It was first thought that the Internet would do away with door to door salesmen forever. However such concerns as National No-Call Lists and the overload of unsolicited email have brought back a situation where the old fashioned knocking on doors to connect directly with people has once more become an important way for businesses to connect with potential customers.
Door to door selling is still not extremely efficient since it requires training, transportation and that face to face time that limits the number of contacts one can make in a working day. The door to door approach has not resurfaced in all areas of marketing, but such fields as telecommunications have found it to be more efficient in getting potential customers to listen to their sales pitch. Between the growth of the No-Call lists, and people’s irritation at the frequent and often-inconvenient telephone marketing, going the slower route of door to door has shown much higher results.
If you are just beginning the life of a door to door salesman, there are a few very important things to remember before you walk up to that first door. This type of marketing effort is generally controlled at the local level. Always check with a city’s finance clerk first to determine what ordinances are in effect and what, if any, fees or licenses are required to solicit business in that particular town. This saves you time as well as money since failure to obtain the proper permissions can lead to fines and possible jail if ignored.
Also, once you have the local government’s permissions, you will need to keep on the lookout for other obstacles in your path. If a business has a “No Solicitors” sign on the door, do not ignore it and breeze on in. This can lead to your permissions being quickly cancelled. Also check with the management office of gated communities or apartment complexes before entering them with your sales pitch. If they do not want people going door to door, once again, ignoring their wishes in their own communities can get you arrested.
It will make your time spent on the pavement more effective if you have small flyers or business cards always available to leave behind. This will not only help you explain your product or service to those whom you do talk to, but are invaluable for those doors which did not answer. This way even those you did not get to speak to can be informed of your presence and availability, and it gives them a way to contact you if they are interested.
Finally, make sure to practice patience and a calm attitude. There will still be many doors you encounter where the people will be less than friendly and understanding. You must make sure you can take their verbal abuse with a smile and move on. If such rudeness is something you cannot keep from taking personally, then you need to get off the street immediately since door to door salesmanship requires a persistently friendly attitude to succeed.
