During my 18 years in recruitment I have seen quite a few recruiters come and go. When I look back it's clear there seems to be one main reason why the some do not make it in this industry. It is never because of not wanting to interview, write ads, send candidates out but nearly always because of not wanting to do sales or perhaps not doing enough sales.

First of all there are some clear distinctions you need to understand. Whatever you do in recruitment (internal or external) is “sales” to a certain extent. When you are discussing a position with a candidate, you are “selling” them the benefits of going for/accepting that job. Secondly if you know you offer a good service, it seems logical to investigate whether potential clients can benefit from your service. Think of cold calling or telemarketing as having meaningful conversations where you can add real value to a client. If you do not ask, you do not know! Also people cannot love you/your service if they do not even know about you!

I have read many tips on cold calling where the advice ranges from “get over it and do it” to “it is not personal, so do not take it personally when you get a “no”. Whilst these tips are true I am not sure, how useful they are on their own, so here are my 7 top tips to overcoming call reluctance:

1. Get into a Champion Mindset (goal clarity, plan and support). It surprises me how some consultants do not have a clear focus when they get on the phone. When I ask:”what do you want from the call?”; they sometimes seem uncertain. Sometimes it's just to get their numbers. Clients can tell and it's of no use to them!
2. Visualise yourself getting the job order/client visit
3. Intersperse your cold calls with warm calls. Start with clients who you know just love your service to get into a positive mindset. Your voice will show your confidence.
4. Think about your strengths and play to them. Whatever your strengths are; use them to service your clients. Highlight if you are a great recruiter or a great temp manager.
5. Always come from a service point of view. Always think about asking questions to highlight where your client's pain might be. Be creative and solve their problem.
6. Do calls in batches; you will get on a roll. Either you can get back on the horse straight away or capitalise on your success. Let us be honest here. If you do not like calling, you might make a call here and there, but the truth is, it's much easier for you to do them in batches. Think about how you have to psych yourself up to pick up the phone. So much energy wasted if you only make one call. It is also easier because you find that conversations can lead on e.g. if you calling banks, they will be in the same boat. You can even be knowledgable without breaking confidences and say” Yes I know other banks are going thru a similar challenge. This is how we have solved it for them”.
7. Celebrate every win, every time. Think of your self as a mountaineer. Look down and see how far you have come rather than up and how far you still have to go. This is about giving yourself pats on the back for work well done. It makes you feel good and you will want to do more! Do not underestimate this step; people who celebrate show more gratitude and will get more.