Here's a question: if you read about a RFP in the trade press, is it a hot lead or simply old news?

I know there are many agencies who spend most of their time reading the trade press and sifting for intelligence on RFP's, tenders, etc. In many cases it's simply because they're afraid to pick up the phone and do some real work :-)

Once they see that XYZ plc is going to be tendering, guess what, they're straight on the phone.

Now, whilst the trade press can be useful for some intelligence, in my experience chasing RFP announcements is simply a waste of time.

Why? Because if you didn't know it was happening before it hit the press then you're just too late.

A senior executive of an FTSE 100 company put it to me like this: "once the word gets out, there's blood in the water and suddenly your boat's being circled by hundreds of sharks."

He was referring to management consultants, but it's applicable to any professional services.

I was recently asked to call a company after an article was published saying they were looking for new agencies. My client presented this as a hot lead. OK, I thought, let's give it a go.

So, I called the contact and he tells me, very politely actually, that he'd already been called by hundreds of agencies off the back of that article and, in fact, the article was incorrect - they had no requirements. So many agencies called them that they published a news release on their website saying that the article was inaccurate and called for the publication to retract it.

The thing that amazed me was that so many agencies had followed up this lead.

To me, one of the ways we add value is by prospecting for business before it becomes public. If we can put you in-front of an opportunity before it gets to a RFP or tender, then you are able to influence the brief.

Frankly, if you come in late to the party then you're really just there to make up the numbers.

Labels: b2b telemarketing, lead generation agency, new business agency, telemarketing agency

I've posted often about our approach to lead generation and appointment setting and how it's different the the way most telemarketing companies work.

But a recent conversation with an associate who's probably written the book on cold-calling made me wonder whether telemarketing as a stand-alone marketing tactic has finally had it's day.

Certainly, in the b2c sector it's days are well and truly numbered, evidenced by the growth of TPS and the Do Not Call Registry in the US. As far as business-to-business telemarketing is concerned, I think the time is also running out.

Now, let me be clear, I'm not saying that prospecting for new business by phone is dead, far from it. But, I do believe that telemarketing on its own is no longer effective.

This typically applies to larger telemarketing agencies and outbound call centres than smaller telemarketing companies, as their entire business model is based upon volume and scripts. Their approach is to keep dialling until they finally reach someone and then deliver a killer script designed to "trick" them into saying "yes".

Excuse me, but that simply doesn't work any more.

For many senior decision makers, telephone is no longer the preferred method of communication. Partly due to the telemarketing industry and partly due to the nature of work (mobility, home-working, meetings, time pressures, etc) business people today avoid incoming phone calls as much as possible.

And if you do get them on the phone, will they really sit through a six-minute scripted pitch? I don't think so.

In business-to-business, lead generation today is about one-on-one marketing, opening a dialogue and using a mix of communication methods.

Here's an example of how large call centres have got it so wrong:

I received a call a while back from a utility company (it was already my utility company as it happens) wanting to get me to switch my electricity to them.

Now, as it happens, I was interested in doing this, but I wanted to see something in writing before I made any decision ("decision strategies" are a whole other area to blog about but basically, many people want to see something before they can make a decision). So, I asked them to send me something. "Sorry, can't do that" was the reply.

If you're from the old school of sales you'd probably chalk up my request as a "time waster" or a delaying tactic and simply move on. But, I don't subscribe to all those "buyers are liars" sales cliches.

No, the reason they couldn't send me anything was because they were sitting in an office in Chennai or Glasgow and were not in anyway joined up with the whole sales process.

So they didn't send me anything. Wasted call, wasted opportunity.

When we work on new business campaigns for our clients we operate as part of their team. We hold collateral, send emails from our clients' domain, and nurture leads through the pipeline.

When we initially approach someone (by phone or email) and they ask for info, what does it tell them when we send it to them and then follow-up? It tells them that we're interested in starting a dialogue.

It may (and often does) take several phone calls, emails & voice-mails over a period of weeks or months until they're ready. Over that period we're demonstrating that we're not a pushy salesperson, we value their time and we want to do business.

When the timing is right, we'll book a meeting (or conference call, or whatever the appropriate next step is).

To me this is simple. Why have most telemarketing companies got it so wrong?

I guess, lucky for us, they have :-)

Labels: appointment setting services, lead generation agency, lead generation company, new business development, telemarketing agency, telemarketing company, telemarketing services

Always a source of interesting perspectives for small businesses, I found a good article in today's Sunday Times "Small firms can thrive amid corporate giants".

The article interviews a number of small business owners, mainly agencies, professional and support services, who have been successful in winning new business with major corporates, and surviving the process!

For me, a couple of key take-aways from the article are the need to avoid getting locked-in too low within major accounts (which can both keep you positioned as a low-level supplier and expose you to risk when your contact leaves), plus the importance of choosing the right clients in the first instance:

"Working successfully with big players also means being prepared to turn down work that doesn't meet the plans and aspirations of your own business"

I couldn't agree more with this last statement. Investing time to identify the right clients for where you want to take your business is critical. I find that whilst our clients get a lot of their current work by referral or other word-of-mouth sources, this may not be the right strategic fit to grow their business.

Where we add value is by targeting specific companies, usually major corporates, that meet our clients' growth aspirations. This sets up a new business pipeline that both builds on and augments your usual work portfolio, setting a trajectory for future growth.

Labels: lead generation agency, lead generation company, new business agency, sales lead generation

For me, one of the interesting things I picked up at the Being Digital event I attended yesterday (excellent event btw) was that consumers don't mind adverts as long as they're relevant.

OK, that may seem obvious, but it came out of a lengthy panel discussion on how to monetise content in a fragmented market without upsetting your audience.

When adverts as relevant (or targeted), such as with Google Adwords, then people don't object to them. In a way, there's this serendipitous effect that the advert appears to reach you just when you were looking.

OK, maybe that's over egging it, but there's no doubt that the more targeted your ads the higher the conversion, or CPR, or whatever metric you're using plus (and here's the real thing) the less you upset your target market.

This is what I've always said about targeted cold-calling for new business.

When you really target your audience, then your hit rate goes up, plus the people you are calling will respect the fact that your call was relevant to them. Even if they're not interested today, they will agree that they could have been.

Think about it. For most telemarketers they're calling you just because you're the next person on their list. How does that make you feel? Now, how different does it feel if someone contacts you because they've actually thought about whether you might be interested before they called you?

Perhaps they've done some research about your business or competitors. Or they've noticed a trigger event that makes them believe you would respond positively to their message.

Approaching any new business campaign in this way is essential to starting a relationship that you can build on for the future.

It's about mutual respect, really.

Labels: appointment setting services, cold calling, lead generation agency, lead generation company, new business development, telemarketing agency, telemarketing company, telemarketing services

Over the years, as a Sales Manager and Director, I've used nearly every form of lead generation possible. From advertising and email promotion to one-to-one methods such as telemarketing.

I remember the shock of calculating the cost of a trade show at £2000 GBP per lead. A year later, when none of the team had converted a single lead, it kind of sticks in your mind.

I've known business owners who have spent 100's hours a year attending networking events, and never got a single sale from them.

Sure, Pay-per-click campaigns are very cost-effective per lead...but they don't suit every product or service. For a start, your potential customer needs to be out there actively looking for you. If there's already two or three suppliers on his radar, he's very unlikely to be looking elsewhere. You need to reach out directly to him.

Response rates on Direct Marketing campaigns rarely exceed 2%. What if there are only 100 potential companies that are right for your product?

Two leads are unlikely to be enough to guarantee success. So the real cost to consider here is the cost of missing opportunities.

In new technology markets where it is critical to get traction before you are locked out, this is the real cost to consider.

Labels: lead generation agency, lead generation company, sales lead generation