Setting Realistic Objectives in Telemarketing

They say, ‘Fail to Plan and you Plan to Fail’.

There are a number of factors that have a positive impact on the outcome of telemarketing activities.

All too often, telemarketing is referred to as ‘Cold Calling’ and callers are perceived as fast talkers that can sell ice to an Eskimo. The reality is that good quality telemarketing is much more than that.

It is about listening and building relationships with carefully targeted individuals in companies that fit the profile of organizations that are likely to spend substantial sums of money with your company. With that in mind, it pays to prepare properly and to follow a process that will enhance the chance of success.

That’s very much the case with telemarketing. Be clear on the goals that you need to achieve. Ideally telemarketing objectives should be SMART i.e…

• Specific
• Measurable
• Achievable
• Realistic
• Time Based

Is it reasonable to target 100 appointments with accountancy practices in London?

Is that a specific objective?

It is important to define your target and the parameters?

For example: Yell.com suggests that there are 2007 accountants in London, so maybe 100 appointments might be viable.

However, are they all relevant in terms of size and profile?

Perhaps there are only 500 that fit your profile. Does 1:5 seem achievable as a ratio of target companies to appointment? And over what time frame?

Let’s say you represent a firm of office cleaners. Perhaps you offer something special;

For example: Specialist computer cleaning as well as office cleaning for the same price as traditional office cleaners may be more compelling as a proposition and would improve your success rate. If you put 5 people onto the calls instead of one, would that make a difference to the speed of acquisition?

Being clear about your objectives is important. Setting the right goals can make or break a campaign not least in terms of caller motivation