Videoblog: How to get the best from your telemarketer
Sometimes picking up the phone and talking to a prospect can be really hard, so you look at outsourcing to a telemarketer.
I was fortunate enough to spend some time with multi lingual telemarketer, Shaun Gisbourne, and he agreed to allow me to video him ‘Au Naturel’ and unscripted, he shares some tips on how to get the best performance from your telemarketer which will ultimately lead to better results for you and your business.
If you have any questions, please leave a comment, Shaun has agreed to drop by and answer them.
Thank you Shaun, for taking the time to share in more detail about the work you do, it’s an excellent insight.
About Sarah ArrowSarah Arrow is the managing editor of Birds on the Blog, in real life she is the communications director of a same day courier service. She is an enthusiastic UK based pro-blogger and co- author of the soon to be published Zero to Blogger
View all posts by Sarah Arrow →
17 Responses to Videoblog: How to get the best from your telemarketer
All that jazz – All in A Day
Review of: Cousin Alice Jazz Music by Cousin Alice: Elaine Sturgess Reviewed by: Elaine Sturgess Rating: 5 On January 21, 2012 Last modified: January 30, 2012 Summary: What makes Alice so distinctive is her wonderfully smokey voice, a quality that furniture designer William Yeoward found so arresting at a concert she was performing for the [...]
Very interesting and extremely useful. Thanks for that!
Shaun, if you’ve got time to answer a question, I’m intrigued to notice that there is still a lot of uneasy feeling about long-distance telemarketing, i.e. people in a call centre several thousand miles away who have never been to Europe, calling and selling to a script.
Is there a trend now towards reducing that type of telemarketing? Does it, as many people say, give telemarketing a bad name?
Twitter: SuzeStMWrites
Very interesting and extremely useful. Thanks for that!
Shaun, if you’ve got time to answer a question, I’m intrigued to notice that there is still a lot of uneasy feeling about long-distance telemarketing, i.e. people in a call centre several thousand miles away who have never been to Europe, calling and selling to a script.
Is there a trend now towards reducing that type of telemarketing? Does it, as many people say, give telemarketing a bad name?
Twitter: SuzeStMWrites
Pingback: uberVU - social comments
Nice one, Shaun – a lot of commonsense stemming from a lot of experience
Twitter: Linda_Mattacks
Nice one, Shaun – a lot of commonsense stemming from a lot of experience
Twitter: Linda_Mattacks
Great video blog Shaun,
One question that springs to mind that I would be gratefull if you could answer is regarding the ‘data age’ how is this determined and is there a way of collating this data efficiently?
thanks
Kev
Great question re data Kevin. There are two types of data: Your own carefully constructed data that you gain from business cards the internet and other sources. This can age quickly if you fail to keep in regular contact with the people in it.
The other kind of data is acquired from a dedicated data source such as CorpData or Harte Hanks. It is their duty to comply with laws governing the sale of the data. In real terms that means they need to ensure the data has been checked against the latest “Do No Call” registry, known as the TPS in the United Kingdom. In CorpData’s case, the data has an average age of 94 days. They make a point of this in their marketing communication.
Great video blog Shaun,
One question that springs to mind that I would be gratefull if you could answer is regarding the ‘data age’ how is this determined and is there a way of collating this data efficiently?
thanks
Kev
Great question re data Kevin. There are two types of data: Your own carefully constructed data that you gain from business cards the internet and other sources. This can age quickly if you fail to keep in regular contact with the people in it.
The other kind of data is acquired from a dedicated data source such as CorpData or Harte Hanks. It is their duty to comply with laws governing the sale of the data. In real terms that means they need to ensure the data has been checked against the latest “Do No Call” registry, known as the TPS in the United Kingdom. In CorpData’s case, the data has an average age of 94 days. They make a point of this in their marketing communication.
Thank you all for your questions:
To Suze – The trend of calling from distant lands into the UK for example, is sourcing cheap labour in the hope of selling. That trend will continue as long as it’s still profitable.
Let’s be clear: We’re all selling, and we’re all trying to create relationships. If people buy from those they know, like and trust, then accept that it can take more time than just one telephone call to acquire a customer. People usually know when a script is being used.
In many cases the phone is a tool and telemarketing is an activity. It’s purpose is largely to screen people for relationship potential.
Re Suze’s point on telemarketing calls & Shaun’s reply:
I don’t mind where the person’s calling from in theory provided:
The technology doesn’t create long pauses that stultify conversation
They mention nothing about hoping I’m having a nice day
If they’re using my name they can pronounce it (and know in advance whether I’m male or female)
Their accent isn’t so pronounced that I have difficulty following what they’re saying
What they’re talking about is of interest to me
They’re not calling me on a line I’ve registered with TPS
… to name but a few
. Sadly, in reality the first four often DO occur when the call is being made from distant lands…
I feel sorry for the individuals but could mangle their ‘masters’ for putting them and me through that!
Twitter: Linda_Mattacks
Thank you all for your questions:
To Suze – The trend of calling from distant lands into the UK for example, is sourcing cheap labour in the hope of selling. That trend will continue as long as it’s still profitable.
Let’s be clear: We’re all selling, and we’re all trying to create relationships. If people buy from those they know, like and trust, then accept that it can take more time than just one telephone call to acquire a customer. People usually know when a script is being used.
In many cases the phone is a tool and telemarketing is an activity. It’s purpose is largely to screen people for relationship potential.
Re Suze’s point on telemarketing calls & Shaun’s reply:
I don’t mind where the person’s calling from in theory provided:
The technology doesn’t create long pauses that stultify conversation
They mention nothing about hoping I’m having a nice day
If they’re using my name they can pronounce it (and know in advance whether I’m male or female)
Their accent isn’t so pronounced that I have difficulty following what they’re saying
What they’re talking about is of interest to me
They’re not calling me on a line I’ve registered with TPS
… to name but a few
. Sadly, in reality the first four often DO occur when the call is being made from distant lands…
I feel sorry for the individuals but could mangle their ‘masters’ for putting them and me through that!
Twitter: Linda_Mattacks
Linda, if you’ve seen the film Slumdog Millionaire, you may remember the main character Jamal Malik, played by Dev Patel, being asked to cover on the phone for one of his colleagues. Reluctantly he does and he’s put into contact with a woman from Scotland. The awkwardness of the contact between Jamal and the woman is clear: She thinks he’s from somewhere far away and he lies, pretending to know “the loch” near her home. Funny in this case but commonly all too frustrating in reality.
The point here is that you have to look for areas of agreement as soon as possible. All too often a call centre worker is just trying to sell a package and has no interest in learning anything about the would-be customer. Result: Annoyance for the would be customer, demoralaising for the call centre worker.
Hi Shaun!
I believe we’re seeing the elephant and looking at it from slightly different perspectives – well, there’s a surprise…
Shaun, maybe you should create another post or series of posts/videos, along the lines of:
“Telemarketing and Call Centres: What’s the purpose/ what’s the difference/ what’s the deliverable(s)?”
“Why should I outsource and what are my options as an a) Sole trader b) Start up c) Small business?”
“If I run a medium to large business, why should I even consider outsourcing telemarketing activities?”
“How do I know who to outsource to?”
“What are the agreed parameters so we can logically and fairly judge the outcomes?”
Going back to one of Shaun’s key points in the video:
Raw data is traditionally perceived as decidedly ‘unsexy’ and is often handed over to junior staff who:
Don’t know what they should be checking for
Have no particular interest in the ‘project’
Already have more than enough hierarchical demands on their time…
There you go: You can absolutely LOADS of fun with this – however, wherever
…
Twitter: Linda_Mattacks
Linda, if you’ve seen the film Slumdog Millionaire, you may remember the main character Jamal Malik, played by Dev Patel, being asked to cover on the phone for one of his colleagues. Reluctantly he does and he’s put into contact with a woman from Scotland. The awkwardness of the contact between Jamal and the woman is clear: She thinks he’s from somewhere far away and he lies, pretending to know “the loch” near her home. Funny in this case but commonly all too frustrating in reality.
The point here is that you have to look for areas of agreement as soon as possible. All too often a call centre worker is just trying to sell a package and has no interest in learning anything about the would-be customer. Result: Annoyance for the would be customer, demoralaising for the call centre worker.
Hi Shaun!
I believe we’re seeing the elephant and looking at it from slightly different perspectives – well, there’s a surprise…
Shaun, maybe you should create another post or series of posts/videos, along the lines of:
“Telemarketing and Call Centres: What’s the purpose/ what’s the difference/ what’s the deliverable(s)?”
“Why should I outsource and what are my options as an a) Sole trader b) Start up c) Small business?”
“If I run a medium to large business, why should I even consider outsourcing telemarketing activities?”
“How do I know who to outsource to?”
“What are the agreed parameters so we can logically and fairly judge the outcomes?”
Going back to one of Shaun’s key points in the video:
Raw data is traditionally perceived as decidedly ‘unsexy’ and is often handed over to junior staff who:
Don’t know what they should be checking for
Have no particular interest in the ‘project’
Already have more than enough hierarchical demands on their time…
There you go: You can absolutely LOADS of fun with this – however, wherever
…
Twitter: Linda_Mattacks