by Colleen McCarty, VP Talent and Organization Development

When your leads are sourced through cold calling, the person doing the dialing is a large component of the equation. Without question, experience tells us that the dialer’s abilities, knowledge, and charisma all contribute to their success (or failure), but it is important not to overlook their work satisfaction.

One area where job satisfaction may be most vulnerable is Sales, because of the intense pressure to produce. Good sales leads are an integral part of generating business, and companies without dedicated inside teams frequently rely on their “closers” to perform cold calling because they are already in place. I maintain that there is an employee satisfaction cost to having your sales team make cold calls that you should take into account on top of the simple dollars and cents.

Why is cold calling so hated? After all, it is simply the first, and vital, step of the sales cycle. Usually the sales people who struggle with it are those who are tasked with the dual role of both inside and outside sales. They are supposed to be always closing new deals while, at the same time, keeping their pipeline full, which is painful for three reasons:

Reason #1: The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Cold calling is the bane of a sales person’s agenda and is frequently the item that “slips.” When handling warm calls - whether responding to interest or managing existing clients - you are behaving reactively. Conversely, making cold calls is proactive. We all know it is easier to react to something, and we all have a to-do list screaming at us. I’m not the only one who can make an extremely persuasive case for why it is far more critical to respond to an existing customer than to reach out to a (potentially uninterested) future customer. So cold calling moves to the back burner as a chore that the sales representatives may honestly think they will get to “later” but never seem to accomplish.

Reason #2: Success breeds failure.

Interestingly, successful cold calling can sabotage productivity. Cold calling is frequently measured by the number of dials, and yet a good conversation with a decision-maker or influencer lowers those total activity numbers or even cuts short the calling hours (see reason #1) because now we have a task to “react” to. Although we want prospects to be interested when we call, the follow-up required after a successful cold call will slow down future cold calling.

Reason #3: I just wanna be loved.

Rejection is never fun, but the earlier you are in the sales cycle, the higher the percentage of “no”s you will hear, especially when you are reaching out to truly cold prospects. Good salespeople can routinely handle rejection but everyone has limits. The term is not accidental; cold calls are icy!  Sales people have to keep their “mojo” and go in to each sales interaction with confidence. If you are emotionally braced for rejection, you may lose the positive energy you need for the next call, follow-up, or close.

Interestingly, I’ve observed that there are a few personality types who specialize and thrive in the cold calling role. One exceptionally successful cold caller I know makes six figures and won’t accept any job where they dangle the old carrot: “If you’re successful, we will promote you to the outside.” He is smart enough to know where his strengths are, and he scorns those sales organizations led by individuals who don’t understand that outside sales and inside sales jobs are truly different.

Outside sales people can cold call but most don’t like it, and you should consider this reality when developing your sales plan to avoid burnout or retention problems. If you can, develop a dedicated inside team or outsource the role to specialists. But if you can’t swing either of those options, it helps to better understand the challenges of cold calling so that you can work with your team to mitigate the stresses and increase the work satisfaction of one of your most critical assets - your sales team.