Outbound call Strategy are the calls made by the agents of any call centre or business sales representative to an existing or potential client. If the call is made for the sake of selling services to a potential customer, it is then named “cold calls”.
Meanwhile, as the name suggests they can be very cold as many things can go unpredicted here – prospects may hang up the phone immediately, or in the middle of the pitch, or even be very rude during the call. However, it is something that can’t be ignored considering the brand has to reach multiple prospects.
Moreover, an outbound call campaign can be done for many purposes including sales, telemarketing, providing priory asked information by the customer, survey, or achieving other business goals.
Therefore, it is always advisable and valuable to be proactive and prepare a strategy that would increase the likelihood of getting the sale or your end goal.
Why do you need an outbound Strategy?
It may seem simple but many things can go wrong with outbound call campaigns. Where an effective pitch is crucial for a successful call, it is also important to consider other aspects that may influence the outcome one way or another. For instance, keeping the pitch short and to the point, being empathetic and not too persuasive during the call.
People in today’s digitalized world are bombarded with sales pitches and ads, making them insensitive and intolerant. Therefore, reaching out directly to customers is like walking on eggshells. You have to be very clever, sensitive, and effective to reach your end goal – and this all can be easily achieved if you have a good outbound strategy that tells your call agents in what way to approach them; the rest relies on luck and the input.
Ways to Designing an Effective Outbound Strategy
To stay ahead of the game and get the most positive outcome, here are some tips to help you design your outbound call strategy which you can use in next outbound call campaigns for positive outcomes.
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Define your goals
Just as every business needs a vision, it is also pivotal to have an objective in the mind. It may sound tricky but all you have to do is ask yourself, what are you trying to achieve?
In the case of sales, it is pretty clear that you are looking for more sales! But this call also is approached in multiple ways. Are you trying to sell some service, product, or simply interest the client at this point? Being clear about this can help your agents to identify how far to push and know the limit. This will also motivate your agents to visualize the success and celebrate small achievements.
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Train the team
This may sound cliché, but seasoned sales representatives can help you outshine. However, every company trains the agents as per their unique requirements. It is more productive to give them some time ahead and train them as per your strategy and business needs, let them be familiar with your company, and understand the tone you intend to set with customers. This will help them truly interact with clients the way that is more aligned with the target goal.
Meanwhile,
- Get the people with the right skills
- Introduce them to the team members, and build a healthy bond (a healthy working environment leads to better performance).
- Make sure call agents know the service they are selling.
- You can organize occasional training with senior professionals and trainers to help them constantly improve their skills.
- Introduce healthy competition, incentives, and motivations to keep them going.
A study has proven that reward and recognition results in higher intrinsic motivation leading to better performance at work. Therefore, don’t hesitate to introduce rewards as part of your strategy.
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Clearly state the purpose of the call
We live in a society where people are bombarded with hundreds of ads and sales pitches all the time. Therefore, they can be easily annoyed if you try to trick them with your clever ways. So it is rather more beneficial to let them know what the purpose of your call is. This will give them a message that you are honest, and may eventually motivate them to hear your sales pitch, improving chances of your success.
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Use the right tone
It’s not about what you say but how you say it. So use the right tone!
The Don’ts: Don’t sound tired. Don’t sound robotic, and definitely don’t be too pushy.
The Do’s: An agent should sound confident, positive, open, and friendly. It is even better to just act like a human, and don’t be afraid to show a little empathy. It helps develop a connection with prospects, and very likely increases the chances of success.
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Qualified call list
Don’t reach out to every person in your target audience! It does not increase your sales, instead only costs more of your time, resources, and money, and tires out your agents. Develop a qualified list of prospects with the help of marketers and researchers. You can also use your CRM to track data to help craft the most qualified list. Don’t be afraid even if it demands some of your time, or if it gets short.
You have to keep the end goal in mind – that is sales – so it is better to reach out to 50 clients and close 3 deals, instead of reaching out to 100 and getting none.
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Craft the right script
Meanwhile, every business and service has a target audience that varies in the educational, and sociopolitical background, so you would have to eventually sort this puzzle out yourself. You can do a little research, or analyze KPIs to help you decide what works the best for your brand. In the case of sales, when your prospects pick up the phone, don’t start overwhelming them with information about your services. Instead, show them your interest in their needs.
Start with something like, “Hey Kate, I am Adam from x-company. How are you doing?”.
This will help you develop a conversational tone with them.
Whereas if you are calling to get some information from them for sake of research or any other business, you can start by introducing the company and letting them know that you need their little help and time,
“Hey, I am conducting a study for XYZ purposes, and need some of your insights. Do you have some time right now?”
When someone asks for help, other people will respond. Give prospects control over the problem-solving process and lead the conversation toward your offer.
However, it is important to keep in mind that things sound different in writing, and when spoken. So always get in touch with your agents or even customers, and let them be a part of the scripting process. Moreover, let them know, especially if they are new to the field, that script is just a guide, they can anytime change it as per the flow.
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Don’t bore them
Typically when a customer picks up the call and says hello, all they hear is a robotic tone monologue that just keeps on going and doesn’t stop. Even when it stops, all they hear is some alien terminology that makes them feel insecure as they can’t get a word of it.
This can immediately make them lose interest! So what you should do is start it like a conversation, and keep it that way while you introduce your services in simple words. This is where your market research will help you out – you can train your agents, prepare the script in the language, and accent that is most used and preferred in a certain area, with some references to keep them engaged. Meanwhile, the key is to know your clients and hit them where it is needed in the right way!
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Be honest
It is important to let your customers know about how far you have come, the success you have achieved, and the number of sales you have made, but be very cautious as it all may bore the customer because let’s face it, why should they care about it all?
So prepare a balanced script, and be very honest in the promises you make. Don’t boast about the lengths you can go to. This can leave a very bad impression on a customer if you make hefty promises at the start but lack poorly at the time of delivery.
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Never stop looking for improvements
No plan can be perfect and needs to be improved over time. Tools like research surveys and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) can help you evaluate the effectiveness and inculcate the required changes timely. KPIs whereas helping you analyze the performance of your agents by analyzing the aspects like first call close, average handle time, and conversion rate. These analyses can help you identify the areas that need improvements, so they can focus on them dedicatedly in training sessions.
Meanwhile, these are just some of the outbound calling tips that you should consider to develop a more effective outbound call strategy for your outbound sales call centre.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between outbound and inbound calls?
Inbound calls are the calls that are made by the customers to any call centre or directly to the brand office. To get any information about their products, services, requests, or complaints about something. Whereas, an outbound call is made by the call centre agents to the prospective clients. To secure more sales, and introduce new services and products to existing clients.
What is an outbound prospecting strategy?
Outbound prospecting strategy is where the market professionals help craft a list of a qualified prospective client. Who is then reached out by call agents as a part of the effort to interest them in the service generate leads, and convert them into customers.
What are the benefits of outbound marketing?
Impactful outbound marketing increases brand awareness, generates leads, increases sales, and develops a positive brand image among customers.
