Telemarketing Lead Generation Blog

Key to Successful Lead Generation Telemarketing: Listen More, Talk Less!

Posted on Jun 23, 2009 by Tamika Drake, Call Center Coordinator

Have you ever hung up the phone wondering if the person called you simply to hear himself or herself talk? One of the most significant lessons learned by our agents during their initial call calibration sessions is that the best callers are not necessarily the best talkers—they are the best listeners. From a personal perspective, I equate a telemarketing call to a first date – the same basic principle applies: don’t monopolize the conversation, instead listen to what your date has to say.

Let’s look at the anatomy of a phone call:

• Opening & Fact Finding: Early on in a conversation, the prospect should do 90% of the talking. After gaining interest in speaking, the agent’s portion will be comprised of open-ended questions designed to understand the prospect’s situation and needs. By asking questions such as: “How is that working for you?” or “Can you tell me more?” sets the stage for the prospect to open up. Note that during the course of this portion of the call, the agent will also find the need to ask closed ended questions to verify and enhance the conversation.

• Dialogue & Sharing: Now that the agent has gotten the prospect to open up and give insight into his situation, they are both contributing equally to the conversation, about 50/50. How did we get to this point? Well, at this stage the agent is relying on his/her listening skills to move the conversation into the next stage. Now is the time for the agent to mesh their product and value propositions with the prospect’s unique situation and needs. This can only be done if the agent was truly listening to the prospect.

• Closing: What’s next? Whose turn is it to talk now? By now the agent is summarizing what he has learned and suggesting the next logical steps, whether it be a more in-depth call, relevant information, and/ or a call from a sales representative. Our goal here is to set the prospect’s expectations. Believe or not, the agent is now doing 90% of the talking.

Looking back at the entire conversation, overall, a good talk/ listen ratio is 30/70. If you want to make sure you have meaningful conversation then be sure to listen more, talk less!

Tagged: lead generation telemarketing, telemarketing lead generation scripting, lead generation, telemarketing sales leads, telemarketing conversation

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