Outbound Sales Prospecting: Why Cold Calling Still Matters in Modern Sales (Interview with Steve Compère, CEO of Uptoo)
Is sales prospecting really outdated?
Has cold calling become ineffective?
Should companies rely only on inbound marketing and marketing automation to drive revenue?
In this exclusive interview with Onoff Business, Steve Compère, CEO of Uptoo—one of France’s most recognized sales agencies—gives a clear, field-tested answer.
In the video, he shares a practical, no-nonsense view of modern sales, outbound prospecting, and the sales tools teams need to perform today. Modern sales is more complex—but still actionableAccording to Steve Compère, selling has never been so demanding:
«The way to generate one euro of revenue gets more complex year after year.»
CRM, data, artificial intelligence, productivity tools…
Sales teams have more tools than ever, but they also face:
- longer sales cycles
- prospects who are more solicited than ever
an uncertain economic environment
Complexity is rising, but the fundamentals still matter.
In the French business landscape, inbound marketing keeps gaining traction. But for Steve Compère, building a sales engine that relies 100% on inbound is a strategic mistake:
«Building a sales model only based on marketing, SEO, and paid search is a war you can’t win against the big players.»
At Uptoo:
- nearly 80% of meetings and revenue still come from outbound
- cold calling is a core part of the sales culture
The key isn’t choosing inbound or outbound—it’s combining both intelligently.
Sales prospecting still works… when it’s done right
One of the strongest messages in the interview is simple:
«Prospecting doesn’t work anymore» is a false debate.
«Prospecting done well—on the right targets, at the right cadence—still works»
What has changed:
the need to target personas more precisely
working with clean, reliable data
having clear territory management
and most importantly: using the right sales tools
Volume alone isn’t enough.
But quality without volume isn’t enough either.
Cold calling and sales mindset: an underestimated challenge
Steve Compère compares cold calling to an athlete’s training routine:
«Cold calling is a salesperson’s hygiene—like an athlete who stops training.»
But without the right setup and tools, cold calling quickly becomes exhausting—and demotivating.
Why sales tools make the difference today
In the interview, Steve Compère insists on a key point: selling without the right tools means falling behind.
CRM, call tracking, conversation recording, performance analysis…
Without these building blocks, even a great product can lose to better-equipped competitors.
«Someone working without a CRM, without process, without tracking tools or recording will unfortunately be overtaken.»
Uptoo x Onoff Business: when technology supports sales performance
In 2025, Uptoo faced a critical situation: the sudden loss of a key feature in their CRM provider.
The result:
no more link between calls and CRM
no more data
no more recordings
no more sales enablement
Onoff Business stepped in urgently. According to Steve Compère:
the solution met the technical requirements
the integration was fast
support was highly responsive
«Onoff helped us get out of a tough spot in an extremely short timeframe.»
Call recording: a game changer for sales teams
One of the most impactful moments of the interview focuses on call recording in sales:
«The game-changing feature with Onoff Business is the ability to record what we’re producing commercially.»
It enables:
real manager–rep conversations
actionable feedback
continuous skill development
better sales coaching
Performance becomes measurable, analyzable, and improvable.
Modern sales: back to fundamentals—with better tools
For Steve Compère, the conclusion is straightforward:
sales is still a discipline built on training
prospecting remains essential
tools have become strategic
ROI must be clear and measurable
«Having the right offer, reaching the right people, at the right time, in the right way… that’s just doing sales.»
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