Much of the allure of telemarketing lies in its ability to nurture prospects. But the problem many B2B executives have with it involves using the best approaches that secure a high number of conversions and promise a good increase in revenue.

Here are four essentials in successful telemarketing that are worth a gander, from 3D2B.com:

Get Buy-In for Telemarketing

Too often, telemarketing campaigns don’t have buy-in from the whole organization. It’s a key reason so many companies try telemarketing and fail. For telemarketing to be successful, it must be well coordinated, supported at the highest levels, and integrated with the organization’s strategic plan.

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Use Telemarketing to Bridge the Gap

Whether the telemarketing call center is internal or outsourced, a campaign can’t be conducted in the silo of either the sales or marketing department.

That’s because sales people tend to be focused on the short term – sales leads TODAY. Meanwhile, marketing is able to look at the big picture, keeping their eyes on the faraway horizon. By working with both departments, the telemarketing call center can stay on message, and build and nurture leads that are highly qualified by the time they’re handed over to sales. This creates teamwork between the departments– good for business today and in the future.

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Hire Well and Train Your Telemarketing Agents

Customers don’t want to talk to an agent who’s not on the same wavelength. Therefore, outsourcing telemarketing to third-world countries is risky because of cultural barriers and communication difficulties.

But language fluency is not the only requirement. Phone representatives must also have an in-depth knowledge of the industry, company, product and service offering. It takes a lot of training for agents to be able to engage with clients, answer questions accurately, and be equipped to follow up.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, they must have the ability to listen, and understand clients’ needs so they can solve problems and unearth opportunities.

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Measure Telemarketing Results

Many companies call a telemarketing campaign “successful” if they generate a pile of leads. But is it?

Any good business decision must be based on return-on-investment (ROI). That means looking at what it cost to generate the leads, the sales that were generated in the short term, and, in some industries, the potential lifetime value of sales from new, long-term customers.

Remember, telemarketing is based on building relationships. Don’t expect blowout results in the first weeks.

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