Optimizing your Outsourced Telemarketing Campaign

One of the most frequently asked questions I receive prior to a campaign engagement is "what can we do (as the client) to make this campaign successful?”

It got me thinking about past successful campaigns and some of the common factors that seemed to be present. As we all know, there are several factors that are out of our control regarding campaign success or failure such as; geography, competitors, timing, budgets, and the economic environment. Below are some critical factors based on our 8 years of experience:

Not letting past negative experiences impact your current engagement. Understanding that many of you have had bad experiences with outsourced telemarketing, you still must maintain at least positive outlook. Maintaining a positive outlook will resonate with your sales team and get them fired up about receiving leads. (something about an ROI isn't guaranteed, it's sales)

Assigning a (sales) Program Manager: I know everyone is busy and these campaigns for VARS are typically one-off in nature. However, if you have a point of contact within your organization with some credibility with the sales team it would be extremely helpful. We want feedback and typically the response on our weekly campaign calls is "I haven't heard anything from my sales teams on the leads." Oh brother, so this is generally when we start crossing our fingers.

Getting your sales team engaged in the process. If your sales team feels the outsourced vendor is working for them they will be more open to engaging with the leads. How do you easily accomplish this? Provide the outsourced vendor with a list of say 25 target accounts your sales team would like to penetrate. We've seen great success where we've gotten opened doors for the VAR vs. just sending them a random company from a pre-generated list.

Communicating regularly with the vendor. Everyone is busy, if you can schedule time 1-2 hours per week to review each lead with the vendor and provide feedback on quality and sales rep's feedback adjustments can then be made while the campaign is still active. It sounds so easy in theory but in reality it’s very difficult to provide this level of feedback.

“Bad Lead” Syndrome. If your campaign didn't meet expectations the most popular response is “I received bad leads.” Yes, you will receive some leads that probably don’t meet your expectations. However, don’t let one bad lead cause you to conclude every other lead is bad too! As vendors we do everything we can to prevent "bad leads" but you still may receive leads that aren't fully qualified opportunities. Here's a simple resolution process: Make sure up front the vendor will allow you to return leads if they don't meet the criteria or were greatly embellished by the calling agent. Have your sales team provide individual lead feedback on any "bad leads" and send them back to the vendor. Most vendors today have some type of lead quality guarantee.

Realistic Expectations. Many VARS have grown by word-of-mouth and referrals while proactively prospecting and selling has not been a focus. Leads generated from a campaign will not respond the same way a referral will. As an example, don't expect a return call if you leave a voice mail on your initial engagement. Additionally, sales cycles on net new opportunities tend to be longer than referrals. There is also an element of luck involved. Similar to going fishing, sometimes you catch some really big fish, while other times you catch a couple of dinky sun fish. If you can keep your line in the water, your odds of catching the big fish or the big deal increase.

Build your Marketing (email) Database. One of the hidden benefits of conducting an outsourced campaign is updated decision maker contact information including email. Predicated on the list data usage agreement you may be able to obtain all updated information at the end of the campaign. So the next time you have a seminar, add all these new contacts to your invite list. It’s really a no brainer!

I hope the above points help make your next campaign a success!