Five B2B Telemarketing Lessons From Real Life

School is an excellent training ground for many marketers and business managers. It is where you get to practice your leadership and management skills, preparing you for the real world. But as much as school prepares you to succeed, real life has other ideas. Take, for example, B2B telemarketing . I know, this is not a popular direct marketing tool, but this works perfectly for businesses that want to sell to other businesses. It is a good means in generating B2B leads, and that many companies benefit from this. While you may learn how to be a good telemarketer during training, real life will tell you some things that school may miss. For starters:

  

1. Fear not the fail – okay, while most of us dread that big F on the report card, because it means the end of our illustrious career in college, failing in real life is not really the end. It only becomes that when you quit. Failures actually learning opportunities, of what not to do. Thomas Edison failed a thousand times in inventing the incandescent light bulb, but he only needed one to succeed. It is the same thing with B2B lead generation.
2. ‘No’ may not mean ‘no’ – when sales leads prospects say no to your offer, do not immediately give up. You should actually take this as an opportunity to learn more about them, find out why they are rejecting you. Who knows, they might actually change their minds if you can present your offer in a much more acceptable manner. You just need to ask.
3. Check all your avenues – as an old saying goes, ‘when one door shuts, another opens’. That is the reality ofB2B appointment setting. Even if you cannot get one prospect to meet with you, try looking for other people who might be interested. There is the possibility that the person you spoke with earlier was just the gate keeper. Just keep looking and you might hit the jackpot.
4. Be realistic – it is one thing to be optimistic over the future of your business, but if you do not have the means to make your plans a reality, then you will not achieve anything at all. Being realistic will keep your feet firmly to the ground. It can help improve your perspective of things. Just be yourself, focus on your business, and make sure that everything is working properly.
5. Money matters – yes, you might want to buy that potentially profitable shares in a company, or invest in new equipment, but you need to keep something for the rainy days. Besides, with the way the market changes constantly, money is the only real asset that you can rely on. And try not to spend all your earnings in one go. Actually, you should reinvest it into your business, help make it grow.

These rules are pretty simple in concept, but they do mean a lot for your B2B telemarketing campaign. Learn and live in the real world.

B2B Telemarketing Is All About Storytelling

For a B2B telemarketing company like yours, you need to get the attention of all your business prospects. Generating B2B leads is no walk in the park, and you know that it can take a lot of your time and effort. We all have heard about giving our best shot in the marketing field, but there are cases where you have to actively look for an excellent method to get your message across. And here is one strategy that you can employ: storytelling. It is old-school, so to speak, but when properly delivered, this can be an excellent way to keep your audience’s attention to you.

As for your appointment setting team to effectively use story-telling, there are some angles that you can employ:

1. The company story – behind the story of every product is the story of the people who created it. It could be full of drama, laughs, probably action if the situation merits it. Try to capitalize on those elements. Use it to garner the attention of your audience. Besides, your prospects might be able to relate your story with their own business. It can work.
2. The product story – ever watched Discovery Channel’s “How Do They Do It”? Your attention was probably riveted to how the featured product was made. Now that kind of story, you can use that kind of style for your own. It can be especially effective if you have an actual product to show. This is particularly useful during trade fairs and business events where you get to display your wares for all to see. It might be able to attract more sales leads this way.
3. The personal story – some business prospects are interested in how you got yourself involved in the business you are in, why you are doing it and what you actually do. These are excellent opportunities to put a human face to your company, to the products being displayed, as well as the message that you want to convey. You have to ensure that everything you say and do reflects your business well. While you may not get a deal with them now, at least they know who to go to when they finally decide to.
4.  The customer story – remember the Axe deodorant’s ‘Susan Glenn’ commercial? The message itself may be whimsical, but it still conveys its call-to-action effectively. A trained B2B lead generation specialist can make that happen to you, too. What is needed here is that you actively involve your business prospects. 

Remember, in this kind of story, the customer is the main character. Give them a reason to participate.
As you can see, storytelling is a pretty basic, yet effective, way of conveying your message. Of course, you need to make sure the situation allows you to do just that. It will not do to attempt a little storytelling skit if your business prospect is too busy, or if the location is not just conducive for it. As a lead generation strategy, you need to plan this out well.