Cold calling and door knocking can be a thankless task..!

As part of our daily routine, we went out and concentrated our efforts on attracting new business by selecting an area and target sector.

We set off with a challenge to achieve 2 positive leads each, as without a goal it can be so easy to stray off track and make an excuse to pack it in and head for the nearest coffee shop.

We have the belief that business door knocking is still a great way to attract new business, and is on par with having a good website and using all other forms of sales generation. Having a website and using social media are great tools but in our opinion whatever business you have you need to try and get to the right person who makes the decisions and by being direct and knocking on the door in some cases gives a better opportunity of meeting the decision-maker.

So as the day started the first positive contact was made, a business owner was more than happy to explain how he had suffered from the consequences of being tied into a long term utility contract.

His contract was due for renewal in November but we agreed that we would send an email and follow up in July but in the months prior to keep him informed of any products on the Need to Sort site (Need to Sort being a sister company of Connect WM).

The next contact made, was again more than willing to talk to a local business as they had just moved in about 6 weeks ago, the system is the same we will email and arrange an appointment 5 months before to get the ball rolling to provide them with the best options.

You may be thinking 5 months? But we know we have processes which will work and enable us to provide the best possible service, as well as a steady stream of leads and sales.

While making these contacts and doing door knocking we have to report that some businesses can get quite offensive and ignorant. We don’t worry about that as we have the belief that maybe our service is just too good for them again you may think that is arrogant but this is how we overcome rejection and remain positive.

One thing that does make us smile is when you meet ‘The Gatekeeper’; the person who thinks they own the business and makes a judgement that the boss will not be interested. You can stand there and you can see their eyes go closer together and say “he/she will get in touch “or" I am not allowed to give out a number".

Well, the answer to that one is “I don’t really want them to get in touch with me I will give them a ring”, brilliant as the look on the face is confusion and 9 times out of 10 we get the number.

Also, the line “I don’t think he/she will be interested” before we’ve even said anything of note, is when we ask “interested in what?” again the send an email comes out - which we reply "ok" can we take your name as a reference, try it, it works.

We finished for the day and all descended on a coffee shop to discuss how we had done, a lot of “not interested” but everyone had achieved the goal of 2 prospects by keeping professional and speaking to plenty of prospects.

Our conclusion to business door knocking is that you have to develop the mindset, our team have it but we know that not everyone can do this.