Sales Minute

Growing your business in the destruction industry is all about making a "connection." It is about building long-term relationships. Clients will not do business with you until they know, like and trust you. The more the probable purchaser likes you, the more likely he or she will buy from you.

Building a successful business is not about short-term gain; great sales professionals think strategically or long-term. If you want to be different and stand apart, become a resource for your clients, not a stereotypical sales person.

As we know by now, the destruction decision is made in the boardroom, not on the back docks. The real decision makers that we must meet with are only going to meet with the sales professionals they perceive to be a resource.

If you think cold calling is the best way to get in front of these decision makers, I hope you don’t have many competitors, because they will be getting in at a higher level, while you may be blending in with everyone else who cold calls.

Here are some reasons why cold calling doesn’t work:

Think about it this way: Would you ask someone out on a date over the phone who didn’t already know you? Then why do it in business?

Ray Barry is vice president of Total Product Destruction and president of Total Training Services, which operates The Shred School in Spartanburg, S.C. He has helped and trained more than 175 companies in the document destruction industry to grow their businesses. Previously, he was part of a shredding company that was named twice in Inc. magazine as one of the fastest growing privately held companies in America. Ray can be contacted at raybarry@totaltrainingservices.com or at (864) 699-8417.