Pay For Performance Means �Pay for my Marketing�
August 14, 2006
This is the second part in a two part series. The previous month’s article focused on the issues around “pay for performance” telemarketing work and the call centers.
Part 2 – The Issue and the Client
Every week we get calls from talented business owners and accomplished executives asking us what they can do to accelerate their sales process and increase the flow of qualified prospects into their sales funnel.
There are dozens of variables in any new business development initiative that can make or break the success of a campaign. Pay for performance projects go awry when time and resources are not put in during the project planning phase. Call centers, no matter how experienced they may be in the types of calling they perform, are not experts in every industry. Businesses that are looking to increase their sales and leads need to assist with the development of a systematic program that is well thought-out and planned. No other company is going to be willing to take on the time and costs of your own research for you.
To ensure the overall success of your campaign, spend time in the planning and implementation phase. Whether you are establishing a call campaign for your internal employees, or to outsource to a vendor, the same considerations need to be made for the campaign. By answering the following questions, you’ll be ready to maximize your phone time and the costs of the program.
- Develop a plan for incorporating the phones into your existing sales and marketing plans. Multi-touch campaigns will always yield higher results. Don’t put your calling team in a vacuum.
- Spend time targeting and selecting the appropriate calling list. Cold calling out of a phone book is not going to be your quickest or highest ROI option. By researching the appropriate market, industry or client for your products and services, you can maximize your phone time and project efficiency. Geographic planning is as important as industry selection. Ensure you are calling businesses/people that have an interest and ability to work with you.
- Institute a test period. If the program is introducing a new service, product, or instating phone contact for the first time, set up a reasonable test period. By calling on a pre-determined number of clients, or for a set number of phone hours, the project can be reviewed and changed before the costs have gotten too high.
- Have “Plan B” ready. What if your audience is not responding to the scripting? What if the geographic area you selected is wrong? Have an alternate or back-up plan ready to implement to keep the project moving forward.
- Research the appropriate call center partner for your project. What type of calling does the center you’ve selected typically do? What is their business mix? How much experience do they have? What is the profile of their agents?
- Check past client references for the call center. Ask for references of companies that have done similar projects. Review numbers of past performance. Make sure you are comfortable with the center you select, as they are representing your business to your customers and prospects.
- Expect to spend some money in a collaborative way to make this work. If you are not serious about it, or do not have the funding to work through any learning curve or expansion pains, then maybe you shouldn’t be doing it. Under-funding a project is setting it up to fail.
- If the performance isn’t there – by all means find another vendor option. If you’ve put in the work, delivered a fool-proof plan and you feel that the selected call center is not performing – don’t scrap the project. Everyone makes a bad hiring mistake at least once in their career.
Once a project’s performance can be proven through past experience, or upon completion of a test period, pay for performance can be an economical option for both parties. Ensuring that the project is financially beneficial and satisfying for both parties requires partnership and commitment from both parties.
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Christa Heibel is the CEO of CH Consulting LLC. Still in her early thirties, Christa has led CH Consulting to revenue growth of over 200% annually since it’s conception in 2002. Christa is regarded as an expert in the field of integrated marketing campaigns as well as effectively using technology for supporting sales and marketing efforts.
An accomplished speaker, writer and sales trainer, Christa is looking forward to leading her many corporate clients and partners to similar growth over the next few years. She continues her commitment to staying active in the political arena, and plans to expand CH Consulting to actively managing telemarketing and other outreach campaigns for public officials.
