0#, The Oldest And Still Most Effective Move An Inside Sales Rep Can Use
You pick up the phone, dial the number, get their voicemail....and hang up. Log the call and move onto the next activity right? NO!!! Rewind and think for a second. Get yourself in the right mindset. An outbound dial that doesn't result in a conversation with someone at your target company is a failure to some degree. If you think about it, our job is to speak to people live. It doesn't always have to be the most appropriate contact in the organization. Almost anyone you catch live can give you some valuable information to help you progress that target company through your qualification process.
My message to you and your reps is simple. Don't hang up until you've spoken to someone live. At the end of the target contacts voicemail message, hit 0# and get sent back to the operator. Depending on the current status of the account in question (where they are in your qualification process) will determine what you do next when the operator answers the phone. I've had some lively debate on this concept as many on my team feel that once you find the most appropriate person to speak with you should only contact that person. My response to that is simple, if they are truly the best person to speak to about your technology and it's benefits to the their company then why don't they pick up your call. Go lower or higher, it doesn't matter. Even if you end up at the admin level you can ask that person if they know of a better time to reach your contact live?
This isn't about being pushy, nor is it about carpet bombing a target company by phone. The process of generating a fully qualified lead requires a great deal of information gathering. All of that critical information doesn't just reside within the mind of one individual. For that very reason, it is logical to speak to as many people as possible within each company as you paint the picture of a fully qualified opp. By requiring that you speak to someone live on every call you end up casting a wider net within your target organization and most importantly you get yourself a sales ready lead faster than your competition.