Whether or not telemarketing is effective for your company is a subject for debate. On one hand, many businesses view it as a viable marketing process that encourages lead generation which can result in sales. Others see it as a total waste of time. It’s clearly a matter of perception.

Are you considering incorporating telemarketing as part of your company’s marketing? Its effectiveness is best explained by noting the advantages as well as disadvantages of using telemarketing. We list them below to aid in your decision making.

We start by explaining what the concept entails.

What is Telemarketing?

This is generally a form of direct marketing where a telemarketer solicits a prospective client into buying the company’s product or service. As the name suggests, this is done via telephone but also through the internet.

Benefits of Telemarketing

One of the notable benefits of telemarketing is that you’re guaranteed immediate feedback from the customer regarding their level of interest in your product or service. If a prospective customer isn’t interested in what you have to say they’ll simply tell you. This makes it highly measurable allowing you to keep track of its cost effectiveness.

Other advantages include the following:

• The service offered via telemarketing is more interactive and personal. Building relationships and customer loyalty is made easier if the customer decides to engage your services.
• Any technical issues are addressed clearly. Customers will get clarification immediately on any matters they aren’t clear about regarding a service or product.
• As mentioned earlier, it’s a quick and effective way to generate leads and schedule appointments.
• If done right, you can conclude a sale right away.
• Telemarketing allows you to reach a wider target audience. Your prospective customer is only a phone-call away regardless of their location. This makes it much easier than visiting customers door-to-door.
• You can use this platform to sell products or services to both new and existing customers.
• If done correctly and successfully, telemarketing can be very cost-effective.

Drawbacks of Telemarketing

Unfortunately many customers view telemarketing as very annoying. In addition statistics show that it takes an average of 80 calls for you to find a sales opportunity. Sounds pretty daunting, right?

Other drawbacks associated with telemarketing include the following:

• Unfortunately some customers won’t have the slightest interest in what your employees have to say. You’ll need to ensure you have a highly motivated workforce who won’t be discouraged if the call doesn’t yield positive results.
• If conducted poorly, telemarketing could damage your business reputation.
• In most cases, deciding to incorporate telemarketing in organisations may render the sales team redundant. This can lead to a demotivated marketing and sales team.
• If you’re outsourcing the telemarketing function, you risk losing control over your sales processes. It’s difficult to instil your organisational culture into employees from other companies.
• Training personnel for telemarketing can be a very costly exercise—not to mention time consuming. Telemarketing is mostly an acquired skill that needs practice and patience to master.
• Aside from training costs, customer lists can also be very expensive. If not that, you may find the contact information outdated and as a result you can’t use it.

Handy Tips

Telemarketing can be an effective tool for your business. You can easily generate more profit or improve your brand awareness as a business. But here’s the catch: only if used right.

As mentioned earlier, a few people find receiving calls from random companies irritating. You can teach your staff the following tips to make your prospective customers more receptive to what your employees have to say. Telemarketers must:

• Try to sound more casual but still professional during the call. Customers aren’t as receptive to telemarketers who sound scripted.
• Closely linked to the above is the fact that staff must first establish rapport with the prospective customer. Ask how their day is going and not jump straight into bombarding the prospect with product information. They’ll be met with resistance or worse still—a dropped call.
• Be knowledgeable about the product or service they’re selling or promoting. Make sure staff can answer all questions asked by the prospect. Failure to do so will simply frustrate the customer.
• Smile while talking to the customer. The customer can’t see them, but smiling automatically makes the staff member sound both pleasant and fun to talk to.

Final Thoughts

So, is telemarketing useful to your organisation? Quite frankly, yes. You only need to train your staff well and teach them to persevere—even if they’re met with resistance. After all, it comes with the job. Telemarketers must simply focus on their goals and targets and never give up.

Professionalism and etiquette are crucial characteristics. This must be displayed at all times by your staff otherwise it reflects badly on the company as a whole.

Will you be trying it? Let us know how it goes.