WHAT ARE THE KEY FACTORS THAT DETERMINE HOW WELL TELEMARKETING WILL WORK FOR YOUR COMPANY?
Virtually every time we are talking to a company that is considering using our b2b prospecting service, we get these questions.
Will this work for us? How fast will it work?
We have conducted over 1700 b2b telemarketing campaigns over the past 15 years. The majority of our campaigns have been successful as indicated by the 73 testimonials we have posted on our website. However,not all of our campaigns have been successful and some get results faster than others.
Here are the key factors that determine whether your telemarketing campaign will work and how fast it will work:
1. How Strong is Your Value Proposition?
Do you have a real value proposition that actually provides unique value for your clients. Do all of your competitors trumpet the same value proposition? If you send us off to call your prospects with a tired value proposition don’t expect many appointments. Prospects aren’t stupid. Often the best thing we can do for our clients is help them craft a stronger value proposition to give the campaign a fighting chance to succeed. We have heard them all so we will be honest
with you and tell you whether your value proposition will stand up to the steely disposition of a demanding prospect or whether it needs a major overhaul.
2. How Good is Your Proof?
Even a great value proposition can’t stand alone without proof. Prospects are tough. We have to name some names of your clients they have heard of or even better your clients in the same business they are in. The more closely related your proof is to their world, the more effective it will be in helping us generate an appointment for you. And if you can provide us with specific, easy to understand data that proves your value proposition that’s even better.
3. How Threatening is Your Call To Action?
If you want a face to face appointment that is the least desirable option for your prospect so you will need to make sure you have a strong value proposition and strong proof in order to get in front of them. If you scale it back to a telephone appointment as a 1st or 2nd option that is a little less threatening for your prospect.
If you have a particularly tough group of prospects to get an appointment with you may try inviting them to a webinar. A webinar is the least threatening for your prospect because they don’t have to deal directly with a salesperson. On most of our telemarketing campaigns we use a hierarchy of calls to action:
1. face to face appointment, 2. telephone appointment, 3. send information. If you can’t obtain an immediate appointment the key is to get your prospects into your sales pipeline so you can communicate with them on an ongoing basis and educate them about your product or service.
4. How Consistent is Your Follow Up?
Rarely do you get an appointment on the first call. It happens but not often enough to make a successful telemarketing campaign. You must have collateral ready to email to your prospects after you make that first call. We are experts at preparing compelling emails for your campaign that get read. And you have to keep sending emails on a consistent basis because it take multiple touches to get your prospects to pay attention to your message. We send follow up emails to your prospects every week. Our email tracking system tells us exactly which prospects are opening your emails most often. This allows us to zero in our calls on your absolute best prospects–the ones who are ready to buy your product or service.
Okay so how well will it work and how long will it take?
Every campaign is going to be in a different position with respect to these key factors. If you have a strong value proposition and strong proof then you can expect fast results on your telemarketing campaign. If your value proposition is strong but your proof is not fully developed because you haven’t been offering your service for very long, results will come more slowly. Or it may be difficult for us to come up with a really unique value proposition in your industry. We will work the best we can with what you have and we will do our best to position your company as powerfully as possible.
Your Ace in the Hole
If you believe in the principle of follow up, then your campaign is always going to work. If we keep hitting your prospects with your message even if your value proposition and your proof only stack up to a 5 out of 10, we will help you win the prospecting battle.
