cold calling on the web

[j]

i just got an email from one of many companies i've previously been written from suggesting that i should creatively explain my products, services and ideas with their tailored videos.

this is, in my opinion, cold calling; in the same way that i used to get phone calls and folks knocking on my door from companies offering their pragmatical services.

what do other folks think of this? is cold calling a bad thing to happen on the web?

originally i thought it was annoying and doesn't reflect what the web should be used for. i guess that's because i've grown up thinking cold calling is inherently bad. taking a step back though: these are smaller companies that don't appear at the top of google's search results, so in a hypothetical situation where i had something to sell, it makes sense that i'd support smaller businesses over something prominently established, no? how would i ever have heard of them if they hadn't emailed me first!

interested to hear what other folks think.

[Gans]

Mad respect for salespeople doing cold calling. Failure Rate: 99%. Still worth investing the time in for those 1% of new customers.

Just don't be too annoying from what's in your control. And expect to be butchered verbally. Happens! In the worst possible stress-loaded moment, your little advert might be the tiny bit of information overflow that will make people explode...
Though this should be less likely to happen on the web. I mean who replies to "spam ad" mails? One click, delete, case finished.

So I'd say cold calling is particularly well suited for the web. It's not even close as intrusive as going from door to door.