I remember my first sale on a cold call age 19...

I was selling credit card insurance and would call people up in the evening.

I'm still not sure what the criteria was - but as this was the late 90s anyone with an active landline seemed to be enough!

As a teenager I was eager, enthusiastic and fearless.

Interrupting people never seemed to bother me.

One evening, I managed to get hold of a woman who was in the middle of eating her dinner. Ouch!

Usually at this point, I'd either get hung up on, told to sling my hook, or something considerably more harsh...

But she warmed to me, found my offer intriguing and agreed to buy on the spot.

I was only a few days in & was in shock.

I'd called up a complete stranger, engaged them & sold something down the phone after chatting for just a few minutes.

I'd never imagined someone would actually buy from me!

Without realised it at the time - and in spite of a horrible 'script' - what I'd actually done was:

- built rapport quickly

- brought something to her attention she had been previously unaware of

- sold against perceived future risk

- gave her peace of mind

- offered her something of value for a relatively low cost

I really had no idea what I was doing - but I did have that blind optimism of a young kid.

And this experience was something I learned at the start of my sales career...

the potential power of a cold call.