Marketing

Telemarketing – The Effective Way

I can say with absolute certainty that the vast majority of accountants seeking my services have at some time or another used telemarketing to boost client numbers.

There is a fatal flaw in what many of the telemarketing companies actually do…

In the majority of cases you will pay for an appointment. In turn the telemarketing company pays the individual telemarketer a bonus for that appointment.

Therefore there is one and only one objective – an appointment. There is no matching of expectations, no qualifying of suitability. The process because of the reward structure is firmly geared towards the appointment. In reality the majority of calls made are totally wasted.

However telemarketing as a tool is very potent and very productive but should be used in my opinion in the following way.

1. You purchase a high quality TPS checked list (£50 per 000)
2. The prospective client receives a professionally written well crafted mailing with a good offer.
3. The telemarketer makes an initial call to your prospect from your list

There are now 4 outcomes…

a)     They are happy with their existing accountant

b)     They are happy to receive informative newsletters and emails – an opt in email for your pipeline

c)      They are interested in an appointment but need some issues clarifying in an email or letter – a chance for immediate personal interaction with you and an opt in for your pipeline

d)     They would like to make an appointment with you – appointment made it’s down to you but you have a good understanding of their requirements

The important part of all this is that you have important information for every call made. Even the ‘No I’m happy with my existing accountant’ will give you feedback about competitors and quite often their pricing models. Each of the other 3 answers create pipeline and ongoing marketing opportunities.

This is exactly how telemarketing is used in all other service based industries…

We work on an average return of 50% positive input from telemarketing i.e. Out of every 100 calls made we will get a minimum 50 opt in emails that will go into an automated mailer which will be programmed to send out informative articles, blogs and thought leadership pieces over the next few months

The prospects in your pipeline are your future clients. A marketing rule of thumb across all industries is that you would expect a minimum of 5 positive interactions before a prospect is ready to engage with you. And the strong likelihood is that during this period these well nurtured prospects have not even heard from their existing accountant.

Mike Smith