Cold Calling Prospectives

Today everyone is using emails and online social networking to find jobs, still the old technique of selling yourself over the telephone works but is overlooked today. These calls are met with a lot of rejection. One of the main reasons is that the prospective employer is not looking for that call to happen. They are not prepared to take it. And then going right beside that is that, the person calling them is not prepared as well.

Here are some things to help prepare you if you decide to cold call:

1. Know yourself. Know your strengths and weaknesses. If you are shy, you probably will have a harder time on cold calling. If you are outgoing, you might have a better chance. But know your weaknesses before you call.

2. Call the right person. If you want to cold call than find out who the person is that is hiring for the position. Calling a recruiter is not going to get the job. Find out that manager's name that you would be working for.

3. Have a pitch. Be prepared to sell yourself, your strengths, your knowledge. Remember that half the point of the call is to get your audience's attention within 10 seconds. Have a punch line, like "Hi, I'm Amber Smith. I worked for one of your competitors for the last 10 years and managed their lines. I think I would be perfect for an Administrative job with your organization. Would it be possible to set up a meeting?

4. Practice Practice Practice - I can not stress how important it is to practice your speech before you call. The more you practice the less likely you will get thrown a curve ball.

5. Follow Up. You called them. You gave your pitch then send a letter to acknowledge that you are very interested in the position.

Good luck.