For some, the word ‘telemarketing’ brings up images of rows of people with headsets, all working from a head office in a country far, far away.

Others think of the people who always seem to call the minute they take their first bite of dinner. Some just think it’s an old fashioned marketing strategy. While in some cases this may be true, telemarketing is still an important tool for every business – of every size.

What if I were to tell you that you were already using telemarketing as a regular part of your business? In fact, telemarketing is re-emerging as a powerful way to generate leads and close sales. Done well, it’s also efficient and cost-effective.

Every time the people who work your front end pick up the phone, they’re engaging in a telemarketing process. Every time one of your salespeople picks up the phone, they too are engaging in a telemarketing process.

Telemarketing is not just a system for cold calls. It’s any type of formal communication between your company and its clients over the phone. So, now you know that you’re already doing it, let’s talk about how to turn telemarketing into a profitable marketing strategy for your business.

Telemarketing for Your Business

A common misconception is that telemarketing needs to happen on a broad scale in order to be effective. Pages and pages of potential customers must be cold called on a daily basis. Businesses must hire dozens of staff members to conduct and manage the efforts.

Like I mentioned above, telemarketing is any kind of formal communication that happens between a company and a potential or existing client over the phone. Regardless of the size of your business, you can train you existing staff members to effectively use the telephone to generate more leads and convert more sales.

The benefits of establishing an organized telemarketing system are:

· Instant access. Reach key decision-makers immediately.

· One-on-one interaction. Develop real relationships with empathy and trust.

· Minimal cost. Spend less on sales outreach and research.

Who are the Best Telemarketers?

Success in telemarketing has a lot to do with the personality of your company’s representative. Generally, good telemarketers have the following qualities and abilities:

· Energy and enthusiasm

· Positive attitude

· Good phone manner

· Empathy

· Belief in your company and its products

· Strong listening skills

· Ability to think on-the-spot

· Ability to handle objection and rejection

· Good organizational skills

The Telemarketing Process

There are two types of telemarketing: outgoing and incoming. You should have a proactive strategy in place to handle both types.

Remember that your approach to telemarketing must have a clear objective; a clear purpose. What is the purpose of the call (outgoing and incoming)? Is it to inform? Set up an appointment? Establish a need or desire? This will help guide how you handle each type.

Incoming Calls

When a customer calls your business for the first time, you should have a system in place to make a great, customer service-oriented impression. Many of these customers will have seen one of your advertisements, received a direct mail piece, or be responding to any other element of your marketing campaign.

Your telemarketing strategy for incoming phone calls can take the form of:

· An answering service

· Voice mail

· A messaging service

· An order taking system

· An information provision system

The person – or people – who answer incoming calls should be well trained for the role and clearly understand the expectations for handling them. Your receptionist should be trained thoroughly in the products and services you sell so he can answer basic customer questions intelligently. Your team should know how to answer the phone according to your company policy, and have excellent phone manners. Consider including the following instructions into your incoming telemarketing system or process:

· Answer the phone after two and before four rings

· Have a standard company greeting. Include your company name, as well as the name of the person answering the phone.

· Ensure sufficient customer information is recorded. Determine what information is important to gain from each caller – name, phone number, reason for call, action required, who is responsible for following up

· Do not place anyone on hold for longer than 20 seconds. Instead, take their name and number and have their call returned promptly.

· Establish a short description of your company’s process or point of difference at some point during the phone call.

· Always repeat back any information or agreement exchanged.

· Be the last one to hang up.

Outgoing Calls

Outgoing calls are the more challenging aspect of your telemarketing strategy. In this case you are proactively asking your customer for something, as opposed to responding once they’ve already been convinced to act. You can use an outgoing telemarketing strategy to:

· Set appointments

· Generate leads

· Make cold calls

· Update databases

· Follow up on direct mail and other campaigns

· Convert leads to sales

· Conduct surveys

Your outgoing phone call needs to engage the person on the other end, and begin to build a relationship based solely on verbal communication (i.e., without the assistance of non-verbal cues and behaviors). Depending on the type of call, you will be seeking to:

· Attract their attention

· Spark their interest, needs, or desires

· Motivate them to act

· Seek agreement

It is essential to the success of your outgoing telemarketing efforts that you create a script for each type of outgoing call your company makes. This will keep you – and your staff – focused on the purpose of the call and give you tools and prompts to keep you on track. 

Here are some simple steps for making your outgoing telemarketing efforts a success:

1. Know who you are calling

Do your research. Know exactly who it is you need to contact at each company. Is it the manager or vice-president? Owner or CEO? Once you know who you are targeting, you can do some research prior to your phone call, and ensure you call at a time that is convenient. You will want to know a bit about their industry as well as the company and their role within it. If you have served another client in the same industry, let them know.

When you have them on the phone, confirm that the basic information you have is correct (name, title, etc.). If you do not know who the best person to speak to is, ask the receptionist for the name of the person who makes purchasing decisions related to your product.

2. Be prepared; stay organized

Have all the materials you may need in front of you, and clear your desk of any distractions. Have a notepad handy, and record key elements of the conversation for action or later discussion. Also, keep a record of all the calls you make, and the results of each call. This will prevent you from making duplicate calls, which do not reflect well on your organization, as well as track left messages and the most productive times of the day for outgoing phone calls.

3. Know why you are calling

Like I mentioned above, your phone calls should be purpose-focused. Are you calling to set up a meeting? Introduce yourself and your products? Get them to try what you have to offer? Keep this clear in your mind and stick to it.

4. Get past the gatekeeper

To reach busy decision makers, you will have to get past the person who screens unsolicited phone calls: the gatekeeper, assistant, or secretary. Do not assume you will be able to speak to them with the first phone call – it may take two, three, or even seven tries until you are successful. Here are some guidelines for developing a relationship with the gatekeeper:

· Ask for their name and write it down

· Do not underestimate the power of developing a relationship with them

· Get an understanding of their position and responsibilities

· Stay positive and confident

· Never pitch the receptionist on your product

· Once you have developed a relationship, ask them to help you pin the decision-maker down

5. Be persistent

Persistence pays off – especially when it comes to large potential accounts. You may have to call many times before you can work your way through the gatekeeper, to the person you wish to speak to. Expect this, stay positive, and your persistence will pay off.

6. Use strong phone skills

You can create a great first impression on the phone when you cultivate great phone communication skills. Pay attention to the tone of your voice, whether or not you are smiling, the pacing of your sentences (slower is better), and general phone manners. Ensure you clearly identify who you are and what company you work for every time you speak to someone new.

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