The introduction of the Internet, social media, text messaging and email has allowed businesses to interact with their customers across many different touch points. With this technology companies have created forums, social networks and online communities that have delivered invaluable data which businesses are able to use to improve the products and services they offer. In the past, businesses used telemarketing to engage consumers and access valuable information from customers, but the process was time-consuming, expensive and not as productive as the current slate of technologies. But, if it is properly used, telemarketing is still a valuable tool to increase the connection to the community.
In a recent piece authored by Matt Ford on business2community.com,"Telemarketing to Increase Your Connection to Community," he makes the argument about why you shouldn't get rid of telemarketing, which is a very valid one.
Ford says, "In an age when communication itself creates spaces and communities, you’ll need all the tools to keep increasing your capacity to connect. The truth is even online boards have limitations when it comes keeping people connected."
What this means is that even when individuals engage with online marketers using social media, chat or email, the prospect still hasn't fully engaged with you because you're just a name and a profile on the screen. Telemarketing as well as other real-time communications solutions seal the deal when it comes to finalizing a transaction.
Telemarketing and social media on their own offer great potential, but when they are combined with a united marketing strategy it gives the business a clear advantage over organizations that use one or the other. The benefit of social media is it builds a strong awareness for a brand in a community, but there is a personal disconnect and that is where telemarketing comes in. Using the information obtained from social interactions of consumers, prospective clients can be contacted with telemarketing, warming up an otherwise cold call.
According to Nielsen, approximately 46 percent of online users count on social media when making a purchase decision; that means almost half of all people online are providing valuable data that can be used to provide a more personalized service using telemarketing. Knowing more about the people you're about to engage who are familiar with your brand makes it much easier to produce a successful outcome.
Edited by Rory J. Thompson
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