Sales Training Ideas: How to Handle Do Not Solicit Signs During Cold Calls

It can happen many times during your sales day: You’re cold calling, and just before you walk through an office door, a big sign flashes you in the face: “Do Not Solicit.” What should you do? Should I ignore him and continue with his cold calling, or should I heed his warning and avoid making this particular cold call?

3 Sales Tips for Handling “Do Not Solicit” Signs When Cold Calling

Step 1: ignore it – If you see a No Soliciting sign between your car and the receptionist’s desk, ignore it. Occasionally someone you call will refer to the sign, but for the most part you’ll find that people won’t bring it up. If they do, simply acknowledge what was said and then state the purpose of your call. For example, you might smile and say, “Oh, sorry. My name is (your name) with (your company), I was just hoping to contact (prospect’s name) for a moment.”

Step 2: stand firm – If they insist, say, “I’m not selling anything. I was just hoping to introduce myself to (the potential client). If you could give me the courtesy of a couple of minutes, I’d really appreciate it.” If they continue to hold on to their weapons, say, “Thank you” and walk away. You can call later and try to make an appointment or make your cold call before or after the receptionist arrives.

Step 3: Out of sight, out of mind – It’s important to remember that most of the No Soliciting signs you come across while cold calling were put up years ago simply as a means of deterring hundreds of vendors, or dare we say, even street vendors , to stop and interrupt the business. Many of the people you call won’t even think to refer to the sign when you introduce yourself. You want to play the odds and work the numbers when you cold call. If you avoided cold calling all offices with some kind of No Soliciting sign, you would significantly reduce the number of cold calls.