☏Phoning in practice

For three reasons, and all three are practical:

1. The legal hurdle is lower. In business dealings, presumed consent is sufficient; for email advertising, express consent is required.
2. You find out more in five minutes than from twenty emails: why someone cannot, when it would suit, who actually decides.
3. You get the consent. A good call often ends with “why don’t you send me that” — and that is the basis for everything else.

What the phone cannot do: reach many people at once. Hence the division of labour: email for breadth, phone for depth.

And the combined effect that works best: first the email, then the call referring to it.

Spend two minutes looking at the file — that is the whole difference between a good call and an arbitrary one.

What you are looking for there:

• When did you last have contact, and about what?
• Is there an open commitment — from you or from the other side?
• Has a colleague called recently?
• Is a campaign running to this person?

The last point is the most embarrassing if you overlook it: a call saying “I wanted to ask whether you are interested” to someone you sent an email yesterday comes across as disorganised.

And prepare one sentence about why you are calling. No more — people can hear a script.

With name, company and the reason — in three sentences, then a pause.

“Good morning, this is Anna Beispiel from Nordwind GmbH. Last week you published a vacancy for a project manager. I am calling because we have three people on our books who could be a good fit — is now a good moment?”

What works about this:

• The reason comes immediately. Anyone who still does not know what it is about after twenty seconds hangs up.
• The question at the end hands the conversation over and respects that the other side is working.

What does not work:

• “How are you?” to someone you do not know.
• “Have you got a minute?” without saying what for.
• A paragraph learnt by heart. You can hear it.

Then work with the switchboard instead of against it — it is not an obstacle but the best source of information in the building.

What works:

• Ask for the name, not for the person: “Who is responsible for staff planning at your company?” That question is almost always answered.
• Be honest. “I would like to offer you something” is more likely to be put through than an evasive explanation.
• Ask for the best time if you are not put through. “When am I most likely to reach him?”
• Note down the name you have been given. Next time, ask for the person, not the function.

What does not work: tricks. “He is expecting my call” is noticed and burns the contact permanently.

And: the switchboard remembers you. Friendliness is an investment here.

Three attempts at different times, then a different channel.

What helps:

• Vary the times. Someone who is not there on Tuesday at ten may be there on Thursday at four. Early in the morning and after 16:00 you often reach decision-makers, because no meetings are running then.
• Note when you tried. Otherwise you call three times on the same weekday.
• After the third attempt: a short email referring to your call attempts, with a specific suggestion for a time.

Leave a message on the answering machine: yes, but briefly — name, company, one sentence of reason, number, and that you will try again. No sales pitch.

And if nothing comes after five attempts: follow-up in three months, and move on.

Immediately, in two to four sentences, while you still have the phone in your hand:

1. Who you spoke to — name and function, if new.
2. What you discussed, in keywords.
3. What has been agreed and by whom.
4. When you will get back in touch — straight away as a follow-up.

What you should not note: judgements about the person. “Seemed uninterested” helps nobody and can be requested in a subject access request.

The reason this is the most important habit in the whole system: a phone call without a note is gone after two days. Addresses can be added later, categories maintained later, campaigns repeated. A conversation cannot.

Forty seconds per call. That is the whole price.

Email first, then a call referring to it — that is the most effective combination of all.

The procedure:

1. The campaign runs, the first contact goes out.
2. Three to five days later, call the most important contacts. Not all of them — the twenty for whom it is worthwhile.
3. Refer to it: “I wrote to you on Tuesday about …”

Why this works: the email creates recognition, the call creates the conversation. And the reference turns a cold call into a warm one.

What you need to check: whether the email was delivered at all. A call referring to an email that ended up in spam comes across as odd. The delivery information is in the campaign.

And note the call — otherwise the campaign will follow up automatically even though you spoke long ago.

• Consumers: only with prior express consent. This is strictly enforced and can lead to fines.
• Businesses: presumed consent is sufficient — an objective reason to assume the call is welcome.

What “presumed” means in practice:

• A connection to the business of the person called must be recognisable.
• Calling a care service about recruitment: probably yes.
• Calling the same care service about office furniture: probably not.

What you should do: note what you base the assumption on. A published vacancy, a trade fair, a recommendation — that is the justification you need if in doubt.

And: even a permitted call ends there if someone says they do not want any more. That is an objection and applies permanently.

Only with the consent of all parties — and it must be obtained before recording.

Secret recording is a criminal offence (§ 201 of the German Criminal Code, StGB), regardless of what it was intended for.

What that means in practice:

• An announcement at the start, and the option to object.
• Anyone who objects is not recorded — the conversation must still be able to take place.
• Set a purpose and deletion period and stick to them.
• For employees, recording is subject to co-determination.

The honest recommendation for small businesses: do not do it. The effort is considerable, so is the risk, and a good note after the conversation does the same job for your purposes.

Ask once, then accept it.

The question that works: “May I ask why?” — without arguing, without a counter-offer. It costs nothing and often brings the real information: no need, already covered, wrong time, wrong contact person.

These four answers mean different things:

• No need: follow-up in a year.
• Already covered: when does the contract run out? That is the most valuable sentence of the conversation.
• Wrong time: when would suit? Follow-up for that date.
• Wrong contact person: who is the right one?

What does not work: pressing, persuading, a second argument. That turns a polite refusal into an unfriendly one.

And note the reason. If the same one comes up three times, that says something about your offer.

Agree a time; do not say “I’ll get back to you”.

The difference is considerable: an agreed callback on Thursday at 10:00 happens. An “I’ll be in touch soon” ends up in a queue of intentions.

What you do:

1. Suggest a specific time. Offer two options; do not ask openly.
2. Follow-up for that time, with a note on what it was about.
3. Call on time. Whoever misses the agreed callback has thrown away the impression they wanted to build.

And if you cannot make it: let them know briefly and rearrange. That is awkward, but still better than silence.

One contact of their own per person, all at the same company — not one contact with five names in the note field.

Why: the company file then shows you all those involved with their own history. You see who said what and who was reached last.

What you should record for each person:

• Function and role in the decision process. Who decides, who influences, who implements?
• Who is the way in to whom?

And the question worth asking early: “Who makes the final decision on this?” It sounds more awkward than it is, and saves weeks of conversations with the wrong person.

Note the answer. It is just as valid for the next project.

From filters and sorting, and with one rule: one list, one occasion.

Examples that work:

• Follow-up list: contacts from a campaign who have not replied, sorted by importance.
• Today’s follow-ups — the most important list of all.
• Old contacts: category “Existing customer”, sorted by last contact, oldest first.
• Regional list: location filter for a round trip.

What makes a call list usable:

• Not too long. Fifteen to thirty names for a morning.
• All of the same kind. Whoever jumps between five different occasions never gets into a rhythm.
• Work through it in one go. Phoning is work that needs concentration; three calls every twenty minutes does not work.

As a block in the calendar, not as an intention in between other things.

What works:

• Fixed times, two blocks of 90 minutes a week. In the calendar, like a customer appointment.
• List built beforehand. Whoever only starts searching while phoning does not phone.
• No interruptions. No email program, nothing on the side.
• Warm up with the easy calls — known contacts first, then the harder ones.

And the honest part: phoning is unpleasant, and it stays that way. What helps is not motivation but habit — the same day, the same time, the same preparation.

After the block: finish the notes and set follow-ups. That is part of the block, not something for afterwards.