I answer the door to find a woman wrapped in one of those corporate branded outdoor shellsuit jackets, the ones that look like they would burst into flames if you walked past a radiator. She was trying to sell some kind of house exterior work, i didn’t catch the specifics and that’s no big loss.

She tells me that the company is doing some work nearby, and asks if i’m interested in a quotation. I’m body language go away but say i’ll take a leaflet. She umms and ahhs, then explains that it would be a better idea to phone me with a quote. At this stage i want rid of her, so i just say okay.

She asks for a name, and i repeat one a few times before she gets it right. By the fourth iteration i’m just flat out laughing at her, not in a cruel way.. it just didn’t seem to be working out. After the name she asks for my address.. Hang on a second.. “My address? You came to my house! Surely you know it!“, she replies that she’s just canvassing the street, and didn’t notice the number.. “It’s right there, in big black numbers” i say, pointing at the sign next to the door. She writes down the number, and then asks what street. My laughter has not subsided.. “Are you joking? You came down the street! You said you’re doing work nearby!“.

After pointing out the street name signs sitting not far away and explaining that i’m not going to give her a contact telephone number, she leaves… she leaves me with a terrible impression of her company.

I’m of the belief that if i do want work carried out, i’ll do the groundwork myself. Find a company, look for positive reviews, ask around, whatever. I’m hardly going to have structural work done to my house just because of a random salesperson standing at the door. Consulting a pile of leaflets is what i do when i want to pick which takeaway i’ll order dinner from, not when i’m looking to spend thousands of pounds.

If you’re going to cold call people in person, why not try something like this:

Hi, I’m from Acme Building Company. We’re doing some work for one of your neighbours. It’s our policy to inform all the nearby residents just incase you have any questions, and to make you aware of the building work going on. What we’re going to be doing is [insert task here], it’ll take [insert timeframe here] and shouldn’t inconvenience you in any way. If you’d like i can give you our card which has a contact telephone number for any questions you might have.

That way you’re impressing people by treating them with a little bit of consideration.. and if those people decide to get some work done they might well call up “that nice lady who left her card”.