip for cold calls is to reframe your mental perspective. Business books say set a couple of hours aside each week to make cold calls. If it was that simple, fewer books would be written about it and more people would be doing it. I get a feeling of dread whenever I have to do something I don’t want to; unless I can reframe it for my creative mind. I do one of two things when faced with (sticking my finger in a pot of boiling oil) cold calls. I remind myself that I am selling an original style of work that is uniquely my own; and even if they don’t have an assignment for me at this moment, if they are smart, they will take this opportunity to view my work—keeping it in mind for future needs. That’s a double whammy because if they don’t want to see my work, it means they’re not thinking ahead. And who wants to work with short sighted people, eh? If you're good, they missed more than you did.
The second reframing technique is to escape my dread for whatever chore is at hand. At the first sign of dread, doing almost anything else is more desireable. That, I find, is the most opportune moment to make a cold call. Facing the unknown to avoid drudgery turns the cold call into sheer adventure (and temporary escape from the drudgery). After all, it costs you nothing and you risk nothing. Most important, remember you gain nothing if you don’t try. Don’t want to clean your studio? Why not make a couple of phone calls to complete strangers? It's bound to be more fun than cleaning the cat box.
FOR CAT LOVERS ONLY:
*The very best organic "leaf only" catnip is grown and hand picked by a family in West Virginia. Order the $3 monster bag and watch the show.
Thinking of freelancing for a living? Tired of doing the boss' castoffs? Better get some good advice on how to protect yourself from those who would rape and plunder your creative talents. Look for more stories and adventures in advertising design in my book Start and Run a Creative Services Business. It's filled with great links and a full spectrum of experiences. Not an artist? You'll be in stitches as you follow the pitfalls and adventures of self-employment. And if you've been freelancing for a while, you'll find new information and a trustworthy mentor to stand by your side through thick and thin in Start and Run a Creative Services Business. Excerpts are available online at my website.
Susan, thank you – you gave me more credit than I deserve but we’re all freelancers now. So cold-calling always benefits with a little help from our friends.
It is true that I’d rather dip my finger into your boiling oil than cold-call. Having had to do it for quite a long time, I wonder if a couple of these thoughts might help. (I’m reminded here of the Pirates’ Code from the first “Pirates of the Caribbean” movie – they aren’t rules; more like guidelines in no particular order.)
1. The worst thing anyone can say to you is “No.” My daddy kept trying to teach me this and it took a long time to learn. Make the call, get the appointment or not, the most awful thing that can happen is that someone just says, “No.” It stings, yes; do NOT take it personally.
2. A phone call is an extremely personal and effective way of making contact. So make your cold call personal: do your research, try to form some kind of personal connection (presuming you can get through the voice-mail system in the first place). Figure out how to use the “Six Degree of Separation” to your advantage; drop names; worm your way into your target’s affections.
3. Don’t forget to make a specific appointment – not “How’s your schedule look?” But, “Bob, could I come over to show you my book at 10 AM on Tuesday, May 29th?” Your gambit at this point is to get a yes-or-no answer.
4. Feeling nervous? Use a script to get you over the hump. Doesn’t have to be a long ‘un, just enough to allow you confidence in starting the conversation.
Remember that there are people who have to cold-call for a living: the successful ones are called salespeople. And one “Yes” will make the sun come out. Honest.
With or without computer skills, those burger flippers portray what can happen to ANY graphic artist, talented or no. As for cold calls, my marketing and design firm has NEVER gotten any business from doing those. As a freelancer, I've so rarely made anything from cold-calling that the terror (yes, abject terror) the prospect raises in me simply isn't worth it. Sometimes we artistic types just have to face it - we're not salespeople, never will be, and trying to pretend otherwise is insane.
Your logic is faulty. Only two possible answers does not equate to a 50/50 response rate. Following this logic, if I were to ask 100 people if they would like a hundred dollar bill 50 of them would say no.
I have worked with a large number of sales people over my 18 year career and even the best of them could only manage a 2 or 3 percent successful cold calling average.
SDK responds: The 50/50 Save applies only to framing your mindset to overcome personal fears. Personal fears are emotional, not logical. Most salespeople are not selling their own creative work product, and that makes all the difference.
Cold calling simply isn't possible when you're an expat. Your foreign accent precedes you and the conversation isn't about the service you provide, it's "who is this American trying to sell me something." Even when I'm calling as part of normal business, chasing up invoices and such, the person on the other end is very wary and suspicious. The only time most people here will ever get a call from someone with my accent is when it's a telemarketer trying to get them to buy a timeshare in Orlando, so they assume that's why I've phoned. When I'm calling other businesses, they assume I'm calling from the US, not up the road. You can understand why all of these things happen, but cold calling is hard enough without all of these judgements and suspicions happening as soon as you open your mouth. So, no can do.