I own a small company with a team overseas that builds custom software for businesses. I've made enough to pay for the expenses of a family of four, in an expensive city, but not much more. The reason I haven't made more is that my sales skills have been lacking. That's changed, though, and I've gotten a lot better at it. At this point, if a prospect has a project and the budget, I can easily talk them into using me. I do that by listening and giving the client what they want (a development company that cares, understands their business, will help them build what they truly need instead of what they think they need, and will support them long-term).
Recently, I've cold called IT service companies, talking with them about a 'potential partnership' where I provide software programming services to their clients. Out of 200 calls over the last 6 months, I've netted about $25k. That's not a bad return on 200 calls, but I need to ramp things up dramatically. (I had several other large projects that are now concluding that were supporting me). Out of those 200 calls, I had probably 20-40 conversations and about 5 companies that have said that they want to direct clients my way. Out of the five, 2 have already given me clients, and will continue to do so. The others, I'm nurturing.
By the way, even though I have clients that rave about me, I haven't gotten too much referral business. I talked to a recent client a month ago, for example. He said, 'by the way, I mentioned your name to a friend of mine.' Now that I think about it, I probably should have asked for that friend's name and phone number. Overall, though, my best source of leads has been service firms that know the business needs of large numbers of clients. I do get former clients that have me do a fair amount of additional work for them.
So: a few questions:
1) Calling IT companies that support the computers and networks of other businesses is an easy sell. When I do find someone that's open to working with me, we have a great conversation. We'll often end up talking for an hour or more. Is this the best use of my time, or should I try calling companies that might need my services directly?
2) The list I'm using, from Dunn & Bradstreet, no less, is frustrating to use. I'd guess that only 15% of the companies on it are my target market (IT companies that support small to midsized businesses, and are themselves decent size (10+ employees, min). The rest are companies that fix iphones, repair laptops, or generally have a very small mindset and probably don't gross more than $50k per year. These types of companies would never have a conversation with a client about their custom software needs. I find that I spend a lot of time sifting through this mess. In 2 hours yesterday, I sent 3 emails and called 5 companies. Is this normal?
3) How do I know if I'm using my cold calling time effectively? I've read books that say that I should be making 10-20 dials per hour, and not spending much time researching prior to making the call.
Thanks!
Recently, I've cold called IT service companies, talking with them about a 'potential partnership' where I provide software programming services to their clients. Out of 200 calls over the last 6 months, I've netted about $25k. That's not a bad return on 200 calls, but I need to ramp things up dramatically. (I had several other large projects that are now concluding that were supporting me). Out of those 200 calls, I had probably 20-40 conversations and about 5 companies that have said that they want to direct clients my way. Out of the five, 2 have already given me clients, and will continue to do so. The others, I'm nurturing.
By the way, even though I have clients that rave about me, I haven't gotten too much referral business. I talked to a recent client a month ago, for example. He said, 'by the way, I mentioned your name to a friend of mine.' Now that I think about it, I probably should have asked for that friend's name and phone number. Overall, though, my best source of leads has been service firms that know the business needs of large numbers of clients. I do get former clients that have me do a fair amount of additional work for them.
So: a few questions:
1) Calling IT companies that support the computers and networks of other businesses is an easy sell. When I do find someone that's open to working with me, we have a great conversation. We'll often end up talking for an hour or more. Is this the best use of my time, or should I try calling companies that might need my services directly?
2) The list I'm using, from Dunn & Bradstreet, no less, is frustrating to use. I'd guess that only 15% of the companies on it are my target market (IT companies that support small to midsized businesses, and are themselves decent size (10+ employees, min). The rest are companies that fix iphones, repair laptops, or generally have a very small mindset and probably don't gross more than $50k per year. These types of companies would never have a conversation with a client about their custom software needs. I find that I spend a lot of time sifting through this mess. In 2 hours yesterday, I sent 3 emails and called 5 companies. Is this normal?
3) How do I know if I'm using my cold calling time effectively? I've read books that say that I should be making 10-20 dials per hour, and not spending much time researching prior to making the call.
Thanks!
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