An experienced telemarketing partner can help you keep tabs on prospects, get your CRM house in order, and qualify leads for your sales team. But out of all the companies vying for your business, how do you choose the right one?
Partnering with the right company can make a substantial difference to your bottom line, so it pays to be choosy. To ensure you make the right decision, pay heed to the following steps:
1. Establish your business objectives
Before you start evaluating companies, define what you need that company to achieve. Different telemarketing companies might have different strengths, focusing on such diverse objectives as:
- Setting appointments with decision makers
- Distinguishing likely buyers from interested prospects
- Cleaning up CRM dataGathering sales intelligence and conducting market research that informs business decisions
What are you hoping to gain from the relationship with the company you choose?Do your objectives align with the company’s strengths? Can you quantify the desired results? Answering those questions will help you begin your search.
2. Evaluate tactics
Now that you’ve established objectives, it’s time to identify tactics that the company should use. After all, zeroing in on the most effective tactics to achieve your goals will help you identify the right partner.
For example, say you’re confident that a calling campaign is the best way to achieve your goals. You’ve seen the stats – like the recent survey by LinkedIn’s B2B Technology Marketing Community in which a majority of respondents reported calling campaigns as an “effective” tactic – and you’re ready to give it a go. Each niche has its own vernacular. Make sure the company you choose will be able to speak that “language”.
Also, don’t lose sight of the exposure your brand has in any calling campaign. What tactics do the companies you are contemplating use to protect our brand? And if they don’t understand your question when you ask about protecting the brand, that should be the last question you ask!
3. Analyze track records
The next step is figuring out which of those companies have performed well in the past. Ways to evaluate a company’s track record include:
- Reading case studies and verifying their validity
- Researching the company’s history; longevity and consistent growth in specific industries are really good signs.
- Speaking with a representative sampling of agents
- Speaking with clients in the same or similar industry
Don’t just ask about the company’s track record. Dig in a little so you can make an informed assessment.
4. Ask how the company will address your needs
What’s the company’s process? What steps does it take to help you meet your goals? Learning about a company’s process not only helps you understand whether it will address your specific objectives – it helps you know whether the company’s methods are appropriate and well-conceived.
Ask how the company manages list development. If you don’t have a list, from what source or sources can they acquire a list and do you own it? It is very important to own that list and all the data acquired during the course of your calling campaign. By starting with a more targeted list, a telemarketing partner stands a better chance of getting you where you need to be. It’s a key part of the process, and it’s something of which you, the buyer, need to be aware.
5. Align outcomes with objectives
Desired objectives and customized campaigns aren’t always the same thing, but they should be! As you wrap up your evaluation of a telemarketing company, ask whether the outcomes of the work it does clearly align with the objectives you’ve established.
For instance, if the company calls on your contacts from the last trade show, will it send you a lead only when it knows the lead is looking to buy in the near future? If so, does that outcome align with your specific business objective? When it does, there’s a good chance you’ve found the right partner.
Choosing the right telemarketing company takes time, but it’s so worth it when you find the right one! If you need a partner who can help you spearhead an intelligent, methodical calling campaign, contact Intelemark today.