Ultra Marketing

Outbound Telemarketing

 

When you are making outbound telemarketing calls, you must attract the customer’s interest in the first ten to fifteen seconds of the phone call. Engage the customer in a friendly conversation so that you can build trust and establish polite inquiry as to the person’s state of mind. Open with something casual eg “How are you today?” And do not attempt to launch into the sales pitch until you get the customer talking and feeling positive about your intentions.

 

Effective Outbound Telemarketing

When the customer first picks up the phone, speak slowly and clearly. Sound upbeat without losing your focus. Remember, too, that the customer’s natural tendency, right off the bat, will be to say, “no, thanks.” You need to get past this response quickly and pique the customer’s interest before he or she hangs up.

 

Once you have the attention of a target customer, you can follow the telemarketing script for the product or service you are selling. Confirm that you are speaking to the target customer. If the response is “no,” ask if the individual is available. If the individual is not in the office, ask for an appropriate time to call back when he or she will be available to speak.

 

If you are speaking to your target customer, begin “reading” your script, which should begin to introduce the product or service you are selling. Outbound telemarketing can be made effective by a little bit of planning ahead.

 

When talking about telemarketing tips, number one is identifying the right prospects before you call. Prospects aren’t interested in what your product or service is, they’re interested in what it will do for them. That’s why it’s critical you talk in terms of benefits.

 

Telemarketing Tips

Once you have your prospect’s attention, ask specific questions to learn more about what your prospect wants and how you can fulfill his or her expectations and needs. Listen more than you talk. This way, you find out what the person’s needs are rather than simply telling him all about your service and how wonderful it is. You’ll also score big points with prospects by not interrupting and by asking relevant follow-up questions to clarify or acknowledge what they’re saying.

 

The last of the telemarketing tips is to realise that not everyone wants or needs what your company offers. Don’t take rejection personally, just proceed to the next call; your success rate definitely increases as you make more and more calls.

Effective Business Telemarketing

While there’s no secret for getting past the initial “no” and into the prospect’s office, there’s one fundamental to keep in mind: focus on how you can bring value to your prospects or their companies. Sure, it might not initially involve selling them your service, but if you first consider the ways you can serve them, you’ll be rewarded in the end.

 

Your first step in making a connection is to search for openings. That means doing some research before you even make a call. The easiest way is to hit the Internet. Most company Web sites are filled with information on product lines, plans for the future and key personnel. With a little more research, you might even track down recent newspaper or magazine articles.

 

Use the information you gather for your business telemarketing. For example, if you learn something interesting about an individual within the business use it as a hook.

 

How to play your voice like a finely tuned instrument

A study done at UCLA found that when selling by phone 84% of the message is conveyed by the music in the voice–your vocal quality: pitch, tone and inflection.

 

When selling by phone, tone of voice is crucial. Brain researchers have discovered that the brain has sensitive credibility detectors. These detectors are pre-verbal. They are activated by tone of voice and body language-not words. They give us important information about a speaker’s sincerity, integrity, and emotional state.

 

You know your credibility detectors are active when you get a gut-level hunch about someone – good or bad. And the same goes for your customers! Whenever a salesperson calls, their credibility detectors are on “high alert.”

 

As a sales person it’s especially important to get feedback on the effect your voice has on others. If not, you might inadvertently be speaking in a way that makes clients and prospects uncomfortable or annoyed.

 

I know one fellow who sounds secretive and muffled. A receptionist at one of our suppliers sounds tired and depressed. And the cordial words of the lady at the bank have a distinctly hostile undertone.  Unfortunately, these people haven’t a clue about the way they come across.

 

Because we listen to ourselves from inside our heads its impossible to hear ourselves as others hear us. To hear yourself as others hear you, you must listen to your voice on tape. Record a few sales calls and ask a trusted friend or colleague for feedback. Then, by practising the techniques you are about to learn, you can consciously manipulate your tone of voice in a way that makes people feel good about you and the products and services you represent. As a result you will sound more credible, articulate, persuasive. You’ll improve rapport with clients and prospects. And become more skillful at motivating and inspiring others.

 

Actors in TV and radio commercials (and skilled politicians!) use voice control techniques all the time. By doing so, they are able to read a script with so much conviction people are irresistibly compelled to buy.

 

How to instantly change your tone of voice

 

Your tone of voice mirrors your emotional state and physical well being. If your emotional state is positive and you’re feeling strong and healthy, your tone of voice will naturally sound upbeat, energetic and enthusiastic.

 

The problem is that the normal stresses and strains of life are easily reflected in the voice. It can be hard to sound happy and energetic when you are having a bad day. Or you may have unconsciously adopted an unpleasant tone of voice from the people around you when you learned to speak as a child.

 

There are six vocal components: pitch, tone, tempo, rhythm, placement and dialect. Change any one and drastically alter the way you sound. Of these, tone is most important for conveying emotion and creating feelings of good will.

 

In the exercises that follow you will learn 4 simple steps to manipulate your tone of voice and make a lasting and favourable impression. I call this process

                                                                                                                                          

How to sound warm and friendly on cue

 

It is difficult to progress in sales without a warm and friendly demeanour. Knowing how to sound warm and friendly on cue is especially helpful when you need to make an important phone call or presentation on stressful days when nothing seems to be going right.

 

Here are the four steps to follow to change your tone of voice:

 

Step 1. Key word.

Find a key word which represents the tone of voice you wish to create and say it 3 times slowly, with as much feeling as you can muster. Use whatever key word is meaningful for you. My key word for a warm and friendly voice is tender. Say your key word aloud three times slowly with feeling. If it’s a good key word, your voice should begin to soften.

 

Step 2. Mental image

Focus on a mental image which enhances the key word. What image does the word “tender” bring to mind for you? I imagine that I’m holding a sleeping infant in my arms. Or perhaps you might visualise whispering into the ear of a lover, stroking a pet, or even slicing into a nice, tender piece of meat.

 

Step 3. Body position.

Adopt a body position consistent with the tone of voice that you want to convey. The body position for a warm and friendly voice is relaxed. To help drain tension, inhale and consciously tense every muscle. Hold for a count of 5. Now exhale for a count of 10 feeling the tension drain from your body.

 

Step 4. Facial Expression

The shape of your mouth and the expression on your face will shape the sound of your voice. One of the easiest ways to sound warm and friendly is to smile. A relaxed, gentle smile will do. If you do nothing else but smile while speaking, your voice will sound 90% warmer. Until you get the hang of smiling while speaking, practice by keeping a mirror by the telephone. Glance at yourself from time to time to make sure the expression on your face is pleasant as you speak.

 

How to sound authoritative on cue

 

Use an authoritative tone when you want to be taken seriously and show others you mean business. This is also useful when you need to take control of a conversation.

 

Step 1. Key word.

My key word for an authoritative voice is respect. Say it aloud three times now with feeling: respect, respect, respect.

 

Step 2. Mental image

As you say the word respect, what image comes to mind? For me, I’m standing in front of a classroom. The students are looking at me, listening attentively. I feel good, centred and in control. If this image doesn’t work for you, feel free to use your own. Focus on your authoritative mental image until it is big and bright in your mind.

 

Step 3. Body Position.

To assume an authoritative body position, sit or stand as straight as you can. Feel how the soles of your feet make contact with the ground. Say the word respect a few more times and gesture firmly, as if to emphasise a point.

 

Step 4. Facial expression

Now, look in the mirror. For an authoritative voice, your mouth should be relaxed and neutral, but your eyes should be intense and focused. You should feel as if you are making eye contact with each person in an imaginary classroom.

 

 

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