Savage and Greene

Dear Coach: I saw a presentation from a competitor of yours, who teaches that we should only use referrals and networking to get new business. Specifically, no cold calling; never, ever! What do you think about this and your competitor?

Coach says: I run into this question fairly often because we're both headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area. What do I think about her? She's a terrific speaker! What do I think about her advice? Well...

Focusing on referrals and networking is completely do-able in these cases:

You've been in business for many years; probably about ten or more.
You're extremely well-connected in the business community.
Your prospects are very social, business-wise: They often go to networking events and seek vendor and consultant referrals from each other.

Does that describe you and your business? If not, you're not alone! The vast majority of businesses must use a number of marketing tools at all times (including networking and referrals) for the greatest success.

The types of marketing tools that work best differ from business to business, from market to market, and per business cycles. So don't you want to be comfortable with cold calling so you can use it when you want to?