What call reluctance looks like
Call reluctance is putting off sales calls you know you should make. It rarely looks like fear. It looks like being busy.
You check email first, just to clear it. You research the prospect for twenty minutes when two would do. You rewrite the call list. You decide the prospects will be at lunch, then in meetings, then leaving for the day. By four o'clock you've been at your desk for seven hours and made three calls.
Almost everyone who sells has had a week like that. People who've done it for years still get them. It's worth treating as a habit problem rather than a confidence problem, because habits are easier to change.
Why it happens
A few things usually sit underneath it. You might recognise one or two.
- Fear of the no. Each rejection stings a little, and a morning of them adds up. Your brain learns to avoid the thing that stings.
- Not wanting to intrude. You picture the person busy and annoyed, and you don't want to be the interruption.
- Not knowing what to say in the first ten seconds. The blank start is the hardest part, so you put off starting.
- The phone feels unfamiliar. If most of your conversations happen in writing, a live call can feel exposed.
- A bad run. A few rough calls in a row make the next one feel heavier than it is.
- Too big a target. "Make 50 calls today" feels like a mountain, so you don't take the first step.
Notice that most of these are about the start. Once you're three calls in, it usually gets easier. So the fixes below are mostly about making the start small and automatic.
Six habits that break it
1. Start with a small first block
Don't sit down to make 50 calls. Sit down to make five, at the same time every day, before you open email. Five calls takes about fifteen minutes.
Most days, you'll keep going after five, because the hard part was starting. On bad days, five is still five more than zero. Put the block in your calendar like a client meeting. The daily sales routine template puts calls first in a time-blocked day.
2. Get the list ready the night before
Choosing who to call is a decision, and decisions are where procrastination hides. Before you finish work, write tomorrow's first ten names with their numbers and one line on why you're calling each.
In the morning there's nothing left to decide, so you open the list and dial the first number.
3. Write down your first line
The first ten seconds are the scariest, so script them. Write your opening line on a card or a sticky note and keep it in front of you.
"Hi [name], it's [your name] from [company]. I'll be quick. I'm calling because [one reason that matters to them]. Have you got 30 seconds for me to explain why, and you can tell me if it's not relevant?"
The cold calling script template has an opener that asks for 30 seconds, two questions, the ask and answers to five brush-offs. You won't need to read it after the first few days. Having it there is what gets you to dial.
4. Know your answers to the three brush-offs you hear most
A lot of reluctance is dread of the moment someone says "not interested" or "send me an email". Write down the three brush-offs you hear most and one calm line for each. When you know what you'll say, the brush-off stops being a threat. The cold calling guide has lines for brush-offs and voicemail.
5. Log each call as it happens
Log every dial the moment you hang up, whatever the result. Voicemail counts. A no counts. Watching the count go up turns each call into a small win, which is exactly what the reluctant part of your brain needs.
It also changes what you judge yourself on: you can't control whether someone says yes, but you can control whether you made the call. A simple sales call log is enough to start.
6. Review numbers, not feelings
At the end of the week, look at the counts: calls made, conversations, meetings booked. Then work out your own rates. If 1 in 8 conversations becomes a meeting, every no is part of getting to the next yes, and you can see it in the numbers.
The feeling after a bad day says "this isn't working". The numbers usually say you had an average day with the nos bunched at the start.
Counting helps more than willpower. In ActivityTracker you log every call in one tap, your day adds up on its own, and your streak keeps you going.
A made-up fortnight
Made-up example: Ken sells accounting software to small agencies. He's supposed to make 30 calls a day. For the past month he's averaged 9, mostly after 3pm.
Week 1: he sets a five-call block at 9:15, before email, writes the list the evening before and puts his opening line on a sticky note on his monitor. He logs every dial.
Monday he makes his five, stops, and makes 7 more after lunch: 12. By Friday the morning block runs to 15 or 20 calls most days, because once he's started he keeps going. Week total: 94 calls, 19 conversations, 3 meetings.
Week 2: he writes lines for the three brush-offs he hears most. On Tuesday a prospect says "we're happy with what we've got", and instead of freezing Ken asks what they like about it. It turns into a meeting.
Week 2 total: 121 calls, 24 conversations, 4 meetings. He still doesn't enjoy the first call of the day, and he makes it anyway because it's only five. All figures are invented.
What doesn't work
- Waiting to feel ready. The feeling usually turns up after the first few calls.
- More research. After a couple of minutes, extra research is usually a way to avoid dialling.
- Big targets on bad days. "I'll make 60 today to catch up" makes the start even heavier.
- Beating yourself up. Missing a day is normal. Tomorrow's five is still at 9:15.
- Switching entirely to email because it feels safer. Email has its place, but if calls work for your buyers, dropping them costs you meetings.
What to do first
Tonight, write tomorrow's first five names and numbers, and one opening line. Put a 15-minute block in your calendar for tomorrow morning, before email. Make five calls and log each one, and leave the rest of the plan for day two.