In a world of instant gratification, AI and automation, the cold call isn’t dead, in fact it’s more alive than ever. A thoughtful, well-timed cold call can cut through the noise in a way emails and LinkedIn messages simply can’t. It’s more genuine, more human and more personal; this often ignites a meaningful, professional relationship that can last. We sat down with several of our recruiters to discuss the art of the cold call, why it still matters, why it’s not going away and why it’s one of the most valuable tools in our toolkit.
What’s the first thing you try to accomplish in the first 30 seconds of the call?
- “It’s about earning the right to have the conversation. I’m trying to sound like a real person, not a recruiter reading a script. If I can build credibility and lower their guard early, the rest of the conversation becomes much easier.” –Jeff Killian, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance
- “I think tone of voice matters – not getting too excited or too robotic, maintaining a calm demeanor. I also like to get to the point. You’re not making the impression that you’re about to sell them on something. Compliment them too, bring up something personalized, find some common ground in the least salesy tone of voice.” –Emma Barrett, Associate Director, Corporate Services
- “The start of the call is all about the hook. If you give a whole spiel about who you are and what you do, people are just going to hang up on you. The first 30 seconds are the most important part of the call. I jump right into the name of the client I’m recruiting for, the position…I don’t even ask if they have a second. I just go right into it. I think that’s the key. Probably 90% of people will ask to schedule a call, 50% of that 90% probably won’t get back to you to schedule that call.” –Gavin Buda, Associate Director, Investment Operations & Client Services
Why is cold-calling never going away? How does it differentiate itself from LinkedIn or email out reach?
- “Recruiting is so saturated. When I started recruiting, all I did was cold call. You can’t make a connection with someone over a LinkedIn message; they’re getting thousands of messages. But if you pick up the phone, which is the old school way of doing it, you get someone live on the phone, they’re going to respect you.” –Jodi Wechsler, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance
- “On a phone call you can build rapport, hear tone, answer questions in real time, and uncover things that would never come out over text. The best opportunities often come from conversations, not messages.” –Jeff Killian, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance
- “I think people are impressed by cold calling because of how easy it is to get someone’s social media, email, LinkedIn nowadays. It’s an opportunity to get something out of it like referrals – it will always work.” –Emma Barrett, Associate Director, Corporate Services
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from a cold-calling mistake?
- “Speak with one mouth and listen with two ears.” –Jodi Wechsler, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance
- “You want to stay concise, to the point, you don’t want to waste anyone’s time. If you go too much into your background and go off on tangents, people get bored and stop listening very quickly.” -Gavin Buda, Associate Director, Investment Operations & Client Services
- “Don’t make a big deal about flubbing a word or misspeaking. Jeff trained me well to not harp on the mistakes.” –Connor Coppola, Associate on Accounting and Finance
What’s the most memorable cold call you ever made? What made it stand out and how did it end?
- “The first candidate I ever called and sent out internally within Arrow, I ended up placing. It was great timing and I had excellent coaching from Jeff. When it comes to cold calling, he said to fall flat on my face because there’s no better medicine than picking up the phone to go again.” –Connor Coppola, Associate on Accounting and Finance
- “I cold called a woman at just the right time. She came in to meet with me, and I ended up placing her. We still keep in touch today, and she has referred countless people to me. It all started with a Friday afternoon cold call to someone at PwC. I spoke with her six months ago, and she is still with the same company where I placed her.” –Jodi Wechsler, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance
If you had one piece of advice for new recruiters who are nervous about cold-calling, what would it be?
- “This is the best advice I’ve ever gotten probably. When you smile, your voice smiles with you. When you’re smiling, you’re focused on the positivity. It can’t go wrong if you are being positive and in the right mindset.” –Emma Barrett, Associate Director, Corporate Services
- “No one knows you’re nervous on the other side. Call and call until you get yourself comfortable. Treat it like any other ordinary call.” –Jodi Wechsler, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance
- “Stop worrying about saying the perfect thing. Confidence comes from making calls, not waiting until you feel ready.” – Jeff Killian, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance team
Imagine you’re the candidate receiving a call. What makes you stay on the line and what makes you want to hang up?
- “During a cold call, I am very thorough in my prep and people tend to reciprocate. Offer unsolicited advice. Let me just offer you some advice about your resume…people love this. If you offer up some thoughts, they will ask you follow up questions. Don’t be super salesy in your approach. People can tell if this is the 18th call you’ve made today. You never want them to feel like you’re meeting a metric.”-Emma Barrett, Associate Director, Corporate Services
- “I would stay on the line if the recruiter tried to connect with me and was different. For example, if they went to Indiana, they would most likely accept a message discussing my recent trip to Indiana’ s campus with my brother and how great the championship game was, other than talking about audit. I would hang up on someone if they didn’t stop talking for 30 seconds and didn’t let the other person speak at all.” –Connor Coppola, Associate on Accounting and Finance
What’s the biggest misconception people have about cold calling?
- “Don’t take things so personally. The biggest misconception is that rejection is personal.” –Gavin Buda, Associate Director, Investment Operations & Client Services
- “People think cold calling is about convincing someone to say “yes” on the first call. In reality, it’s about creating enough interest and trust to earn the next conversation. Relationships are built over time, not in a single phone call.” –Jeff Killian, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance team
- “Your idea of it doesn’t have to be how other people do it. You can do it your own way. Treat it like you’re not trying to place them. Keep it simple.” –Emma Barrett, Associate Director, Corporate Services
Complete the sentence: ‘The phone is still powerful because…..
- “…people still do business with people they trust, and trust is built much faster through a real conversation than through a message on a screen.”- Jeff Killian, Executive Director, Accounting and Finance team
- “…you are getting a direct line to a real person who has motivations, insecurities, open-mindedness and another group of people that they know.” –Emma Barrett, Associate Director, Corporate Services
- “….it is harder to say no over the phone. You have more control if you’re able to speak to someone.” –Connor Coppola, Associate on Accounting and Finance