During the last few decades telephone communication, and especially telemarketing, have gotten a bad rap, resulting in the establishment of The Do Not Call Registry, and the seeking out of alternative marketing media, such as email and the Internet. But there is no medium as direct and effective as reaching out and selling someone by phone. This hasnt changed, despite the black eye that telemarketing has earned because of a few bad practitioners. Frankly, I believe there are few media that are as empowering as the phone. Let me tell you why I say this. Just this week I visited a very successful financial services firm. It uses a number of means to market, including direct mailings, retail displays, seminars, and personal visitations. But to round out its marketing mix, every salesperson has to put in a minimum of phone time, and there are numerous cubicles reserved for this purpose in the middle of the agency. When you inspect these work areas youll see they are Spartan. A chair, a writing surface, a few pages of letter sized listsno computersand of course, a presentation and a single line telephone. This is the stuff of magic, this bare bones assortment of items. These few, inexpensive tools produce a ton of business with buyers who are, after all is said and done, grateful they were called about a vital product. The phone may have gone underground during the past several years, but it will rise again, especially in the esteem of marketers who will see once more, that reaching out and selling someone is the best and cheapest way of earning new business! |
