8 Practical Tips & Strategies for Effective Telemarketing

B2B telemarketing involves businesses calling potential clients for lead generation, prospecting, market research, and so on. Telephonic interaction with prospects offers greater scope for rapport building than digital marketing and email communication. Its cost-effectiveness, personalization capability, and faster response rate make teleselling a highly preferred mode for B2B lead generation.

Treading Cautiously with B2B Telemarketing Services

Despite the multiple advantages of B2B telemarketing services, businesses must tread carefully. Even the most high-investment teleselling efforts can fail if the approach is wrong or the strategies are outdated.

Tried and Tested Strategies for Successful Telemarketing

The success of B2B telemarketing services largely depends on the right telecallers, database, and processes. All of these require razor-sharp targeting and goal setting. In this regard, the following eight practical tips and strategies are expert-approved:-

• Review the Applicability of Telemarketing for the Product/Service Profile

Not all products and services are suitable for telephonic marketing and selling. Telemarketing can only help with initial lead segregation for exceedingly complicated products requiring in-person demonstration. Teleselling works best for the financial sector, technology industry, and even SaaS offerings to a great extent.

• Ensuring the Telemarketing Team doesn’t have Novices on board

It is a common cost-saving practice for businesses to hire freshers or part-timers on a temporary money-making stint. Despite intensive training, a novice telemarketing team will lack the commitment required to boost teleselling ROI. Hiring experienced callers will incur high costs. Hence, the best alternative for tight-budgeted businesses would be to liaise with a B2B telemarketing services provider.

• Regular Call Monitoring and Evaluations to Boost Efficiency

All calls must be recorded and analysed for telemarketing efforts to be highly productive. Trainers can listen, assess common mistakes, and suggest corrective measures immediately. Furthermore, weekly and monthly performance evaluations (and incentives) are necessary to motivate callers to perform better.

• Developing Robust Telemarketing SOPs for Follow-Up Calls

Conducting timely follow-ups without being intrusive is the essence of successful telemarketing. Sometimes, a prospect suggests a particular date or time for the next conversation. Using teleselling software will ensure much higher efficiency in follow-up calls. It will ensure zero lead leakage due to manual follow-up errors.

• Expediting Lead Generation with a B2B Contact Database Provider

Cold calling prospects that the marketing team has randomly skimmed from the internet usually invoke a lukewarm response. Telemarketing works best when there is precision-based targeting of qualified prospects. Teaming up with a B2B contact database provider enables telemarketers to contact potential buyers that match the ICP. Reaching out to a customized leads list can accelerate lead nurturing and conversions.

• Understanding the Target Audience for Realistic Goal Setting

Despite the earnestness of telemarketing efforts, there will always be 10% of prospects who will refuse outright. It is futile to try and entice them. Simultaneously, there will be 10% that express interest immediately. Realistic goal setting for telemarketers should focus on how well they can convince the remaining 80%.

• Follow Tactics to Speak with the Key Decision Makers

For B2B organizations, the biggest challenge is to communicate with purchase managers or HODs directly. Telemarketing calls are received mainly by secretaries/receptionists, making it difficult to reach the designations that matter. Callers must call when the screening probability is minimal. Furthermore, they should devise the script intelligently to cross this barrier.

• Ensuring the Telemarketing Team is Productive but not Overworked

Collaborating with a reputed B2B contact database provider is necessary to ensure telemarketers’ higher productivity. Providing them with an accurate and verified list of qualified prospects will ensure that they solely focus on lead nurturing and sales. Handing them an outdated database will lead to significant productivity loss.

Conclusion

Over the last decade, several businesses have dismissed outbound telemarketing as spamming or an outdated intrusive method. Citing low response rates, they have shifted their focus to online marketing. However, the truth is contrary to this perception. No other remote marketing technique provides the opportunity to resolve all queries directly and win the trust of potential clients. The instant communication ability provided by telemarketing is a boon for SMEs to attain phenomenal growth with minimal investment. When implemented well, teleselling can be a game-changer in terms of sales upliftment, market penetration, and brand building.

Read also: How does Telemarketing Fit into Sales and Marketing for Your B2B Enterprise?