Telemarketing

...Where success is just a phone call away

Telemarketing can gain a very hostile reponse. I am sure that at sometime you must have been infuriated by a "Cold Call". Despite not having requested the call, someone has taken it upon themselves to disrupt your privacy or busy schedule to try to sell you something. With such negative feelings why would you choose to use Telesales as a marketing tool?

Well, you may be convinced by the fact that Telemarketing is a highly successful industry, which generates £billions of global sales. Not surprisingly, it is a favoured marketing tool of large corporations, particularly utilities (telephones, gas, electricity services etc) as well as insurance, home improvements and so on...

Successful telesales is much more than a random "cold call". It is in fact a well planned and analysed process which is designed to bring in sales success. Done well, the target customers have been screened to be exactly the type of people who would want to buy your product or service. The telephone calls are made to engage the customer, create interest and secure a "follow up".

A Word of Caution

(Similar restrictions exist around sending unsolicited faxes to promote your company. Check it out at Fax Preference Service. ).

Is it Relevant as a Marketing Tool for SME's?

The costs of undertaking this activity can vary. I have paid £200 for a list of 1,000 screened names.

A professional Telesales company would typically make up to 50 calls per hour and hope to speak with 10-20%. The charges for this service will be driven by how easy it is to "sell" your products and so it is advisable to gain a few quotes. As with DM, I would advise "sampling" the process before you commit to the extended contract period that a telesales company would naturally like to tie you in on.

The first call isn't a sale

It is not an opportunity to go into "hard selling mode" as this will completey switch the listener off and guarantee that the phone is put quickly down on your call!

To achieve success with the call, the telesales representative will ensure they are speaking to the "Decision maker" or will find out who they are so they can call them back later on. After all, there is no point trying to sell to a Receptionist whose role is simply to act a Gatekeeper.

The "follow up" gained may be to send some promotional literature about the company and it's products. This can then be used as a reason for a further call to the decision maker to confirm receipt of the information and determine interest, or at the very least secure an appointment to see them.

By the time the process has been exhausted it is highly likley that a trusting relationship will have been formed and a sale will have been achieved!

It is a Numbers Game!

This can increase the conversion success rate and gives it a lead over Direct Mail. (This is why I like to combine the use of these tools).

Telesales companies ultimately survive on being able to generate sales for organisations. The more calls they place, the lower the charge cost per call. If it's easy for them to generate interest, then again they will lower their costs. Of course the converse is also true...so perform SAMPLE TESTING of the tool first!

The DIY approach

One way of TESTING the use of Telemarketing is to make the calls yourself. It will keep your costs well down and give you a real opportunity to guage success.

BUT a word of warning... This is not for the faint hearted!

By it's very nature, Telemarketing generates rejection as a repeating theme. You may place 10 calls and only gain a positive response once (if at all!). Whilst you may see the one success as a great motivator, the 9 rejections can crush even the most motivated of people - especially when some responses can often be curt and impolite.

So, be prepared and put on that Thick skin".

1. Use your own contact list or buy a screened list.

2. Think about and set yourself a specific time to make calls (generally, don't ring home addresses betwen 9am and 5pm or business people outside this time).

3. Ensure you have a script (and that you have practiced it again and again before ever making a call). It will make you sound professional, confident, keep you to the point and stop you getting tongue tied.

4. Don't try to sell. Engage the individual, gain interest and secure the follow up!

5. The call should last no longer than 5 minutes. If you take longer then you are denying yourself other calls and beginning to create procrastination.

6. Note as much detail about the person who you are speaking to (e.g. first name, direct dial, email address etc).

7. Do at least 2 hours worth of calls before stopping. There is a natural momentum that will help gain success.

8. Make sure that you professionally follow up

Create a Pipeline

• been rejected

• missed being able to connect

• be asked to call back later

• gained a "follow up" opportunity

Use the Professionals

I have tried DIY Telemarketing - it was one of the hardest things I have ever tried to do because my ego couldn't readily take the rejection. However, I persisted, followed the rules laid out earlier and gained success.

In order to sample the use of Telesales, the DIY approach is worth making the effort. However, not everyone can do it - and I certainly know that I will never have a career as a Telemarketeer!

So I would always recommend the use of a professional Telemarketing company if you wanted to progress your efforts further or if your marketing budget will allow these servicies to be contracted.

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