Love them or loathe them, sales calls remain a hugely effective way to win over prospective clients. The convenient yet personal nature of cold calling has remained a favourite marketing technique for decades, used by everyone from top Fortune 500 companies to independent SMEs. Even with the emergence of new technologies such as e-mail, social media and mobile marketing, sales calls have retained their relevance.

John Lewis may have spent £7m on Christmas advertising this year, but you don’t have to spend the big bucks to get your business noticed. An increasing numbers of businesses are using direct mail campaigns to get their message heard. And when you consider that 40% of consumers try new businesses after receiving direct mail, isn’t it about time you tried it too?

The world has come a long way since Alexander Graham Bell famously invented the first telephone back in 1876. Today, OFCOM reports that 93% of British adults personally own and use a mobile phone. The UK itself is home to 25.5 million fixed landlines.

According to the latest stats from StartUp Britain and think tank Centre for Entrepreneurs, 2014 was a seriously successful year for British business. All up, a record-breaking 581,173 businesses were registered with Companies House, which represents a significant increase on 2013’s 526,447 and 2012’s 484,224 figures.

There are numerous marketing methods. And all of them have pros and cons. With so many options to choose from, how do you know which one is right for your business?