Do any of you make Cold Calls?

[WV Sawmiller]

   Anybody making cold calls to offer sawing services? Any advice on what has worked for you or things to specifically avoid?

   When I see a stack of logs that look like saw logs or even when I see someone in the area doing some land clearing and pushing large logs to the side or center of the field I try to stop and drop off a business card and talk with the owner/workers. If I just see logs and nobody around I will sometimes stop and leave a card in a small zip lock bag stapled to the end of a log where it is likely to be spotted. I include an Int'l 1/4 log scale printed on the back of my card so people find them useful and more likely to at least keep the card around.

   I saw a fresh cut stack of logs on my way home about 6-7 miles from my house today. I stopped and talked with the guy. He said he had already sold those logs and the logger was cutting more on his 8 acres of land. He did show me a corner of his lot where he plans to build a pole barn and the logger is scheduled to leave some of the logs. He also had a buddy who had some big pines he wants milled.  We will see if this pans out. I'd estimate a 50/50 chance it will result in a sawing job. It may be several months but the worse case I met another neighbor.

[POSTON WIDEHEAD]

The best calling card I ever presented was building benches, log planters and outhouses.
Its would be hard to believe how many sawing jobs and new customers my crafts have brought in. 

[WIwoodworker]

I make cold calls about everything. If I even hear a chainsaw I'm likely to talk to the person running it to ask questions and hand a business card. You have nothing to lose and at the very least more people know you're around. Good luck!

[4x4American]

I make a lot of cold calls.  I have pages and pages of companies I've called about selling lumber.  It pays off, I've got a bunch of business from doing it.  If I'm driving and pass a wood using company or people building or anything that looks like something might come of it, I'll stop and talk and drop off a business card.  Another thing that works is if they say no I won't just say bye and hang up.  I'll ask if they know of any place that might could use my lumber and that has resulted in sales for me too.  Even if I have good markets I'm always looking for new ones that could be better.

[Cedarman]

I started making cold calls in high school when I saw a pretty girl walking down the hall or when swimming at the pool.
Takes practice.

[WV Sawmiller]

Cedar,

   Reminds me when I was in college at PJC and had a co-ed swimming class. Had a pretty black haired girl in there. One day in the student lounge an attractive auburn-haired girl sat down beside me and started talking and took me a couple of minutes to recognize her as my swimming classmate and I blurted out "Oh, you're Donna. I did not recognize you with your clothes on." That did not end well. Big difference was I had never seen her with her hair dry and it looked black when wet but was really red.

[ReinkeFandS]

WV- Could you post a picture of what the back for your business card looks like please? Sounds like a great idea!

[terrifictimbersllc]

Here's mine.

[WV Sawmiller]

WV- Could you post a picture of what the back for your business card looks like please? Sounds like a great idea!

  Here it is. Great idea. I wish I could take credit for it but I got the idea from someone else here on the FF. Might have been the TT.


 

[LittleJohn]

Cold calls, NO; all I have to do is drag the mill out of the garage and people are throwing logs at me. 
Mind you, I only saw for fun not production or even money -> I mean a profit, mostly saw for myself and a few side jobs here and there for beer money ;)

True story, the day I brought the mill home I parked it out front of the house, within an hour someone was knocking on the front door asking if I could saw logs for them that weekend...  (the weekend cabin-type) Needless to say I park the mill in the garage now.

[WV Sawmiller]

   I have always heard the best advertising to was just to park the mill out front where people can see it and I try to park it in the lot in front of my house when I am not sawing. I mostly saw in the pasture when not sawing for off site customers. I have put a pile of slabs out front with a for sale sign on them so even if the mill is out of sight there is some advertising going on.

[YellowHammer]

Cold phone calls, not so much, but cold business drop ins?  Yes, all the time.  In order for a business to thrive, it needs a good split of old customers and new customers.  Old customers bring steady cash flow, new customers bring with them a different perspective of niches and new products I can supply.  Drive drive down the road and pull into every business that uses wood, one after the other, in some form or another.  That would be more than you'd think, such as nurseries, cabinet shops, pallet shops, farmers coop, horse barns, cattle farms, machine shops, shipping and receiving, heavy equipment dealers, rental places, trailer fabricators, chicken houses, bar b que restaurants, petting zoos, duck and geese breeders, concrete finishers, the list goes on and on.  All of them use wood, all of them were interested in getting it at a lower price.  If you believe the six degrees of separation theory, then every time you talk to someone about your business, even if they aren't interested, it's a positive thing.


 

[terrifictimbersllc]

If you believe the six degrees of separation theory, then every time you talk to someone about your business, even if they aren't interested, it's a positive thing.

What I don't like is when after talking about my portable sawmill service, they seem to still think I make firewood.

[terrifictimbersllc]

  Here it is. Great idea. I wish I could take credit for it but I got the idea from someone else here on the FF. Might have been the TT.

Wasn't me who contributed idea of putting log scale on back of business card.   Someone else here a ways back.

[paul case]

Cold calls resulted in 2 of the 4  best deals I saw for. I MAKE COLD CALLS. You cant know until you ask.

PC

[Cedarman]

I put the cedar scale on the back of my card in the mid 80s.  Read somewhere that a business card has 2 sides, why use just one.

[redprospector]

I put the cedar scale on the back of my card in the mid 80s.  Read somewhere that a business card has 2 sides, why use just one.

If you don't print on the back, I'll take notes there. If you want your card to be all about you, use it all.

[Sixacresand]

I had my WM cap on when I checking out of the hospital yesterday.  A male nurse saw it and followed me to the elevator asking questions about the LT40.  He has a LT15.  Only a fellow sawyer would know what a Woodmizer was.  That encounter made my day.

[WV Sawmiller]

I put the cedar scale on the back of my card in the mid 80s.  Read somewhere that a business card has 2 sides, why use just one.

If you don't print on the back, I'll take notes there. If you want your card to be all about you, use it all.

   I figure the margins are for notes and agree with cederman about filling up both sides. The way I figure it if they don't keep my card for my contact info there is still a decent chance they will keep it as a handy log scale which most of my customers have never seen before.

   I bought more cards a few months ago. Probably paying too much but they were about $27/thousand printed on both sides. I a couple out to every actual customer and to anyone who asks or slows down to look at my magnetic sign on the door of my truck. Cards, door sign and half page printed flyers I post on local businesses are my most effective written advertising. Word or mouth is still and will always be the best advertising because it generally comes from a trusted friend.

   I feel I have a decent web site and get a few inquiries from there but mostly I think it is used for more detail after they have heard about me somewhere else.

I had my WM cap on when I checking out of the hospital yesterday.  A male nurse saw it and followed me to the elevator asking questions about the LT40.  He has a LT15.  Only a fellow sawyer would know what a Woodmizer was.  That encounter made my day.

   My wife has a good embroidery attachment on her sewing machine and makes me personalized caps and even a nice shirt with my business name on it. I can't say it helps much with advertising but it looks more professional when I show up at a customers door.

   My next plan is a sawing demo at the local high school for the shop/ag classes. I figure I can saw a couple of small logs I can carry in my utility trailer and leave the lumber as a donation. Might spark some interest and help educate a few kids.

[scully]

I've made a few cold calls , they never amounted to anything for me , most times the logs are sold etc. I do better bye word of mouth .

[Bert]

The problem I have with cold calls is - production. For commercial customers anyway they are usually looking for some type of steady arrangement or bring it right now situation and thats not how i work. I split my time between logging and the mill and it can be a couple months at a time between those two jobs. its really alot of equipment to get in motion and stay on top of. Hard to cold call someone and make a deal with a part-time arrangement. When im logging I'm getting lumber orders piling up an when I'm sawing log buyers are crying.

[WV Sawmiller]

Bert,

   Those are different customers than what I am chasing. I am looking to do mobile milling for small jobs in peoples pastures and back yards. I very seldom work for the same guy over a few days at a time and am very happy to go saw a day or two then finish and come home. The same guy may call me back in 6 months to come saw another day or so and I am fine with that too. My customers are farmers needing to build a barn or shed or some weekend warrior wanting to build a fence or shed or a local woodworker wannabe wanting to salvage a couple of fallen trees and stock up on some lumber for the next year or so.