Appointment setting is no child’s play. It involves multiple calls, investment of time, rejections, perseverance and lot of effort. However, getting this one aspect right can make a huge difference to the success of your business. But with limitation of resources and time constraints, a lot of companies are struggling to generate quality leads required to take their business to the next level. Even though they are leaving no stone unturned to earn that critical appointment, it continues to remain a big challenge. Needless to say, the frustration of companies is palpable! To keep the morale strong and maintain edge over the contenders, companies need to start on the right foot and have the prospective clients’ attention from the word hello.
With this in mind, we have put together a list of appointment setting strategies that will help companies earn those coveted leads and conversions-
Have an Expansive List of Prospects
First things first, the key to successful appointment lies in numbers. But at the same time, maintaining the quality throughout calls is also necessary. Finding the right balance between quality and quantity is the most critical aspect of getting conversions. Needless to say, the higher the number of prospects, the greater are the chances of you cracking an appointment. Simply put, making calls to set appointments is all about competency. It is all about contacting as many prospects as possible, irrespective of the outcome.
Have a List of High Quality Prospects
Having a list of prospects is not enough. To find success in numbers, it is important to have a high quality prospects list. The point is to not to blindly shoot in the dark and hope to hit something. Instead, targeted efforts will create more quality outcome at a much less cost. Think of all the time you are wasting in trying to hit everywhere when you could have channeled your efforts in the right direction and produced more results. The best way to approach this is by eliminating guesswork and performing a comprehensive due diligence of the list. Your prospect profile should align with the products and services offered by your client. Check your prospect’s demographics and professional profile before making that call. Precision and accuracy in determining their availability can improve the efficiency of your efforts by manifolds.
Create an SOP for Perfect Calls
Having a high quality list alone will not make the cut. You need to combine that with apt communication skills to get desired results. While call efficiency is the numbers we talked about, call effectiveness is what the representative actually says on the phone to the prospect. Creating an SOP to guide for your representatives at this stage will go a long way in ensuring that the call opens positively. The idea is to create a balanced approach by developing the right message and match it with right communication skills. The SOP should not only have an optimistic opening statement that catches prospects’ interest, but also have a tempting message, followed by appropriate closing. The key objective of this call should be to provide accurate information without taxing the prospect with data download.
What’s in It for Me
The only way to attract and sustain your prospect’s attention is by clearly telling them the benefits before they lose interest. Remember that your prospects could be in the middle of a million things when you call them. Not being able to capture their attention within the first few seconds of the call will lead to rejection. Designing a promotional effort around freebies such as complimentary consultation, guarantee of quality work, flexible payment arrangements, etc. can help you increase your conversion rate. This is your moment when you can actually establish a connection with your prospect and put their interest ahead of yours.
Train Your Representatives
It is important for you to understand that your agent is the face and voice of your company. Even before you meet the client face-to-face, the representative has already set the expectations and established a relationship with your prospect. Your agents should be trained to build the relationships and should be able to develop trust with the client. Giving the right training to your representatives will prepare them for challenges such as frustrations, rejections, verbal abuse, etc. It will help them stay professional amid all this and more. Empowering them with proper call handling skills and knowledge will help them stay focused and optimistic during their interactions.
With the help of these guidelines, it is only a matter of time when you would have effectively mastered the tricks of the trade. Securing the first meeting will ensure that you invest your time and effort on those prospects that have the highest probability of converting and delivering desired results.
