Misconceptions about B2B appointment setting services that should be ignored

Are you a business that is on the lookout for leads? Does your marketing team waste most of its time in trying to find qualified leads rather than focusing on sales? Well then you most probably need the services of a qualified company that offers b2b appointment setting services. Most people scoff at this idea at it seems like a waste of money to outsource this innocuous looking exercise. But in reality this is the single most important business function that makes the difference between high volume of sales vis-à-vis a marketing team that is struggling to meet targets and appears to be wasting most of its time in trying to fund good leads. This negative opinion also stems from the fact that most of the market in general believes that it does not work. Most of them have never even bothered to try these services before offering a negative opinion on the same. Then in some cases they may have tried Outbound Appointment Setting but ended up working with a company that did not prove to be as effective as they may have wanted. But there are plenty of companies out there that would disagree with this suggestion as they have borne the fruits of a well-run campaign that has resulted in them having a large number of appointments resulting in high volume of sales.

Let us try and clear some of the negative myths that surround the industry of Appointment Setting Services.

1. Why outsource when I can build an in-house team to do the same job

This is easier said than done and many a companies have tired this and failed, wasting precious time, resources and money. Take some time to pen down all the various tasks that you shall need to perform during the setting up of such a team and during the running of their operations in your company. The costs to hire and train such a team is very high. Also, once the team is in place then you would require a lot of additional cost to build the required infrastructure and manage their performance.

2. This job is for the existing sales team

A sales team should be selling and not performing other tasks even if they are related to the sales process. A sales person performs the best when he or she is on the filed chasing a sale. Most of them find lead generation as a mundane task and it reduces their productivity and energy levels a great deal when they are saddled with this additional, unwanted burden. Also, the task of telemarketing entails the ability to withstand rejection and nos. This can be a daunting task for someone who does not have proper training to anticipate these reactions and take them in their stride. A sales person can lose his or her positive mindset when faced with this kind of a situation.

3. What is so difficult in setting up an appointment

Underestimating the skills and efforts of Appointment Setting Companies Is a huge mistake. It is an art to talk to an unknown prospect, build a connection and entice him or her to schedule a follow up appointment. It also take many attempts to get through to the right prospect who is a decision maker. It also entails multiple follow up calls to get them interested and get a foot in the door. Patience is a virtue in this business, as it can take a long time to get an appointment. This task cannot be performed by somebody who is trying to juggle multiple tasks within an organization and needs dedicated focus and attention.

4. Appointment Setting Companies are all the same and hence the cheaper the better

This is the reason why so many campaigns fail and clients end up feeling let down and start to look down upon the entire exercise of b2b appointment setting services. Like all things in life you need to be judicious before you make the decision to hire the services of a company. Price cannot be the only deciding factor. The more experienced companies may charge a little more based on the better process and systems that they may have in place. Also it helps to pay a little more for the years of experience that they bring to the table.

5. Just hire one and get done with it

There is no dearth of companies offering Outbound Appointment Setting services. But hiring one without any due diligence or evaluating their merits and compatibility with your marketing needs is a big mistake. This has the potential to cost a lot of loss not only in terms of revenue but also in terms of productivity and time loss. It pays to see each company differently and evaluate them based on some preset guidelines that must be formulated by your marketing team. It is also important to understand the flexibility in operation for each of the companies since you would like to work with the ones who are willing to listen and allow you to be an equal participant in the exercise.

6. This never works as someone else will not bother about my business as much as I do 

Companies that offer Appointment Setting Services are diligent and as committed to your marketing efforts as you are. That is the basis of their whole being and failing to do so would mean the end of their business. Interestingly the growth of your business is linked directly to the growth of theirs as a satisfied client for them is the one who would not only offer repeat business but also prove to be very invaluable in giving references and recommendations.

Appointment Setting Services can be a boon for the growth of your business and hiring the right company has the potential to bring a positive upswing to your marketing efforts. So you would be wise to ignore the misconceptions associated with the industry as most of it is hearsay or the result of making bad choices in choosing the right partner.