Cold Calling Expert Says You Have The Right To Contact Anybody

Writen by Dr. Gary S. Goodman

I'd like to share with you a story from the 1960's that is told around inside sales departments and among co-workers as they gather for off-work refreshments and conversation.

Lyndon B. Johnson was President at the time, and being a Texan he was also a Dallas Cowboys fan, and that team was supremely successful in his era, headed to yet another Super Bowl game.

The President fell ill, went to Bethesda Naval Hospital for tests and treatment, and one of his fellow Texans put two and two together.

Reasoning that all Presidents have Super Bowl tickets and seeing that LBJ couldn't make it to the game because of his health, this "old boy" figured that there would be at least one unused seat at this sold-out venue that he could occupy.

So, he called the White House offering regrets about LBJ's health, and then he asked for his tickets, "In light of the fact that he can't use them and I'm a loyal constituent."

Sure enough, legend has it not one but two tickets arrived in this gent's mail a couple of days later.

The moral to the story is that he was the only person who summoned the gumption to reach out to the one person who could "buy" what he was "selling."

I believe a lot of people are daunted by cold calling because, simply put, they don't feel they DESERVE to speak to strangers, especially those that are perceived to enjoy high status.

Needlessly, they put others on pedestals, telling themselves it is a discourtesy or a form of disrespect to contact others without a prior invitation.

This is sheer foolishness.

Instead, we need to repeat, if necessary: "I have the right to contact ANYBODY!"

Then, like that Texan, go right ahead and do it!

Best-selling author of 12 books and more than 900 articles, Dr. Gary S. Goodman is considered "The Gold Standard"--the foremost expert in sales development, customer service, and telephone effectiveness. Top-rated as a speaker, seminar leader, and consultant, his clients extend across the globe and the organizational spectrum, from the Fortune 1000 to small businesses. He can be reached at: gary@customersatisfaction.com.