The 7 questions you need to ask.
Choosing an outsourced partner to handle your lead generation and telemarketing activity is more than a transaction; it’s a trust exercise and a leap of faith. It’s hard to know if you’re making the right decision and like in any tender process where you’re planning a large investment, you’re likely to see a veritable beauty parade of suppliers promising to change how you define success. How do you know if their claims are genuine? Research shows that just 53% of supplier collaborations are successful (Forbes, 2017). What should you be looking for when choosing a supplier to support you with such fundamental elements of your brand and sales strategy?
1.Do you trust them to guide your decision-making?
Trust is vital in any partnership, especially one where the expertise you’re buying is vital to your future success. There is arguably a low point of entry for setting up a telemarketing agency. Good agencies will offer genuine expertise and work with you to develop a strategy that considers every element of your brief and the challenges in your market. They will be a sounding board offering advice and guidance throughout the life of a campaign, working with you to continuously improve results.
2.Do they understand your business?
A provider that’s committed to understanding your business, from your daily operations to your grandest aspirations, has the best shot of being able to deliver genuine results and act as a true extension of your team. They should be experts in lead generation but value your insight and knowledge of your own business and the market you operate in – a partner with a collaborative approach is more invested in your success.
3.Can they represent your brand the way you want?
If you’re one of the 31% of businesses outsourcing to improve service quality (Deloitte, 2016), a provider that not only understands your business but also can articulate your messages as well as you can, is essential. Their agents will have much more meaningful and engaging conversations with prospective clients. You can rest assured that your brand awareness is growing in a way that reflects your values.
4.Who’s making the calls?
Any business can put forward a slick presentation and a confident sales pitch, you need to look beyond this to the people who will be working on your campaigns and calling on your behalf. Transparency is king, if you’re not welcomed with open arms to their offices to meet the team working on your campaign, can you be confident in their expertise and working practices?
5.Are they promising the world?
As much as you might want to believe bold, world changing claims. The old adage is fitting, if it sounds good to be true, it probably is. A much better sign is a partner that talks in realistic and achievable terms and will work with you to create a programme with every chance of success.
6.Is their pricing model too reductive?
Price is important but don’t be taken in by convoluted cost models, that promise to deliver fantastic value for large volumes, ultimately poorly delivered work reflects poorly on your business, and is not worth the investment, even if it seems like a great deal. Working with a supplier that can deliver the quality you want is a far better guide.
7.What do their customers say?
Investigate their case studies and testimonials; enquire about what they’ve delivered for other customers. Long-running customer relationships that have extended from an initial project are a positive sign, satisfied customers speak volumes.
Check out our video where Owen Richards, MD of Air Marketing and Richard Forrest, MD of Forrest Marketing Group, dive deeper into the challenges of outsourcing:
At Air, we work with clients to create a tailored, blend of services designed to deliver the best conversion rates in their desired market. If you’d like to hear more about how we can help your business grow or show you how we’ve helped businesses from all sectors achieve success, get in touch today or call us on 0345 241 3038. Or hear more from our existing customers here.
