Vassallo: Cold Calling Still Has Merit

Photo courtesy of Tulane University

For those of us engaged in sales in whatever capacity, the art of making “cold calls” still has merit regardless what the naysayers claim.

Here is a prime example. This past week I had the honor and pleasure to represent the City of Madison in conjunction with Tulane University at the 100th Annual Conference of University Professional Continuing Education Association (UPCEA) in Washington D.C. The city and Tulane University were invited to present on the success of Tulane’s satellite campus in Madison.

Now five years into the growth of this partnership, it can serve as a model for communities nationwide in wanting to broaden their educational appeal. Some seven years ago I was working with Madison in an economic development role when it was decided that having an university presence in this vibrant city would be a tremendous addition.

About this time I had just formed my own consulting company, Global Colors of Economic Successes and my very first client was the city of New Orleans along with Madison. Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler had instructed me to prepare a list of potential universities that we could pursue in this endeavor. Tulane was one of twenty universities that made the list.

Contacting these universities via emails, telephoning and direct mail was a most difficult task that was becoming frustrating and getting absolutely nowhere. In the case of Tulane, I decided to try a different approach. One day while on assignment in New Orleans, I decided to remain an extra day and make a cold call to Tulane’s campus. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. From that innocent introduction a thriving campus now exists in Madison with an even brighter future being forecast from the already established success.

The fear of making cold calls and the possibility of failure is a challenge that many sales reps prefer not to invest the time. However, there is another side to this coin in that just sometimes the targeted audience appreciates the initiative by the rep and may evaluate the possibility of something they had never previously even considered.

The visionaries at Tulane definitely took this attitude and once the door was opened, the mayor developed a strategy to close the deal and make it happen. I look upon making cold calls as an exciting opportunity to meet new people and to expand networks that may not be possible in incorporating the traditional avenues. In any sales strategy making cold calls should be a component part regardless of the percentage to the total time commitment.

You just never know what the end result might be and where the road could ultimately lead. Just ask Madison and Tulane University. The juice was definitely worth the squeeze!

Steve Vassallo is a HottyToddy.com contributor. Steve writes on Ole Miss athletics, Oxford business, politics and other subjects. He is an Ole Miss grad and former radio announcer for the basketball team. In addition, he is a certified economic and community developer and currently, a highly successful leader in the real estate business with Premier Properties of Oxford.You can contact Steve at sovassallo@gmail.com or call him at (985) 852-7745.