The sad reality is there’s no guarantee of anything when you’re looking for a new digital marketing job. You can get invited to as many interviews as possible, but they don’t always pan out either because of timing or other factors, including the company making an internal hire or the job itself getting entirely scrapped.
It’s happened to all of us before. Or we get invited to jobs only to find out that someone else had even more experience in a specific area. I realized personally that it’s a numbers game and a matter of multiplying the applications you send out and keeping up the quality of them at the same time. All you can do is prepare as well as you can before the interview and express your enthusiasm and remain professional even when you get turned down. It does sting at first, but then you start to realize it’s all part of the process and nothing to be ashamed of either. To quote Alex Hormozi:
“You gotta be undeniable! Volume negates luck.”
What Alex means is that you’re going to deal with unlucky situations. You’re going to have times where you think you got the job, but you really didn’t. In the same video, he even says that you can apply to over 20 places, and nothing happens! A lot of work and time spent, but does that mean you give up and quit? No! You keep going and keep doing what youre doing and show people that you can work super hard!
It’s nothing you personally did wrong if you’re able to geek out about SEO, PPC, and other things the hiring manager or team is looking for. Don’t keep your hopes incredibly high or your eggs all in one basket and at one company. Things move fast and the job market is unpredictable and slow now. But when you find yourself getting rejected, it helps to realize this is what cold calling salesmen and saleswomen go through daily. Let’s see what we can learn from them as digital marketers to keep our own heads up on the job search!
The Realities of Cold Calling and Likelihood of Making a Sale
I mentioned in the previous post I had a short stint doing a job like this and it was exactly what you’d expect. I was given access to a whole list of leads and a way to dial them one after the other. The whole process was maddening, and I had no idea what I had really gotten myself into. It was one of the biggest mistakes of my career even thinking I could do this.
It’s one thing to be able to talk to someone who wants to hire you for work like this, thinking it’s going to pay very well. But another to get in there and realize just how many calls and leads you had to close. I realized quickly it wasn’t for me, so I moved onto other projects and ventures. But the lessons from that short stint stuck with me well.
Lots and Lots of Cold Calls and a Minimum Sales Target to Hit!
I realized that to get remotely close to the sales target, I would have had to make bare minimum 60 calls a day. And out of those 60 calls, I would have been lucky to have even able to talk to a few people without them getting furious at me and hanging up the phone.
Sales is not the glamorous job it’s portrayed as in media. It really is one of the most difficult, high-pressure jobs to have especially if you’re calling people you don’t know personally trying to sell them stuff they might not want. Door to door might be a bit easier, but I imagine the challenges are similar.
Next time you go to your local car dealership, give the salesperson a word of gratitude and tell them to keep their chin up. It’s a tough gig, and it does pay well for the right person, but I think most people are just not cut out for it.
I learned the hard way it wasn’t for me.
The Statistics of Cold Calling Sales and Success Rates
And just to put it into context, here are some statistics about cold calling that might be relevant here.
I did some quick research on Quora and gathered that the average conversion rate for cold calls is about 3%. Here’s what this user had to say:
“Typically, your average cold calling campaign conversion rate is going to be very low. First, you will only reach a limited number of the people that you call. Then you must qualify those leads, and then convert those that are qualified. Typically you’ll see an end conversion rate somewhere in the 1-3% of total calls range.”
I’m surprised it isn’t lower than that, but keep in mind, this is if you already have the sales chops. Imagine if you came in and had no experience with cold calling whatsoever!
Cold calling seems to work if you know how to properly introduce yourself and your company without it feeling spammy or intrusive. Unfortunately, the way I “learned” this seemed to be the latter. Think Jordan Belfort Wolf of Wall Street style of cold calling and a script to go with it, and you can see why I kept failing at it.
I felt so ashamed and humiliated and really understood my true limitations at that time.
Not only do you have to practice such a script, but you gotta be ready to answer any objections, or just deal with someone who’s not in the mood that day and will hang up on you. Much like someone slamming the door on your face!
Why Do I Bring Any of This Up?
What does any of this have to do with applying for digital marketing jobs? Well if that’s the luck you get with cold calling where the success rates tend to vary, applying for digital marketing jobs seems like a cakewalk by comparison. At least with applying for jobs, you’re already breaking the ice and the tension with your resume and cover letter, and matching it to the skills and specifications of the potential employer or company.
It’s much easier to sell yourself well enough to even get invited for a video or phone interview. Then after that, you have time to fully prepare and research the company and then give it your all.
While you might get some rejections, at least there’s hope it might lead to something. Even if you don’t get the job, you still made valuable connections at various companies and you never know who might be able to help you out in the future. It’s nothing you did wrong. It’s always something to do with the timing, an internal hire, or someone else who happened to have more experience in a certain area the company was looking for. Never take the rejections personally. Always be kind and grateful to the people you speak with at these job interviews. A bit of generosity will go a long way, even for those who pass on your candidacy. It happens all the time and they mean well but they have to eat too!
Take inspiration from a salesman you know and understand that you have it on easy mode compared to what they have to put up with every day. Adopt their thick skin and never say no for an answer. Keep going until you’ve reached your target, and hopefully a new digital marketing job as a reward for your hard work! I hope you’ve enjoyed this post. If you want more content like this, check out my other articles on the blog. Thank you for reading today!
Recent Comments