Telemarketing, marketing in which sales people call potential customers by phone, is the second most common direct marketing method in the United States. Cold calling however is often not appreciated by the people who are called and so “Do not call” lists have been created in a number of areas.
The Advantages and Disadvantages of Telemarketing
Although cold calling is not popular with consumers, it is still very popular with marketers, why is this?
Well, firstly, telemarketing is a form of direct marketing that is not only trackable in terms of positive response but also gets you an immediate response – people will either react positively or negatively when you call them and you don’t need to wait to get their reactions.
The disadvantage is that telemarketing, and in particular cold calling, has a bad reputation with consumers who often link this to scams and illegal pyramid schemes. This means that people are often pre-disposed to give a negative response when they are contacted by telephone.
How to Use Telemarketing Effectively
If you are going to be using telemarketing to promote your business or products then it is important to do it correctly if you want the best results.
An excellent method when it comes to telemarketing is to do it in at least two calls – the first call to assess the potential customers needs and how your product may possibly be able to assist with meeting these needs (but no sales), and then the second or subsequent call to actually sell the product based on consumer needs.
You should also carefully consider where you get your telemarketing leads from. Try to get lists that are as targeted as possible and not simply every name in the phone book. The more targeted you can get with your lists, the better the response is likely to be.
Telemarketing is a form of marketing that can bring you immediate responses – either positive or negative. Unfortunately many people are already pre-disposed to give negative responses to cold calling and so it is important to go about telemarketing in the right way to get as many positive responses as possible.
