Telemarketing Software Featured Article

The sales call – it’s something that has to happen in order to drive bottom-line results, yet not everyone is equally skilled or trained to execute on the call correctly. This is especially true if your sales process is complex and requires a number of interactions over multiple months with several different stakeholders. The effectiveness of the sales conversation means everything.

A recent Business2Community post examined this challenge, especially in light of companies that pay more attention to the marketing message. Yes, it needs to be consistent with the sales message, but the marketing message sets the tone – the sales conversation closes the deal. Marketing starts the impression, but it’s up to your sales team to do something with it. Telemarketing software can help, but you have to get the basics down, first.

So what is a basic that every salesperson needs to know or be able to do? Take a conversation-first approach with the target customer. This is where companies often struggle. They are so focused on what they want the customer to know, they forget to consider what the customer wants to hear. Before you can define either focus, however, there are four key elements you need to define to ensure the effectiveness of your telemarketing software.

First, identify the types of sales conversations you intend to simulate when training your sales staff. These conversations need to closely mimic the conversations your customers want to have and the conversations that need to take place to get you to the next level. Second, identify who you need to have these conversations with so they can be programmed into your telemarketing software campaigns.

Next, identify what needs to happen so that more of these conversations will take place. This is an important step as these conversations lead to buying activities and the more often the conversations happen, the more you’re filling your sales funnel. Finally, identify those things that need to be executed so that the conversations are more effective. Wouldn’t it be great if you can fill that funnel with qualified leads that are ready to buy each time you advance them to the next level? To make this a reality, you have to identify those steps that must happen.

One of the best ways to start this process is to get your current sales team involved. Ask them where they feel conversations are already taking place or where they feel they aren’t equipped to have the desired conversations. You can then adjust your training accordingly and start moving your sales team to a conversation-first approach.