Chapter 4

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The Strategies of Telemarketing

4.1 Preparing for the Telephone Sales Call

The fundamentals of any effective telephone system include:

• For prospecting, a concentrated block of time that you dedicate to your calls, not just one call between other activities.
• An objective for number of calls you want to complete per day.
• Your client or prospect list for the day -- in priority order.
• A well-organized desk and environment.
• An objective (what you want to see happen) for each call.
• A record of each call. (It should be the client information, details, next steps)
• A memo system to trigger actions and follow-up.

4.2 Getting Through to the Right Person

1. Finding the Decision Maker
   When dealing with a small business, it usually is not difficult to identify the individual with authority to make a decision; however, it is not so cut and dried when calling a large organization for the first time. Naturally, when a reliable source has recommended a specific individual as the decision maker, there is not any problem. But without the advantage of such information, getting through to the right person may require some fairly fancy footwork.

2. Getting Through the Third Party, the Screener
   A third party stands between the salesperson and the individual he is trying to reach. It may be a receptionist, an assistant, or a spouse. The most commonly encountered third party is probably the private secretary, and he is also the most skilled at screening calls.

3. Speaking with Authority
   This is especially important in getting through the screener, whose job is to separate trivial calls from important ones. Getting through the screener will never be a problem for you if you remember that you are important.

4. Leaving a Message
   Leaving a message that works is an integral part of selling on the telephone. Often, you will not be able to get through to an individual on the first call, so it will be necessary for you to call back or to leave a message.

5. Calling Back
   When an individual is difficult to reach and does not return your call, do not hesitate to call again. All these techniques take practice, but developing them is an essential part of good telephone selling. In short, you must get through to the prospect before anything can be sold.

There will always be some instances when a caller will have to make a series of calls before finally getting to talk directly with the prospect. One must work on establishing rapport with the screener, while maintaining an image of authority. Whether he leaves a message after the first call or the fourth, leaving an effective message also requires authority and a quiet suggestion of urgency.

4.3 Developing and Maintaining a Database

For telemarketers, a key source of data is the call report. The call report should capture the history of each account and give direction for future servicing. Basic data, which should go into the database, include the following:

• Key contact
• Title
• Telephone
• Best calling time
• Time zone
• Mailing and shipping address
• SIC # (standard industrial classification) if a business firm
• Source of original contact
• History of purchases
• Current buying pattern
• Special requirements
• Credit limit
• Personal notes
• Other products/services in the discussion stage
• Log of call by dates
• Follow-up call cycle

With these data safely stored in the computer, carrying on meaningful dialogues with a customer base becomes a piece of cake. The computer makes sure that each telephone salesperson is given a list of scheduled follow-up calls each day. Prior to each call the total picture of the account appears on the screen. Complete recall results. Even though a salesperson might have a block of four hundred accounts, he or she can be as knowledgeable in conversation with a given account as if the salesperson had none other to serve.

4.4 The Telephone Presentation

1. Do I use short, simple, uncomplicated words?
2. Do I mention a benefit to the prospect?
3. Do I express my prime message so it would be understood?
4. Do I maintain a positive mental attitude?
5. Do I emphasize the benefits of doing business with me and my company?
6. Do I have a professional way of "qualifying"?
7. Do I stick to a logical order in my presentation?
8. Do I have all the facts about my offering so I can answer any questions?
9. Do I smile before I pick up the telephone?
10. Do I ask for the order?

If the answer is "NO" to any of the above questions, positive steps must be taken to correct it. There are some rules that telemarketers should consider in marketing a telephone presentation:

1. Study your product or service: Write a list of all important features and, more important, their functions and benefits. Consider their price, quality, availability, and how they have helped others.

2. Analyze your prospect list: Determine your present customers, what they have been buying, and whom they've been buying from lately. If former customers, why did they stop buying? What do you know about them? Have you done your homework to determine their possible needs and wants? Also, what might they know about you that would make it easier for them to understand your company? The more information you have , the easier it will be to select the proper opening remarks and the best sales approach to use.

3. Write out or use your computer to list the key ideas you want to cover: Make sure all vital points are included. By covering all the main points you want to review, you are essentially preparing a presentation.

4. Get attention and interest, which is the warm-up portion vital to success in any effort to sell by telephone: Always smile, then (a) greet the prospect by name. During your opening comments, refer to how you obtained his or her name and company; (b) introduce yourself by making a simple statement of your name and company; (c) make an attention-getting statement by appealing to the prospect's self-interest or curiosity. It should be brief and to the point. A statement such as this deserves a great deal of care and preparation.

5. Create a desire for the product or service: Your voice alone has to do the selling. You have to tell your prospects what you are offering, why they need it; what it will do for them; and how, when, and where they can get it. The price and service may be discussed. Be creative and add a little sparkle to your sales talk. By knowing your product, you should be in a good position to create this appealing statement in such a way that the prospects can visualize from your words exactly what you mean.

6. You must describe the product realistically: Speak in terms that your prospect will understand and relate to. Smile before you pick up the telephone.

7. Give all necessary facts: Don't assume or leave anything to the interpretation of the listener( be specific.

In addition, the following are some techniques of selling that the caller should take into account. (Please see Table 4.1)

• Be prepared to talk when your prospect answers your call: Know about your product, its applications, availability, pricing, and benefits. Don't call unless you can devote your entire attention to the call. Review all past relevant information about the prospect before you pick up the receiver to dial.

• Speak distinctly in an ordinary conversational tone: You are talking with prospects and you want to make them friends and customers. Avoid technical phrases or jargon they may not understand. Talk your story; don't read it. Help your prospect to buy( use word pictures to specifically describe your product and what it will do. Be specific in size, color, application, and so forth. Use sparkle in your presentation. Avoid generalities and vague comparisons. Give customers a choice when you ask for an order or set up an appointment.

• Be polite, don't argue: You may win an argument and lose the sale. Smile before you pick up the phone so the customer hears a smile in your voice.

• Follow through: Do what you agree to do, whether it was to put something in the mail, follow up at a later date, set up an appointment, or contact someone else. Don't be discouraged in the course of your selling effort. The cost of using the telephone is so low that you can afford many unsuccessful calls to develop one good prospect or make a sale. The more calls you make without a sale, the closer you are to getting one. You should understand how to improve after each call.

  Table 4.1 Do's and Don'ts of Telemarketing

  DO NOT		DO
  1	Scowl	1	Smile
  2	Mutter	2	Speak clearly and politely
  3	Sound tired	3	Be enthusiastic
  4	Speak in a monotonous tone	4	Lower the pitch of your voice for friendly conversation
  5	Be negative	5	Talk in a positive mood
  6	Be overconfident	6	Be prepared to answer objections
  7	Talk down into transmitter	7	Talk directly into mouthpiece
  8	Ramble	8	Come to the point( ask for the appointment or sale
  9	Do something to the customer	9	Do something for the customer
  10	Argue	10	Discuss
  11	Hang up abruptly if service is refused	11	Politely thank the customer for listening to you
  12	Assume you are understood	12	Ask to find out
  13	Be overwhelming	13	Use a cassette recorder to hear how you sound

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  4.5 When to Call

  When the salesperson approaches a prospect at the wrong time, nothing the salesperson says will bring a favorable response. Timing is of the utmost importance. The telephone company has prepared statistical information showing when is the best time for calling various people based on other priorities they may have their time:
  1. Lawyers: between 11:00 A.M. and 2:00 P.M. or after 5:00 P.M.
  2. Housewives and families: between 6:00 and 8:00 P.M.
  3. Contractions and builders: before 9:00 A.M. and after 5:00 P.M.
  4. Chemists and engineers: between 4:00 and 5:00 P.M.
  5. Executives and heads of business: after 10:30 A.M.
  6. Public accountants: any time but avoid January 15th through April 15th

  Sales professionals analyze the work and home habits of their prospects and call at the appropriate time. When they get to the appointment, they ask, "What time would you prefer I call you in the future?" If you have trouble getting by a secretarial screen, try calling before 8 A.M., noon to 1 P.M., or after 5 P.M. Business people have a tendency to answer their own telephone when their secretaries are out.

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  4.6 Using an 800 Number

  In 1992, thirteen billion calls were made to 800 numbers, yielding sales of $7.73 billion. By 1997, sales from 800 numbers are expected to be $11.4 billion.

  Offering a toll-free number encourages the customers and prospects to call, and many telecommunications companies have cost-effective services for small businesses. In many parts of the country, an 800 number service can be obtained and the area for which toll-free calling is provided can be specified. In other words, calls can be limited to certain parts of a state, region, or city, and a toll-free number provided just for customers in those areas.

  Today, 800 number services are available through local Bell companies and through national long-distance firms, so there is usually a choice of vendors. Often an 800 service can be obtained without having to change the firm's phone number. Here's an example of some of the options and services that may be available. They are provided for customers of Pacific Bell who use "Custom 800" service:

  • You may take your number with you if you move. For example, real estate agents working for one firm and using their own 800 number can take it with them if they move to another firm. (Clients will still call the same 800 number they are used to and still get the same sales agent)

  • The area served can be as small as the territory covered by one three-digit phone number prefix, or you may specify several different areas.

  • Printed reports from Pacific Bell, sorted by phone number, will tell you the prefixes your calls come from. They will also identify the area codes and prefixes for people who tried to call you toll-free but could not because they were outside your specified 800-number area.

  • You can have calls routed to different offices at different times of the day. For example, if you have two offices that are staffed at different hours, you could have all 800 calls routed to one office during normal business hours and calls after hours routed to another office.

    Services and costs vary substantially, so it's in a company's interest to check with different companies in an area. Firms levy setup charges and will charge extra for written usage reports in addition to the charges for each call. One question to ask 800-number provider is how the toll charges are billed. Some firms charge a flat rate per call, which may be more expensive than doing business with a company that bases the toll fees on the distance each call travels.

    800 numbers are most commonly used in conjunction with direct mail offers, but once a number is established, the firm should use it on all materials such as stationery, brochures, specialty items, and so forth, as a benefit to customers. An 800-number can enhance the marketing power of promotional materials. A "hot-line" for answering questions can also be established. There are different types of toll-free numbers. The local phone company can discuss costs and options. However, if a firm goes through the expense of establishing an 800 number, it should make sure it has a staff person ready to answer the calls.

    Americans order millions of dollars in goods over the telephone every day, establishing a toll-free phone number is an effective way to greatly increase the response rate of promotional efforts.

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    4.7 Using a 900 Number

    The use of an 800 number, the cost is paid by the marketer. But, the use of the 900 number, the cost is paid by the consumer. The marketer determines the price.

    The marketing advantages of the 900 number are as follows:

    • Recoup the cost of promotions.
    • Generate detailed customer databases.
    • Provide national of regional coverage.
    • Provide an instant response mechanism for print, broadcast, and direct-mail campaigns.
    • Produce qualified leads for sampling and couponing.
    • Offer measurability within hours or even minutes of a promotion or campaign.
    • Provide an interactive "one-on-one" selling opportunity.

    Since audiotex is integral to the 900 number process, the marketer gets an invaluable printout of the names and addresses of all who call. The value of this mailing list can be further enhanced with a demographic overlay that profiles the characteristics of the respondents. Thus the marketer gets a clear picture of the marketplace and knows what other media mirror the established profile.

    The 900-number is a new way of marketing a business and in some cases it is the business itself. A 900-number is a real advantage to businesses who offer referral information or services for which people are willing to pay. Basically a business pays an installation fee and then can charge a caller from anywhere.

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    4.8 The Critical Skills on Telemarketing

    In each of the elements in the telephone call framework (opening, client, positioning, objections, close, and follow-up), the following six critical selling skills are used over and over. They are the tools for selling.
    • Presence
    • Relating
    • Questioning
    • Listening
    • Positioning
    • Checking

    The skill level determines selling strength and flexibility. These skills are used over and over throughout the sales process( as the telemarketer, finds needs, matches up a product or idea with the client's needs, resolves objections, and closes, these skills are used continuously. These skills are interdependent, they will help a telemarketer become a valued consultant to clients, know more about the clients, and sell more to them.

    1. Presence

       Presence is the level of comfort and confidence that a telemarketer projects. Through presence an individual can engage the audience's attention. Voice presence can have an impact on telephone sales success. Voice presence is created by tone, pace, diction, inflection, level of enthusiasm, confidence, wit, and the ability to think on one's feet.

       Although sales enthusiasm may come naturally in face-to-face calls, it requires special effort in telephone sales calls. Most salespeople would not appear bored when meeting with a client face to face, but in telephone selling sustaining interest and enthusiasm in one's voice can be challenging. The more one modulates his voice, usually the more interesting he sounds. He can emphasize words with his voice.

       Keeping an interested and positive voice when selling over the telephone is even more of a challenge in highly routinized and comparatively unchallenging telephone selling situations. Some selling borders on order taking, when salespeople have to take information only to make a referral to a different division. Salespeople in these rote roles can drift into sounding bored. To avoid this, remember that the objective at all times is to create a positive image of the organization to the client as well as to sell or close profitable business.

       Whether a telemarketer is taking information or a message for a colleague, he should remember the following:

       In conjunction with the other critical skills, presence adds to sales strength and flexibility and helps create a flow between the client's needs and the telemarketer's products.

       Relating

       If you cannot relate to your clients, you won't sell to them. This is as much a rule of human nature as it is a rule of selling. Relating is even more of a challenge over the phone, since the phone can depersonalize the situation. Yet it is possible to establish rapport and build relationships over the telephone.

       Successful salespeople do have strong relationships with their clients, but they also know where to draw the line between what is friendship and what is business. A good relationship forms the basis for good business. What is a business relationship but a series of transactions? In most businesses, important transactions don't occur without a relationship. Whether it is primarily a one-time sale or there is the potential for ongoing business, rapport helps form the foundation so that a transaction or many transactions can take place. Rapport goes beyond small talk. Rapport is consideration and thoughtfulness; it is trust and value added.

       Questioning

       Being able to establish rapport and knowing how to question are the heart of consultative selling. Salespeople who increase their questions increase their sales. Because of the generic product environment of the nineties and the fact that product alone cannot be counted on to be the differentiator, questioning is more important than ever. This is because questions enable a person to position (tell a story from the client's point of view). But it is easy to fall into the trap of "telling," especially over the telephone. Of course there are times to tell, but how a person tells will be determined by what is asked and what is heard. Questions will help keep a person on at least a parallel track and eventually get on the same track as the client. Questions will also help qualify clients.

       A look at the range of questions that will need to be asked and then the questioning skills which should be employed to ask them follows:

       A. Decision-Making Questions
       
       • Who are the key contacts on the account( decision makers and influencers?
         "How does your decision-making process work?"
         "Who will be involved?"
         "How long do you need to reach a decision?"
         

       B. Relationship Questions
       

       • "How are we doing?" (How the client sees the relationship with you, performance, and his or her relationship with competitors.)
       • "Am I doing the right thing?" "What do you want me to do?" (Action steps) (How you as an individual salesperson are meeting the client's needs.)
       • "How satisfied have you been with our service except for this? How do you feel we handled...?"
       • "Is our billing detailed and timely enough for you?" (Logistics of the account.)
       • "When is a good time to call?" "When shall I call back?"
       • "May I ask who you do business with?" "Who is the best? What do you like about them? Who else do you work with?"
       • "Who else have you spoken to? Have you gotten proposals? What do you think...?"

       C. Operation Questions
       

       • "How do you do it?" (How does the client's production or organization work?)
       • "How many or how often...? What is their...?"
       • "What budget have you set?" (Does this customer qualify?)

       D. Problem Questions
       

       • "What is going on? What would your ideal situation be?" "What gaps do you see? (Don't ask this question too early( the right to have it answered must be earned.)

       E. Strategy Questions
       

       • "What is your strategy/thinking in...?"
       • "May I ask why you want to go from X to Y?" (For example, manual to computer( find out why the customer wants to change.)
       • "How will... affect autonomy of..." (Changing roles in client organization.)
       • "Longer range, how are you...?" (Checking the 5-year plan.)

       F. Interpersonal Questions
       

       • "Where do you live?" "Where do you go on vacation?" (What are the client's interests, family, situations?)

       G. Need Questions
       

       • "Where are you looking to achieve?" "How is that working?"
       • "To what extent have you bought...?" (Likes/dislikes( what does the client buy/not buy?)

       Questions are the tools used to help clients. They get beneath the surface of demands, and they expose needs. If a caller doesn't let clients talk, he may never get to know what their concerns are, and will probably miss getting their business. Questions are the best way to get them to talk; then he must listen well and leverage what is learned.

       Listening

       Being a good listener is one of the critical skills in selling, whether the selling is face to face or over the telephone, but listening is even more important in telephone selling.

       Some tips for developing telephone listening skills are:

       • Do not interrupt. Be conscious of this. Let yourself be interrupted; stop talking and listen.

       • Make an effort to focus on what the client is saying. You are "on duty," so stay tuned in. Don't mentally abandon your post. Take notes as you listen and underline words your clients underscore with their voices so you can incorporate them in what you say.

       • Listen for pivotal words, wide words, key ideas, words that are inflected, and concerns and jot them down. These can be neon words that light up the client's voice or wide or ambiguous words you will need to clear up.

       • Listen for tone and pace and match both to become congruent with the clients, not to mimic them. For example, if the client is speaking softly and slowly, you are bound to be out of sync if you are loud and fast. Slow it up and soften it a bit to create a congruency. Pick up the client's approach and language. For instance, when the client is upbeat and highly articulate, be upbeat, articulate; when the client is serious and straightforward, be serious, straightforward. Always be professional. Avoid being down.

       • Be careful in how and when you use jargon. Jargon is good shorthand only if everybody understands it. Often in a face-to-face call you can read confusion or a question from the client's expression, but over the telephone this is not possible. So limit your use of jargon unless you are absolutely certain the client is familiar with it. When you do use a term that your client may or may not know, briefly define it, almost parenthetically. And as you cover each key point, remember to check if the client has any questions.

       Positioning Product

       Positioning is truly the super skill. By knowing the client's perceptions, preferences, and needs a telemarketer will be able to craft his product or idea accordingly. Positioning enables one to personalize, tailor, and get into a flow with the client.

       To help position a product as it is sold over the telephone a telemarketer can follow these suggestions:

       • Play devil's advocate before you pick up the telephone and ask yourself "What is in it for the client?"

       • Come up with three compelling reasons why this client might be interested in your product. But remember to use the reasons one at a time and to check (question) before and after each one.

       • Do your homework on your clients and their organizations( begin to identify their business and nonbusiness needs.

       • Know your features and benefits so you know what you are talking about.

       • Ask "open" need and strategy questions so that you will understand the client.

       • Listen.

       • Tailor your statements and questions to the client you are approaching. An engineer may want to know details on how things work, but a purchasing manager may want to focus more on price and warranties.

       • Personalize your messages as well. Ask questions to get specific information on each client's approach and style.

       • Use your total offer. (core and value-added features and benefits)

       • Know your objective. For example, if you are an institutional salesperson, ask yourself if this is a call to do a trade now or a call to build the relationship for a trade in the future?

       • Plan your action step( know what your follow-up plan is and initiate it.

       • Use your features and benefits one at a time (at most two at a time) and check for feedback.

       • Use benefits early or your client is likely to say, "Listen, I've got to go."

       • When you don't have an answer, say, "Let me look into that. What specifically...? When...?"

       • Be selective. You have limited time over the telephone, so select key features and benefits and present them with an eye toward what the client wants to do.

       • Link features with their benefits by using words such as which means and so that to bond features with benefits. ("feature" which means "benefit")

       • Listen to what your clients say and incorporate their ideas into your responses.

       • Take notes as you listen so that you can incorporate your client's words now and again later. But don't repeat inflammatory words such as "absurdly low trade-in figure" which may further reinforce a misperception.

       • Listen to the client's voice. Read between the lines and adjust.

       • Speak your client's language.

       • Avoid jargon unless you are talking to another "Pro." Jargon is a great shorthand only if everyone understands it.

       • Match the client's level of sophistication( avoid talking down to clients or talking over their heads.

       • Be accurate in the information you provide, but don't wait until you have perfect information. Let your clients know when your information may be imperfect, but also let them know you care about giving timely information.

       • Choose your own words selectively. Avoid phrases such as "You wouldn't be interested in..." or "I'm just calling about..." Instead, use persuasive, confident words.

       • Avoid the term product. It is better to say, "We have a way to increase interest..." rather than, "We have a product called X."

       • Check( ask for feedback, keep the dialogue going, get a measure of how you are doing throughout the call, especially since you don't have the benefit of reading the clients' facial expressions to gauge their reactions. Keep checking. Keep asking, "How does that sound?" Get feedback.

       • Keep a positive attitude( remain helpful.

       Checking

       Checking lets a person get feedback from a client on what is being discussed. Checking means asking questions to gauge the client's reactions and is an essential skill in telephone selling, since one cannot see the client's reactions. Checking helps avoid waiting until the end of the call, if even then, to find out where the client is.

       Checking means asking the client questions throughout the call to get direct feedback on what was just said. Checking allows one to find out something far more important than what he thinks. It helps find out what the client thinks.

       Checking is not designed to get the client to say yes. It is designed to get at what the client thinks( Yes or No. Checking is an essential skill for salespeople who want to know, really know, their clients' needs and how well they stack up to meet them. It's designed to get good or bad feedback so that the salesperson can position and close.

       All six critical skills( presence, rapport, questioning, listening, positioning, and checking( work together. They are interrelated, they form a skill set. A weakness in any one of these six critical skills will lower overall performance. The six critical skills are sales muscles; they provide sales strength and flexibility for salespeople.

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       Last update: May 15, 1995; Version 1.0.1

       This page was made by Alex Tsai .

       You may email any suggestions to:

       ksiwww@ksi.edu

       Don't Say	Do Say
       "Name" "Address"	"Thank you for calling." "So that we can get X to you, I need some information. Your name please? Mr...., your address?... Thank you. Your X will be to you..."
       "Your number"	"May I ask for the account number for X account, Mr.... please?" "Thank you very much."