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I Never Know How to Start a Cold Call. Any Advice?

By: Stephanie L. Gruner

Published March 1998

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Patty Glass, the owner of the Art Co., a $600,000 art consultancy in Cincinnati, finds that she gets good results by coming clean right away. Here's one variation of her approach: "Hi, this is Patty Glass with the Art Co., and this is a cold call. I bet you get a million of these. Fasten your seat belt -- here's another one." After a humorous start, Glass makes sure she gets to the point quickly and doesn't waste the prospect's time. She's discovering that her lighthearted approach can work for others, too: She recently shared it with her latest hire. The new salesperson, Glass reports, soon generated $11,800 in sales from about 55 names on a list that the rest of the staff had considered "dead."

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 Total of 5 Reader Comments
 There is a free app for those wh...Ashli NortonWed May 20 2009 09:16 EST
 I agree that harnessing a relaxe...Amin A. DewjiWed Aug 17 2005 22:29 EST
 Cold calls annoy people, everyon...John F. ThorleyTue Dec 28 2004 17:06 EST
 It does work. Everyone loves a g ...Concepcion AmayaMon Dec 23 2002 19:38 EST
 I found it easier to get an appo ...Brandi CanadaFri Nov 15 2002 16:43 EST
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