Appointment Setters - Making Life Simple for Salespeople

Appointment setters offer valuable service to a business or sales department by scheduling appointments for customers to meet a sales representative and contacting potential customers. They work for most employers, particularly those with highly dedicated outbound telemarketing departments. Most of these appointment setters work directly for the company, whereas some are freelance or independent contractors. They generally work on a per project basis and have a specific schedule of work that they must follow.

Businesses who employ appointment setters usually pay them on a retainer basis and make a lump sum payment for the first contact. Some companies also provide the services of an independent contractor, which would be an additional charge. The primary role of an appointment setting professional is to initiate a conversation with the prospect so as to establish a viable lead.

Leads can be generated through many ways. Telemarketing methods have been used for years and have yielded excellent results. With the advent of the Internet, more business owners are using traditional direct marketing tools to generate qualified leads. An appointment setter will generally create a list of leads by contacting various individuals in their own social network. These people include their friends or relatives, co-workers, acquaintances, and yes, even people they chat online with or meet offline.

Once the initial warm leads have been generated, an appointment-setting pro can generate more highly qualified leads by adding more contacts to his or her warm leads list. Some methods of generating leads are by cold calling, although the results of such calls can be less than desirable. A better way of generating warm leads is by developing a relationship with prospects over time. This can be accomplished through regular telephone contact or by creating a trust between the prospect and the sales representative. Once a relationship develops, a call to action may be easier to design and follow.

One of the problems with cold calls is that prospects get very little information when making the call. They usually respond with either a yes or no answer. This can leave some people wondering if they even have a chance to discuss the product or service being sold. With an appointment setters phone call, the sales representatives are given a prompt and direct answer. The questions are asked in a manner which allows the prospects to get as much information as possible before moving into the sales portion of the interaction.

In addition, appointment setting setters work to provide the information needed immediately. Sales representatives can quickly obtain the name, address, email address, and phone number of a prospective customer. By doing this, the sales person has only needed to provide the name, phone number, and date of birth of a prospect. Prospects may also be provided with the opportunity to opt-in to receive future communications. This offers the prospect the option of not receiving unwanted or confusing sales or promotional messages.

In addition, appointment setters can help to keep the lines of communication open with potential clients. When prospects to ask questions during a telephone appointment, the sales team can answer those questions right away. Having someone available to take the call so that the potential clients can ask their questions clearly and efficiently eliminates wasted time. When prospects continue to ask questions after the initial communication, the sales team can redirect the conversation to where it needs to go. This helps keep the potential clients interested in the products and services being offered.

Appointment settingters can also make sure that appointments are full and accurate. When a potential client cannot attend an appointment, he/she does not necessarily want to know how many appointments are currently available or what services are being offered. If the information is available on the website, the sales team can easily provide a list showing all scheduled meetings and the dates available. Having this information available up front allows the salesperson to ensure that all of the client's appointments have been filled. Having appointment setters at each client location helps to ensure that appointments are accurate and any special requests or modifications can be accommodated without having to wait on the sales team.