subject: Appointment Booking & Lead Generation [print this page] Appointment Booking & Lead Generation Appointment Booking & Lead Generation
There are so many appointment booking and lead generation companies out there that you need to be absolutely confident that yours is delivering the best return on your investment. At the end of the process, how many sales are you actually making? To get sales you need to be meeting with the right people, and your lead generation agency needs to know how to get you in front of those people. There is a lot of technique involved in getting the right appointment, and it helps you to pick the best lead generation and appointment booking company if you know what to look for.
Nobody likes an aggressive telemarketer calling them, but you do need to make sure that your callers have the ring of confidence to them; they have to sound like they know what they are doing and what they are talking about. It is important that the caller has the ability to be conversational and fluent, rather than sounding like they are reading a script or like they are just asking questions by rote. As part of this confidence and fluency, the caller must be totally straight with the potential client. They must be totally honest and upfront about what they are calling about; there is nothing worse than making a potential client feel like that you have tried to trick them into a meeting.
Beyond this general advice on style, it is important that whoever carries out your appointment booking and lead generation gets an appointment with the right person. Remember, it is not always the most obvious sounding person who will be the most appropriate person to meet with; you need to be speaking with the person who can say yes to spending money, not the person who can say they love the idea but don't have a budget. Qualifying an appointment in this way is what often differentiates a good lead generation agency from a bad one.
Make sure that your calling team are focusing on the great story you have to tell as it applies to each contact, not just giving a standard pitch. Ensure that they are using any case studies and testimonials to the best effect; these tools are essential for establishing credibility with potential clients. You have to remember that you will not be the only company out there calling people up, so you need to do everything in your power to differentiate yourself.
Finally, ensure that your lead generation and appointment setting company are using the allotted time sensibly. Monday mornings and Friday afternoons are not great times to catch people, as are lunchtimes. In the same vein, certain times of year might not be great for calling particular industries; for example, don't try setting appointments with accountants just before the end of the tax filing period, they won't thank you for it!
Whatever method of appointment setting and lead generation you intend to use, knowing something about the techniques yourself will ultimately help you chose the best service provider for your business and make sure that you will generate a positive return on your investment.
