President of the Nashville office of Dalton Agency, Jeff is a former journalist with 30+ years of experience as a PR professional.
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Everyone—certainly every business owner—gets cold sales calls. No one likes them. Some of us dislike them so much that we hang up a few seconds after answering the phone, when we realize we do not know the person on the other end of the line and that they are trying to sell us something in which we have no interest.
In the past, that was that. I did not waste too much time listening to an irrelevant sales pitch, and the salesperson was able to quickly move on to their next target who, hopefully for them, was more receptive.
However, I’ve noticed a new cold-calling technique of salespeople calling back immediately after hanging up on them. Because it has now happened to me several times in the last few weeks, I’m guessing it is a new technique being taught by sales consultants, not just a fluke. What I’m wondering is: Has this new technique been proven to work? If so, how does it work?
I searched online for “calling back on hang-up sales calls” and found that this technique is strongly recommended by cold-calling experts. So, my hunch was right. This is an established technique that is being taught by cold-call consultants. I haven’t simply been the random victim of overzealous cold callers.
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The rationale for the immediate callback from cold-call experts is, basically, “What do you have to lose?” Cold calling is a numbers game, and you should always be doing one of two things: dialing prospects or talking with them. So, if you’re hearing a dial tone, it’s time to dial somebody. The question is: Should you call back the person who just hung up on you or call a new number and hope to catch someone more receptive to your pitch?
Combining advice from the experts and my own knowledge from 30-plus years as a marketer, business owner and salesman, it seems that you should immediately call back the person who hung up on you rather than a new number because:
• You at least know the number reaches a real person.
• The hang-up may have been accidental, such as the prospect accidentally pushing the wrong button.
• Immediately calling back positions you, the salesperson, as a victim, and the prospect may be guilted into listening to the call.
As someone who’s received cold-call callbacks, I understand their annoyance. But from a salesperson’s perspective, I can see how it makes sense—or is not nonsense, at least.
To my second question—how does it work?—I imagine there are several possible answers:
• Your assumed victim status as the caller may soften up the prospect enough so that they take the callback and listen to your pitch this time.
• The hang-up was actually a negotiating tactic by the prospect—the equivalent of walking away when deal negotiations are not going their way. In this case, the prospect fully expects to be called back with a better offer.
• Immediately calling back someone who hung up on you is a gutsy move. That is, because it is unexpected and semi-outrageous, the prospect doesn’t know how to react and so acquiesces to listening. Or, alternatively, a confident, extroverted prospect (who may also be a salesperson) may be impressed by your audacity and chutzpah and agrees to listen out of newfound respect.
So, it appears that the odds are in favor, if only slightly, of immediately calling back a prospect who hangs up on your cold call.
Now, how can you increase your chances of success on the immediate follow-up call? Here’s my advice based on my own marketing experience and what I’ve seen cold-call experts recommend:
• Begin the call by noting that the connection was lost, not that anyone hung up on anyone. This plays into the guilt strategy we discussed—the prospect is guilty because you were “wronged” by being hung up on. When you call the prospect back, try to remain gracious and only think the best of the prospect as a person. Shy prospects, in particular, may be unlikely to hang up a second time when you let them off the guilt hook in this way.
• Stop selling on the callback. Simply offer to email the prospect some useful information from which you, the cold caller, derive no gain, and then hang up. The prospect will probably be flabbergasted—and likely more inclined to hear you out when you call them back, which you should do in about a week. It is essential that whatever you provide via email has zero sales content for this tactic to work.
• Or, if the potential payoff of a sale justifies it and the prospect seems to be particularly strong, take it to the next level and actually send the prospect something of value, costing at least $10—thereby invoking the reciprocity principle, which I have written about previously. This practically guarantees that the prospect will take your next call a week later.
So, to sum up this advice to professional cold callers: Although the odds are only slightly in your favor, the best course of action when someone hangs up on you is to immediately call them back.
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Author: Jeff Bradford, Forbes Councils Member
