Hey Niepodam,

Most cold calls fail in the first 7 seconds.

Too much energy? You sound like a sales guy.
Too little? You sound like a scam.
Too vague? You lose them.
Too specific? They shut you down.

I used to coach reps to start with: “Hey, this is Alan with [company] — I know I caught you out of the blue, do you have 27 seconds?”

Classic, right? Except it stopped working.

Execs would either hang up, or say “Not a good time,” before the rep got to the pitch.

So we tested a new opener. Something nobody was using.
And it hit way harder.

Here’s the play: “Hey, it’s Alan, quick one, I can be totally off here, but are you the one dealing with [specific pain] or is that someone else?”

That line changes everything.

It doesn’t ask for time. It doesn’t pitch the product.
It asks for accuracy.

And execs love correcting you.

“Nope, that’s not me, that’s our Head of Ops.”
“Yeah, unfortunately, I am... what’s this about?”

Either way, you win. It starts a real conversation. And it flips the power dynamic, you're not selling, you’re verifying.

The disclaimer — “I can be totally off here” — disarms the reflex to shut you down.

You’re not barging in. You’re acknowledging the risk. And that buys you seconds.

Want to make it sing? Get ultra-specific with the pain:

• “...the one dealing with partner revenue goals stalling out?”
• “...the one fighting that Salesforce cleanup project?”
• “...the one trying to fix lead quality before Q1?”

It feels like an internal handoff.
Not a cold call.

And it works because it creates two psychological openings:

• Curiosity — “Wait, what’s this about?”
• Correction impulse — “No, that’s not me” (then they route you)

Either way, you stay on the line.

I’ve seen reps double connect rates and next steps with this one change.

It’s not about confidence. It’s about control, and this gives it to them, first.

Alan "Modern Seller" Ruchtein.

Act like +1000 heroes:

Check out The Only Sales Course you'll ever need.

Over 11 Modules with 100s of frameworks, tactics, strategy, examples, templates, videos and processes to help you source more leads, book more meetings, and close more deals than ever before (While earning more commission).

These are the exact systems I've used over the last +15 years to become a top seller at hyper-growth companies!