Cold Calls: Ask for a Minute, Not for Their Time

After your reason, give them an easy out and ask for a small slice of time, now or later.

Mixed evidencePractitioner advice from cold-calling books; related to the but-you-are-free technique, Carpenter, 2013 · Communication Studies meta-analysis

The reminder that someone is free to refuse slightly raises yes rates in a meta-analysis of 42 studies, but those were mostly requests to strangers, not B2B calls.

Why it works

People resist when they feel trapped. Telling them they can say no lowers their guard and makes a short yes more likely.

How to do it

  1. Ask for a short, named amount of time.
  2. Offer a later slot in the same breath.
  3. If they say later, fix the exact time before you hang up.
  4. Keep your word on the time limit.

What to say

Is it a bad moment, or can I take two minutes?

If now is not good, feel free to say so. Would 4 pm today work instead?

Avoid

Pushing on after they say they are in a meeting. You lose the call and the future call.

Example

When the founder of a Gujarat spice exporter said he was driving, Rahul said, no problem, can I call you at six? He did, and the call ran fifteen minutes.

Practise it

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