Christmas Is Coming! - 3

Thursday, April 04, 2019

In Christmas Is Coming! (2) I continued an outline of plans for printing Christmas Cards.

Today there’s a fresh idea that can be used by all of us.

First off: Do you sometimes shudder at the thought of picking up the phone and making a “cold call”?

I knew you did.

I do too.

Sometimes.

Here’s What’s Good About this Time of Year

Call it Christmas, Hanukah, The Big Sleepover, or what you will: just about everybody is going around TELLING people to have a prosperous New Year.

Now let’s suppose you are a practicing Christian; you’ll be OK saying “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year”, except for your fear of cold-calling.

Now let’s suppose you are a practicing Jew; you’ll be OK saying “Happy Hanukkah and a Happy New Year”, except for your fear of cold-calling.

Now let’s suppose you are atheist; you’ll CAN be OK saying “Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year”, except for your fear of cold-calling.

Is it Ethical to Wish, Say, a Muslim a Merry Christmas?

I think so. Does your Muslim (or Jewish or atheist) contact celebrate Christmas? Possibly not.

Does your contact recognize that in your country Christmas (Hanukah etc) is a major festival? Certainly so?

But what if your contact is a rabid anti-Christmas (any-Hanukah etc) fanatic?

Then you probably don’t want to be doing business with them anyway.

Think About it

Business is about compromise; we compromise on features, price, delivery date, schedules. The whole thing about the word “Entrepreneur” (“between”-“taker”) is about give and take, flexibility.

You aren’t asking your contact to meet you for midnight mass on December 24th.

You are calling to express a genuine hope that the next week or two will be peaceful and restful, and that following the break, the next months will be prosperous for your contact.

Of course you want them to be prosperous: if your contact gets prosperous, there’ll be enough money in the budget to retain you!

Now About that Cold-Calling

Cold-calling has a bad reputation because it seems founded on approaching a total stranger and asking for money; that’s getting awfully close to a hold-up, and that’s not good.

• But for the next 4 weeks you aren’t calling to sell anything.

• For the next 4 weeks you aren’t calling to probe about anything.

• For the next 4 weeks you are calling SOLELY to emit a wish from you to them.

That’s it.

Visualize the Call

“Hi Jerry, it’s Chris. I’m just phoning to wish you a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year”.

Suppose the phone goes into voice-mail. That’s a bonus. Your shyness doesn’t matter. You’ve left a short and positive message, and you have re-established your name in the front of your prospect’s mind.

Suppose you get a gatekeeper? You can ask to be put through to Jerry’s line, and if the gatekeeper asks to take a message, You can ask to be put through to Jerry’s voice-mail (see above).

Suppose you get straight through on Jerry’s direct line? That’s just great. “Hi Jerry, it’s Chris. I’m just phoning to wish you a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year”.

And that’s ALL you need to say.

You aren’t selling today.

That can come in the New year.

Today you are calling ONLY to express your wish that your contact enjoys this time of year.

Talk to Me !

P.S.

Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Hanukah, Seasons Greetings, Have a great ....

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