COMMENTS
Please allow me to disagree with .1
I don't think that a cold call is always a black mark ... well known SEO companies cost lots of money ... more than the average small business owner can possibly pay.
Smaller SEO companies that are starting to come into their own might need to cold call to expand their base, or get bigger clients.
That being said, I do think that paying attention to what they say during the call, and asking for examples of what they've done and what they're going to do for you can quickly tell you about whether they're good at what they do.
@ Concept47
The SEO companies I know to cold call are not any good. Any SEO who is any good will not need to cold call as they are too busy answering the phone to prospective clients. If they have nothing to do but cold call, why did their previous clients not pass them around to their friends.
I have never cold called, but I have networked at business meetings which is far more effective.
Hi Dharmesh,
While I agree wholeheartedly with points 2 through 6, I couldn't disagree more about point #1.
I don't think any marketing firm, including an SEO firm, should wait until the ideal prospect feels the urge to look for services.
Sure, it's a tougher sell to engage someone in a conversation who has not been thinking about SEO yet. But I feel it is very appropriate (and even advisable) to call on a company in my target market that I see needs help with SEO.
I don't think it would be a good idea for me to wait until someone searches for "B2B search engine optimization" or "seo for manufacturing companies". I want to add high-quality clients to our roster that can truly benefit from what we have to offer.
For what it's worth, I have made one cold call in 4 years (about a month ago, because I saw a company that needed help and was a perfect fit for our focus). Our client acquisition has been 100% based on referrals and from people finding us through search or other places online.
Thanks for the opportunity to participate in this conversation!
I have to strongly disagree with cold calling. Bottom line is cold calling with the right sales/marketing method generates clients / customers you would never have gotten. It doesn’t matter how many client referrals you get, if you have the bandwidth to develop and deploy a good cold calling strategy, it generates positive cash flow and you’re selling a product or service that will add value to your “cold call recipient” …what good reason is there not to do it?
Hey guys, anybody heard of SEOP.com. We hired them and they started on January. They did cold call us. So far we have been doing worse off than we were before we hired them. They claim that in the first few weeks, they are in the testing phases, so things are going to be different until they figure out what the best strategy is for our campaign. Any suggestions?? Thanks!
Excellent article. I do also disagree with point #1 but only under certain circumstances. For example, if a company focuses on a specific industry they can become experts by knowing all the industry resources ultimately reducing the cost and increasing the effectiveness for clients. In addition, there are certain companies and situations that call for it. Sometimes I see companies that I just want to work with. I like the product or service. Another case is when I am “surfing”, if I see a site that is in trouble: IE they just switched their site over to 100% flash, I pick up the phone and call. There is a time and a place for everything.
Cold calls are neither good nor bad in and of themselves. Telemarketers have a bad name because 98% of them are poorly skilled, rude, number crunchers.
I'm another person who disagrees with #1. It sounds like you're trying to equate legitimate cold calling with the negative connotation of shotgun telemarketers. There's nothing wrong with cold calling prospective clients.
@John - It depends on what they are testing. In some cases you need to take 1 step backwards to take 2 steps forward. It is important to stay on top of any SEO consultant so that you understand what they are "testing", why they are testing, what the possible outcomes are, and what realistic expectations should be.
Like any hired gun its alot about holding them accountable to what they promised. SEO success is not immediate but it should for the most part show continual improvement.
Cold calling works, period.
And the people who understand this fact most clearly are often going to be the clients buying your services. Think about the CEO, CMO, CSO, your firm might be targeting. . .each of these individuals has cold-called their own way to success and appreciate its simplicity and effectiveness as a way to generate new business. Even the largest, most respected companies in the world, use cold-calling as a part of their business development plans.
Instructing prospects to stay clear of firms who use cold-calling as part of their sales/marketing mix is not only bad advice, but also could serve to have your prospects second-guess your own understanding of marketing and sales.
I would highly suggest re-visiting this idea and talking with people who use cold-calling effectively and honestly!
I agree with my partner Matt, I would like to add that I find most of what's on Hubspot to be informative...but your views on cold calling make me wonder.
Thanks to everyone for the comments. I wanted to address the issue of cold-calling which has come up as a theme in recent comments.
The article is not talking about the effectiveness of cold-calling generally speaking. It's referring specifically to internet marketing and is related to the current high demand for high quality internet marketing and SEO services.
There are countless industries where cold-calling works just fine and the fact that a given company in a given industry is cold-calling is not reflective of quality.
However, as it stands right now, most of the top internet marketing consultants rarely have to cold-call. This may change over time.
Also, lets remember that we are talking about internet marketing consultants. Fact is, if they are that good at internet marketing, shouldn't they be able to generate leads for themselves more efficiently and effectively? We judge internet marketers on a different scale than other services.
My two cents. Did not intend for the article to disparate cold-calling or the companies that do it. Just talking about this individual situation at this point in time.
I think your missing the point….You can be great at SEO or any other thing. Let’s say you do get plenty of referral traffic…adding cold calling to your lineup will just increase your client base that much more (clients you probably would never have had an opportunity to talk to. Like any unsolicited or solicited calls you should always look into what you’re purchasing.
Hi Dharmesh, looks like you sure stirred up the pot a bit here. Let's look at cold-calling with two questions that might have an application to a business selling SEO services.
1. Would it be considered a successful marketing technique to merely send me automated emails about webinars, blogs, and thought pieces, if I --the prospect-- never picked up the phone to call you? All the emails, blogs and product brochures in the world will never sell your product for you. That's done be people, regardless of the industry you occupy. Even if an SEO firm were to call me and consider that call to be a "warm call", it's still a "cold call" in that I'm not expecting you to call, and even though I'm passively interested in the service your firm provides, it doesn't mean I want to buy it. I have always found the idea of "warm calls", to be very much a fuzzy marketing term name for what is still in the end a cold call anyway. The warmest calls are those where your referrer is on the line with you, or sitting across a lunch table introducing you to your prospect.
2. Lets assume you're an SEO professional who has worked for another firm, and has now decided to start your own firm. How would you get business? Create a website optimized for universal search, open a Facebook account, post videos on YouTube etc., etc.? Can we assume then, that based on these actions, and the good nature of a few friends, that your business will be booming in no time? I hardly think so. If we are to assume that the demand for SEO firms is wide and deep, and all business is to be had solely by referrals, than God bless the poor guy that wants to start from scratch because he’s going to have a heck of a time feeding the family and explaining to his family that he’s “waiting” for the business to come in. After all, he’s got the analytics to show they’re visiting, right?.
It's all about the mix. eMail, direct mail, advertising, cold-calling, everything. . .its ALL part of the larger picture that dovetails into sales - and thus business development. The two work hand in hand at all times. I would implore you to try cold-calling. Think of your dream client that you have not yet snagged, pick up the phone and call them! At the very least, you can leave a message about all the other referral-gathering firms that love you and, heck, you just might score the big fish! Keep up the good work, you’re doing great things. Cheers, Doc.
Do NOT waste your money with SEOP.COM I have gone from several keywords in the top 10 before we hired them to none and it has been over a year. We paid them of over $20,000 for this!
SEOP is a total con job!
Hey "Ripped off by SEOP.COM", please contact me at jpurser@mail.umobile.edu. I would like to speak with you about SEOP.com!!!
I completely agree with your points but I question the usefulness of #2.
If a client is looking to outsource their SEO, they probably don't know enough to tell if the SEO company is gaming the search engines.
Saying, "If they only show you one site and after investigation you find out it is their own, and ranks for just a few key terms, beware," is not helpful. How will the client know if a site only ranks for a few terms.
SEO doesn't exist. Google is black hole. Who knows inputs knows SERP.
SEOP.com is a rip off.
John & "Ripped Off by SEOP", please contact me ASAP.
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