Telemarketing – the basics

Tuesday, 22 February 2011 00:00

Outbound telemarketing can go very wrong, very easily. Unfortunately, too many companies do it badly. They sit a junior member of staff down with a list of unqualified data, a telephone and some limited training about the product or service. To add to this, they then target them through a commission scheme and give them some mumbled advice about smiling and dialling. The consequences of this process will provide two outcomes: Either no sales opportunities and a vacancy to fill or a plethora of unqualified appointments with the wrong decision maker. The company's image, and ROI are impacted greatly and worse still is the negative association that they then hold to the word 'Telemarketing'.

But outbound telemarketing has earned its place in the B2B world. The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) released figures in 2010 which outlined that £2.4 billion was spent on telemarketing activity last year, of which produced £7 billion of Sales.

If you want your telemarketing done well, the first step is to appreciate that it will require time and effort. Both strategic planning and tactical implementation are the two pre-requisites to achieving a successful campaign. The next step, is to recognise that it is a form of direct marketing where the following fundamentals are critical; professional approach and professional management. Saying the right information to the right person, at the right time and in the right way are essential elements. Qualified data, relationship driven conversations, identifying the correct decision maker and strong database management are the fundamentals that ensure quality meetings.