Telemarketing Companies – What’s right for you?
Telemarketing is an important element in the sales & marketing strategies of all most every company and organisation. With the market becoming more and more competitive it can be within the budget of even small business’s. The key is to select a company that understands you and your needs and is able to provide you with the service you actually require.
“Did you know that if you follow up a mailing list with a telephone call, you can improve results by 50 ~ 100% (yes one hundred percent)”
And if you’re unsure how your prospects will react to being sold to on the telephone – simple; don’t sell to them. Use the telephone call to ask questions, gather information and ensure their needs are being met.
There are many companies providing a wide range of telemarketing services and it is important to try to avoid getting into a “trial and error” situation before you find the right one for you.
In order to help you, there are a number of key questions that you can ask a prospective supplier, to help you make that all important decision.
1)What does the telemarketing company do ?
If it offers telemarketing as a minor part of all it’s services, and is not a specialist telemarketing company, then it may not be able to deliver the quality you need. It is much better to seek out a company that specialises in telemarketing or a range of complimentary telemarketing services.
2)What type of employees do they use?
Many companies use part time students or “cash in hand” temporary workers. These will not have the skills or experience you will require. It is always better practice to seek out a company that can provide a range of experienced and specialist staff, that are ideally suited to the type of work you require and perhaps mature enough to take your campaign seriously.
3)Who owns the leads or appointment details or even the database?
If a company works on your behalf, be sure that the data is yours. Some companies out there “collect” data and sell it on to other companies. Thus your leads and cleaned data lists maybe sold and passed onto others. Make sure that your chosen company doesn’t do this as a standard policy.
4)Does the company structure its calls on scripts?
There is no danger in having a structure to a phone call. However, we all have experienced “script” sales, where the caller ignores everything you say and simply moves from sentence to sentence no matter what the answers or who they call. Make sure that there is structure to the call, but maybe not a restrictive script. It is important that the person working on your campaign is able to be receptive to what the person on the other end of the phone is saying to them. Remember the call should be 70% listening 30% communicating.
5)Are there a “guaranteed” number of appointments/leads you will get?
This may sound good, but being offered “10 guaranteed appointments” may no be all that it seems to be. Appointments are easy to make, the hard part is to make them with people who actually want to see you. Look for a company that is looking for a “long term relationship” with you. One where the appointments that are made will have real value and the operatives are regarded more by a job well done than by total appointments made.
There are other questions to think about, such as, is there a structure to the project, how will you know how hard the company is working for you.
If you’re struggling to decide who to choose in this highly competitive market then the above few questions should at least give you start.
Telemarketing should be a long term strategy not a short term fix.
