--- title: Sales Calling vs. the “New Thing” description: A marketing manager said to me that “sales calling is dead” as a medium for generating new sales, and will be completely replaced by social media. image: https://www.maventm.com/hs-fs/file-393047082-jpg/images/sales_calling_vs_the_new_thing_2.jpg --- [![Maven TM - Funnel Wide Inside Sales](https://www.maventm.com/hubfs/Maven_2016_Theme/mavenLogo-onWhite-01.svg "Maven TM - Funnel Wide Inside Sales") ](https://www.maventm.com) Call us: [+353599101500](tel:+353599101500) ## [Back to Articles](https://www.maventm.com/telemarketing-blog) # Sales Calling vs. the “New Thing” 26 Nov 2013 | By Mark Cradock ![Sales Calling vs the New Thing 2](https://www.maventm.com/hs-fs/file-393047082-jpg/images/sales_calling_vs_the_new_thing_2.jpg?width=236&height=362&name=sales_calling_vs_the_new_thing_2.jpg) A marketing manager said to me a couple of weeks ago that “sales calling is dead” as a medium for generating new sales, and will be completely replaced by social media in the very near future – that social media is the “New Thing” (even though it isn’t that new anymore). I smiled as I hoped that all of our competitors might think the same way! While I disagreed, I didn’t dismiss his opinion. I’d rather walk a mile in a person’s shoes before doing that (of course, it’s easier to run away then!). Anyway, I’m a big fan of social media – but I love the function of, and results from, sales calling too. So I decided to have a look at, and consider, some things. Whilst 88% of consumers say online reviews influence their buying decisions* this kind of stat can be misleading. First of all, it seems to be geared towards the B2C arena (rather than the B2B arena we operate in), and secondly, it is referring to the final decision making stage in the sales process, rather than the lead generation or the early part of the sales process that the marketing manager was referring to social media being used for. So what about Buyers in B2B companies - how are they being influenced, are they using social media, and how do they make their decisions? So I checked out the *2013 **Buyersphere Repor**t* which provides some revealing insights, which surveyed 516 B2B Buyers in Europe. It found that Social Media was used by just 20% of Buyers at *any time* in the buying process. And over 50% have not used social media AT ALL. (BTW, it’s a very interesting report – recommend reading it) For 88% of those surveyed, the most memorable communication in the buying process came from the (no surprise) winning supplier – and in most cases it was a *sales call or meeting*.     But that’s not really a surprise either, is it? We’re all human aren’t we, and we instinctively value the human interaction component in the buying process to make a judgement call on whether we are buying from the ‘right’ people and company. That interaction between the buyer and seller remains the most important step in achieving a sale for most companies. So, although that marketer believes that sales calling is dead and that social media will replace it, I don’t believe that social media will EVER replace sales calling, even though its influence will undoubtedly rise. It actually strikes me as a dangerous comment for a marketing manager to make – and an indicator that perhaps the marketing department in that company needs to have a good chat with its sales department, to ensure there is a ‘joined up’ process, and they are all on the same page. Many sales people would say that the job of marketing is to supply them with sales leads, and that without that, the company’s sales pipeline will run dry. Depending on social media would threaten this as it is still unproven as a solution for generating new business. What is often at the heart of such statements is a ‘holy grail’ mentality of completely automating and ‘zeroing’ the cost of lead generation. Yet, most companies are always looking to improve both the volume, quality and management of their lead generation process. What comes to mind is the following *IDC report from 2012* where ‘Improving lead generation’ was the most common ‘priority’ for CMO’s. ![Sales Calling vs the New Thing](https://www.maventm.com/hs-fs/file-391943091-jpg/images/sales_calling_vs_the_new_thing1.jpg?width=389&height=277&name=sales_calling_vs_the_new_thing1.jpg) But how do you improve lead generation? It demands a multi-faceted approach, with many sales and marketing tactics in operation, to ensure that you are engaging with the buyer where, when and how it is of most relevance to the buyer (not the seller). Yes, social media should definitely be part of that, as should a strong website with rich and relevant content, as should email marketing, and conferences and other marketing tactics. And all of these should be joined up with the sales calling function, to ensure that the right leads are reaching your sales advisers at the right time. Improving lead generation is an arena where the rules are ever-changing, but please don’t throw out key functions required for success such as sales calling. Social media is there to *help *this process, rather than *replace* it.   Maven TM is specialised in B2B Telemarketing and Sales Leads Generation services for companies looking to consolidate, expand or penetrate national or international markets. For more information, please contact Maven TM at [info@maventm.com](mailto:info@maventm.com).  ** Dimensional Research “Customer Service and Business Results: A Survey of Customer Service from Mid-Size Companies” April 2013* *[![View the Maven TM Academy](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/180459/69fd7b28-b4af-41e8-a913-22bf8a7ddbb3.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/180459/69fd7b28-b4af-41e8-a913-22bf8a7ddbb3) * Related articles: - ['We tried telemarketing and it didn’t work'](https://www.maventm.com/telemarketing-blog/bid/281529/We-tried-telemarketing-and-it-didn-t-work) - [Why I hate the term Telemarketing](https://www.maventm.com/telemarketing-blog/bid/261910/Why-I-hate-the-term-Telemarketing)   Topics: [B2B Telemarketing](https://www.maventm.com/telemarketing-blog/topic/b2b-telemarketing), [Award-winning telemarketing agency](https://www.maventm.com/telemarketing-blog/topic/award-winning-telemarketing-agency), [Telemarketing Agency](https://www.maventm.com/telemarketing-blog/topic/telemarketing-agency), [Maven - 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