sales

Let’s Hop on a 5 Minute Call

There’s a fantastic meme account on X where “Hunter” spreads the comedic gospel of cold calling one’s way to becoming a billionaire. Hunter suggests that true sales people take freezing cold showers, tip their landlords for sub-par living arrangements as respect for creating optical conditions to grind, and to make cold calls every day, every night, during holidays, and while being seated in an ice bath at the Cheesecake Factory.

The account, which can sometimes be found trolling celebrities by asking them to hop on a quick 5 minute call in the comments, is likely relatable to any salesperson that’s experienced the rigors of the hustle. For instance, I can recall one particular day in 2015 when I was making cold calls from a waterfront skyscraper in Jersey City when a plane flew by the window and then LANDED right there in the Hudson River. What to do? Go look? Not possible. Had to make more cold calls!

That plane, of course, was flown by Captain Sully Sullenberger, of which the feat of landing there became known as the Miracle on the Hudson. I am proud to say that because I ignored all of it and continued to make cold calls while it was happening that I am now worth $463 trillion as a result.

That Voice on the Phone

When someone told me a tech company was using AI to have legitimate voice conversations with sales prospects over the phone, I was skeptical. Then I listened to some examples. The voice and interactions sounded so real that I became even more skeptical that I was even listening to AI. The technology behind it was EVE, a company founded in 2016 that actually uses pre-recorded human responses to engage with someone over the phone. If it sounded so human, that’s because the responses were in fact human voices. EVE’s system is not artificial intelligence in the current sense like ChatGPT. Instead, EVE is using a dialogue tree, a system of recorded responses that are played based upon the interpreted communication of the person. It understands what the person is saying and chooses the right response quickly. And speed is key, because according to Alex Skrypka, CEO of EVE.calls, people will feel that something is off if it takes longer than 1 second to receive a response to something that’s said. The trick is never having the customer figure out that they’re talking to a bot.

In the earlier days, this technology had limitations. EVE could only handle simple voice commands. That progressed, however, to where it could be the opening sales caller, getting prospects to the point where they were pre-qualified and passed onto a human. But by last year it was beginning to assist in closing deals. Skrypka believes that by next year it will advance to a level where it is closing independent deals all on its own and by 2027 will be considered not only an expert closer but also be able to up-sell the customer while doing it.

The possibilities call to mind a recent popular post on LinkedIn about one thing remaining constant in fintech despite all the advancements in automation is the demand by customers to want to talk to someone. But tech is now addressing that in ways previously thought unimaginable. Customers are already talking to AI agents through neural network technology like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, though mainly in text/chatbot form. As of September, however, ChatGPT was brought to life with a voice. The current options of Juniper, Breeze, Cove, Sky and Ember are a variety of synthetic male and female voices that ChatGPT can speak as but they don’t sound that synthetic when you listen to them. I could be fooled by Juniper.

According to Skrypka, the challenge with putting something like ChatGPT on the phone right now is that crucial response delay time. It’s going to give away that it’s an AI. For testing’s sake, I tried this out and found that while Juniper held up pretty well in a light conversation, she broke the immersion a few times when she had to think about something I said for 7 or 8 seconds.

Perhaps a voice bot, whether it be based on a dialogue tree or a neural network doesn’t have to be perfect 100% of the time anyway, just good enough to scale a business efficiently and cost effectively. EVE, for example, touts that it can handle up to 1 million calls per hour. Imagine how many sales representatives it would take to have 1 million phone conversations an hour.

To think that these capabilities are only going to get better! If customers continue to feel that talking to someone on the phone is necessary before making a big decision, the world of fintech will continue to serve them. But whether that sales person or customer service rep is really a person or a bot is something the customer may never know for sure.

The History of Cold Calling: A Fascinating Tale of Sales and Serendipity

Once upon a time in the early 20th century, in the bustling world of sales, the art of persuasion was taking shape. Salespeople would go door-to-door, using their tenacity, charm, and ability to establish rapport with strangers on the spot to sell products and services. This approach laid the foundation for a sales technique that would eventually become known as cold calling.

As the 1920s rolled in, a remarkable invention by Alexander Graham Bell transformed the landscape of communication: the telephone. This groundbreaking device quickly became a common household item, opening up new possibilities for salespeople. Seizing the opportunity to expand their reach, salespeople began calling potential customers without having met them in person. This allowed them to cover more ground and increase the likelihood of closing deals. Thus, the era of cold calling began.

As cold calling gained traction, salespeople started to develop scripts to improve their success rates. These scripts ensured that key points were addressed, and objections were handled effectively. The art of persuasion continued to refine, with salespeople learning to adapt their approach based on the prospect’s reactions. By the 1950s, sales training programs and books emerged, focusing on perfecting the art of cold calling.

Entering the 1980s, the rise of telemarketing took the sales world by storm. Businesses set up call centers to reach larger audiences, and cold calling became a staple in many industries, including insurance, real estate, and financial services. However, this growth also led to increased scrutiny and regulation. In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) introduced the Telemarketing Sales Rule in 1995, followed by the establishment of the National Do Not Call Registry in 2003. These measures aimed to protect consumers from unwanted calls and provided guidelines for legitimate businesses.

The dawn of the digital age brought about even more transformations to the sales landscape. Social media, email marketing, and targeted advertising gave businesses alternative ways to reach potential customers. While cold calling faced challenges adapting to these changes, it remained an essential part of the sales process for many organizations. In fact, the rise of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software made cold calling more efficient and data-driven, increasing its effectiveness in the digital age.

And so, the fascinating tale of cold calling continues to unfold. From its humble beginnings as a door-to-door sales strategy to its evolution into a sophisticated marketing tool, cold calling has played an integral role in the business world. As businesses adapt to the ever-changing landscape, cold calling will undoubtedly continue to play a significant role in sales and marketing strategies for years to come. The end, or rather, to be continued…