Invented over a hundred years ago, the telephone remains one of our most effective marketing tools. The right telemarketing campaign can have a significant impact on your bottom line. It's more flexible and timely than a print campaign and provides an instant response. Once you have a telemarketing operation set up, it can be easily adapted to a wide range of functions, including:

• Cold calling
  
• Market Research
  
• Introducing a new product
  
• Notifying customers of seasonal product changes
  
• Offering customers a special deal
  
• Expanding your territory
  
• Improving customer service

The big question isn't whether you should utilize telemarketing to some degree, but rather, whether you should do it yourself in-house or outsource to a professional telemarketing company. There are advantages and disadvantages to both and the answer depends on your situation.

In-House Telemarketing

There are some definite advantages to conducting your telemarketing campaigns in-house:

• You have direct control. Reps are down the hall, not across town or across the country.
  
• Your call team is 100% dedicated to your project.
  
• You can quickly and easily make changes to your "script"
  
• Your call team is "behind the firewall" with access to customer information, order history, etc.
  
• You can hand pick who is representing your company
  
• Your product will be more "personal" to your own employees

Depending on the size of your operation, there are, however some things to consider:

• Personnel. Hiring experienced personnel can be tricky, and you want someone who will represent you company well
  
• Training. Even experienced reps need to be trained about your company, its products, your industry, the lingo, etc.
  
• Motivation. Call reps take a lot of rejection. Are you prepared to constantly motivate them verbally and with other incentives?
  
• Supervision. In addition to the call reps themselves, you may need to hire a call team manager and supervisor who will not only supervise and coach the reps but also monitor daily and weekly call goals.
  
• Space and equipment. To be effective, telemarketing reps need a comfortable, clean, quiet, and professional work space and up-to-date PCs with large monitors; software specially designed for call centers including call queuing, efficient data entry, and links to online information; ergonomic chairs, quality headsets, etc.

Outsourcing Telemarketing

Outsourcing your telemarketing can be a cost effective and productive option. According to Gartner Group the cost of external business development is 65% less than the cost of internal selling. An external business development staff is capable of increasing revenues by as much as 150%, compared to internal resources.

Situations vary, but it generally makes sense to outsource for the following reasons:

• You aren't able to hire more people
  
• You can't afford to equip a call center
  
• You don't have the space for a call center
  
• You can't take on the responsibility of managing another team
  
• Your business has peaks and valleys in terms of when leads come in
  
• You want to get up and running quickly
  
• You want to test new programs

Compared to in-house telemarketing:

• Personnel. The telemarketing company has existing personnel and is experienced at hiring workers in this field.
  
• Training. Although you will be involved, the TM company takes responsibility for training your team.
  
• Motivation & Supervision. TM companies are experienced at motivating and supervising their employees. It's what they do.
  
• Space and equipment. You get the benefit of state-of-the-art technology without having to pay as much for it.
  
• Reporting and tracking. TM companies have extensive reporting and tracking capabilities that help in evaluating the effectiveness of a program.

Finding the right telemarketing company. M.H. "Mac" McIntosh, a leading business-to-business sales and marketing consultant and an expert on the subject of outsourced marketing services, offers the following advice for finding a telemarketing company:

• Ask about experience. This encompasses a wide area, from how long the company has been in business to whether the company specializes in B-to-B sales lead generation. You don't want a company that's been selling to consumers by cold-calling at dinner time to take on representing your company and its high-tech products or services to senior business executives. To have the best chance of success, be sure the prospective call center has direct experience in your specific industry.
  
• Get real numbers. If you're looking for more qualified sales leads, ask how many leads a program should be expected to generate and the leads to sales ratio you can expect as well. Also ask how the vendor measures ROI.
  
• Tour the facilities. Venture beyond the conference room and onto the production floor. Listen in on phone calls and look over the shoulders of people who enter data and fulfill information requests. Ask to meet account managers and call teams.
  
• Get a written proposal. The proposal is an easy way to check the company's understanding of your needs. It should include background on the company, its qualifications, a detailed program recommendation and the related fees. Keep in mind that the quality of the proposal and its attention to detail will often serve as a reflection of the vendor's quality and attention to detail.
  
• Review their technology. Ask prospective companies what they do to make telemarketing calls more efficient. Also ask to see reports on activity and results. Are they provided on-demand? And, does the company have experience and the know-how to integrate their systems with yours?
  
• Check references. Ask to see a current customer list as well as the names of some clients the company lost in the past year or two, then call both. Ask references about the quality of the company's services and the quality of the company's people who handle their account. Find out program results and ask if the company would hire the vendor again

Tips for making telemarketing calls. If you do decide to "do-it-yourself," consider the following tips from Entrepreneur.com:

• Personalize each call by preparing mentally. Your mind-set needs to be aligned with your language, or the conversation will not ring true. You need to work on developing a warm but not sugarcoated telephone voice that has that "Don't I know you?" or "Gee, you sound familiar" ring to it.
  
• Perfect your phone style alone before making any calls. If you are self-conscious about calling, you need to feel safe to act uninhibited. Try this: Gather a tape recorder, a mirror, a sales journal of incoming and outgoing phone scripts, a pen and a legal-sized pad. Either write or select a favorite phone dialogue; then talk to yourself in the mirror. Do you look relaxed, or are your facial expressions rigid? Our exteriors reflect our inner selves. If you look like you're in knots, your voice will sound strained as well.
  
  Push the "record" button on your tape recorder, and pretend you're talking to a new prospect. Play back the tape, and listen to your conversation. Ask yourself how you could improve your delivery. If your voice seems unnatural and the dialogue contrived, do not despair. As you practice and participate in real phone experiences, you will improve. Mastering the art of cold-calling is no different than improving your golf swing or skiing technique.

• Create familiarity all around you. Use family photos, framed testimonial letters, motivational quotes, or whatever gets you in a positive, enthusiastic mood. If you like, play some music that inspires you.
  
• Use your imagination. Pretend you are a prospective customer calling a bookstore to see if they have a book in stock. If it helps, record how you sound to get the feel of your inquiring phone voice. It's always easier to imagine you're a customer in need of information than a salesperson trying to force your way into the customer's time. The inquiry call is good practice because the tone of the conversation is "Can you help me?" or "I need some information." Try to convey that same attitude when you use the phone to contact future customers.
  
• Watch your tone of voice. You do not want to sound sheepish and embarrassed, nor do you want to be arrogant. The ideal tone is warm, businesslike, curious and straight to the point. A good option is a question or a cut-to-the-chase statement such as: "I've got a problem. We are offering a two-for-one special during the next 30 days on all our coffee drinks, just to get people into the store. I need to know if you have ever stopped in while shopping at the mall, and, if not, why not? We have got the greatest ice-blended mochas in town."
  
• Make your goal a fast "50 in 150"-that is, 50 calls in 150 minutes. Three minutes per call is all you need. With so many voice-mail systems intercepting calls today, this should be easy. Never give people the impression you have time to chat. Chatting is not prospecting. You're on a mission. Get to the point, then move to the next prospect.
  
• Take five after 15. After 15 calls, take a five-minute break-stretch, eat, sip a soda, turn on some tunes, and pat yourself on the back because you're making it happen. Then grab the phone for 15 more calls.

Telemarketing Do Not Call Compliance

It is important that you know the laws regarding the 2003 Federal Trade Commission Do Not Call legislation. You are advised to consult the Federal Trade Commission guidelines to see how this law will impact you if you use the telephone to sell your products. If you place a call to a consumer who is registered on the federal Do Not Call list, you risk a fine of $10,000.00.

Following are the key provisions of the Telemarketing Sales Rule.

A telemarketer cannot:

• Call a consumer's residence before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m.
  
• Call consumers who have requested they not be called (telemarketers must keep "do not call" lists of people who have asked not to receive calls).
  
• Withdraw money from a consumer's checking account without express, verifiable authorization.
  
• Misrepresent any information or lie to get a consumer to pay.

On all outgoing calls, telemarketers must disclose:

• The seller's identity.
  
• That the purpose of the call is to sell goods or services.
  
• The nature of the goods or services offered.
  
• The fact that no payment or purchase is necessary to enter or win a prize promotion.

Before a customer pays for goods or services, telemarketers must state:

• The total cost and quantity of the goods or services.
  
• Any restrictions for getting or using the goods or services.
  
• If a sale is final or nonrefundable.
  
• The terms and conditions of any refund policy.
  
• The specifics of a prize promotion: the odds of winning, the fact that no purchase or payment is necessary to win, and any restrictions or conditions on receiving the prize.

For more information on the Telemarketing Sales Rule, visit http://business.ftc.gov/documents/bus27-complying-telemarketing-sales-rule