The in-house telemarketing campaign

If you want to embark upon an in-house telemarketing campaign, it is absolutely vital to plan this very thoroughly. You’ll need to plan the objectives, the words spoken, the tone, the mood and the follow-up. Without this, your efforts could damage your business.

Consider these guidelines:

• Setting objectives
  You must be clear on what you want to achieve by the call. Have secondary objectives too. You won’t always get a firm commitment from the prospective customer but aim to get something from the call – a name of someone else who may be interested, an email address, an agreement to call back in the future, a reason why they do not want to commit.
• Developing a script
  To guide a conversation in the right direction, overcome objections and ensure that accurate information is collected and relayed, always use a script.

  A script keeps costs down by ensuring the call follows a logical sequence and doesn’t go off track. It also provides accurate descriptions of product features and model answers to potential questions or objections. It is very important to rehearse a script though to make it sound as natural and conversant as possible. It is very off-putting if a caller sounds like they are reading from a script.

• Keeping records up to date
  An accurate database is crucial to any direct marketing activity to ensure you are not wasting your own time, or that of the people you are calling. Even if you are doing in-house telemarketing, you might want to source a database externally.

  Equally, a strong sales management information system is vital to ensure that you follow up at the right time with the right information. Your reputation could be severely damaged if you have a successful call and then fail to deliver on your promises.

• Making the call
  Choose a convenient time to make the call based on what you know about the business. As soon as the call is answered, make sure you’re talking to the right person i.e. the decision maker. Identify yourself by name, declare your status and clearly state the purpose of the call. If it’s to follow up a lead generated by an advertising or direct mail campaign, say so. Talk slowly and clearly and keep to the script as much as possible, making sure you are always polite and answer the prospect’s questions.

  At the end of any conversation the next steps (if any) should be agreed and clearly understood by both parties. These could include:

  • An appointment is arranged
  • Further information is to be supplied
  • A call-back date is fixed
  • Your product / service is delivered
  • The prospect isn’t interested.

  Unless there’s no interest, always confirm the content (or action items) from any conversation as soon as possible in writing. Use any information gained in the conversation to update your database immediately and diary the next contact date if appropriate.

• Keeping motivated
  For the non-telemarketing pro – this activity is rarely one that is relished. Rejection rates are massive. It is not unrealistic to have to make 100 calls to get one sale. The vast majority will not be available, many will simply not be interested in hearing what you have to say, and others will not be ready to commit today. It can be soul destroying.

  The best way to counter this is to limit the amount of time you spend making calls for your in-house telemarketing campaign in one sitting (to say 2-3 hours), make as many calls as you can in this time, and don’t forget to congratulate yourself on the achievement of all objectives – primary and secondary.

Consult our telemarketing top tips for more help.

As with all direct marketing you need to be aware of the legal issues when carrying our an in-house telemarketing campaign. For example, it is illegal to communicate by telephone with anyone registered with the Telephone Preference Service if you do not have their permission first.

Should you decide that enlisting the help of an external agency for your campaign, our page on recruiting a telemarketing agency should help.