These days, outbound calls are one of the most effective methods of not only updating the customer base but also generating leads. Depending on the company’s goals, calls can be made by operators or voice robots, which are becoming increasingly popular. Let’s take a look at how call center software helps you make cold calls as efficiently as possible, what PowerDialer is, and how autodialer systems help your business grow.
Let’s start by defining the concept of outbound calls and find out why it is considered the most effective tool for working with the customer base. But let’s consider how auto-dialing services can improve the work of contact centers.
How Outbound Calls Can Help Your Business?
Telephone calls to customers through the call center are sequential processing of the database of numbers and
can be of three types:
- cold calls;
- warm calls;
- hot calls.
Cold calling aims to generate leads by reaching out to contacts of the particular phone number base. Typically, the contacts don’t expect a call and may interact with an operator in a detached and reluctant manner. The operator, on another hand, aims to catch the attention and generate the interest of a potential client in the proposed goods or services. For called calling, companies often turn to outsourcing companies, and use IVR or autodialer services to warm up the audience.
Warm calls are made to leads, that have already demonstrated interest in the company’s products or services. These are potential customers who might have already had a conversation with an operator, voice bot or submitted an inquiry form on a website.
Only by clearly defining the purpose of outbound calling you can achieve the best results. Always consider not only the purpose of calling customers but also their current stage in the marketing or sales funnel.
The Goals of Calling Customers
Outbound calls help companies with various tasks, including lead generation, cold sales, and more. Let’s look at the most common of them to understand the wide range of business opportunities when we talk about calls:
- Lead generation – attracting new potential customers who can become consumers of the company’s products or services.
- Cold sales – direct offering of goods or services to potential customers who have not previously had contact with the company.
- Updating the customer base – updating the contact data of clients, their needs, and checking the relevance of information.
- Information about promotions, discounts, and new products – providing information about the company’s new offers, special offers, and changes in the assortment.
- Collection of reviews and ratings – receiving feedback from customers about the quality of goods or services, their satisfaction, and suggestions for improvement.
Considering the goals and variety of tasks that can be solved with the help of calling customers, it becomes clear that this tool is extremely important for the success of the company. It can help increase sales, attract new customers, maintain relationships with current customers and gather useful information for further business development.
The use of call center software, such as auto-dialing systems, can significantly facilitate the process of calling customers, reduce personnel costs and improve efficiency. Call center software allows businesses to automate the outbound call flow, monitor the results of operators, and analyze the effectiveness of campaigns.
How do Outbound Calls Contribute to Business Growth?
There are many goals that a company can set for itself when starting to call customers. High-quality outbound calls with customers undoubtedly contribute to business growth through increased sales, improved customer service and experience, and the most efficient use of resources and investments. We have prepared a list of tasks that are successfully solved thanks to the cooperation of clients.
Information about Promotions, Offers, and News
In this case, it is important to attract your target audience, otherwise, the phone calls will not bring the desired effect. A special promotional offer or good deal can entice a potential customer who was already considering a product or service to act faster and take advantage of the savings opportunity.
Often, companies use SMS to inform existing customers about new products or services, as it is cheaper and faster than a call from an operator. However, the mailing itself is not the most effective method of communication with the customer, since you cannot verify whether the information has been viewed. Also, remember that the database for SMS sending should be as up-to-date and fresh as possible, otherwise, you will spend money in vain.
Auto dialing in this case will help to quickly update the database and inform customers about promotions and discounts. The combination of a live operator (in cases where you need to solve complex issues) and an automatic call (for routine and frequently repeated processes) allows you to work with the customer base as efficiently as possible.
Invitation for Events
When organizing any event, it is important to accurately calculate the number of participants and ensure their presence, because usually, the number of places at the event is limited. Making sure that a person will attend the event can be helped by outbound calls with an autodialer.
By confirming participation during the conversation with an operator, we assume certain obligations, and therefore, most likely, we will not ignore them. Thus, ringing will contribute to the creation of the most complete picture of the present, and your hall will be filled.
Service Personalization
Each client welcomes a personal approach, and especially the importance for the company. Addressing the client by name, and getting to know his interests and needs are all key aspects of effective database management. «Good afternoon, Mr. Smith You made an order on our website…» — After such a beginning of the conversation, the client will listen more carefully to the operator. Regular contact will help you gain customer loyalty, maintain his interest in the company’s products and services, or simply remind you of yourself.
It is important to maintain constant contact with your customers so that they feel their importance to the company. Personalization of service is one of the best methods of building close and friendly relations with customers.
Collection of Customer Reviews
Evaluation of the quality of your service can be achieved by collecting feedback and detailing calls. This is the most accurate and fastest way to get an objective opinion from the client, identify problems and quickly solve them without wasting time on analysis and reporting.
After the customer has used your services, you should contact the customer with a request to rate the provided service from 1 to 5. This is usually done by SMS or a voice robot call since collecting ratings is a routine job that does not require operator intervention. Thus, operators can focus on servicing other, more complex tasks.
Taking into account all the mentioned aspects, such as informing about promotions, offers, and news, invitations to events, personalizing the service, and collecting feedback, can significantly increase the efficiency of working with your customer base and improve customer relations.
Using autodialer voice bot calls and live operators in combination with maintaining a close relationship with customers can help attract new customers, retain existing customers and increase overall customer satisfaction with your products and services.
Updating Your Customer Base
Continuous updating and updating of the customer base will allow the company to save significant money. Digital call center software will provide you with a very objective picture in terms of analytics.
This way, during future SMS or phone calls, you won’t waste time and money dealing with invalid numbers or callers who don’t belong to your target audience. As for new contacts, attracting potential customers is a key requirement for a successful business.
Your customer base needs to be constantly updated and growing for your business to grow, and for that, you need to make regular cold calls. The auto-dial service in this case will serve as an optimization step.
Lead Nurturing
Before the lead purchases a product or service, the operator will have to communicate with him several times, making up to 8 calls on average. In some cases, a personal meeting with the manager in the office may be required. Therefore, regular prospect preparation calls are of great importance.
Lead nurturing gradually introduces a customer to the company, convinces him of the need to purchase a product or service, offers profitable options, and does everything possible to increase the potential client’s interest and lead to a purchase.
Callback to Customers
If the operator called a potential client not at the right time, the callback function will help schedule a new call at a time convenient for the client. This is more effective because a person will have time and desire to talk to an operator,. Also, it will help not to lose a potential client.
Modern call center software allows you to schedule an automatic callback, and the system itself will make a call at the right time and connect with the operator. The operator will not forget to contact a potential client who was busy or needed additional time to make a decision.
Follow-up Outbound Calls
Follow-up is another method of maintaining the client’s interest in the company’s products. As you know, most potential customers are not ready to make a decision right away, especially regarding expensive purchases. In addition, do not forget about the factor of lack of funds, the need to consult with relatives, or compare your offer with competitors.
Outbound calls and email send-outs are necessary to continue communication after the first contact. Even if a potential customer opts out now, that doesn’t mean they won’t change their mind later. Therefore, it is important to regularly remind yourself.
Tips for Personalization of Outbound Service
We’ve already emphasized the importance of personalizing customer interactions. Now let`s look at the different ways you can create, and perhaps even personal relationships with your customers. For example, the operator must address the client by name and know his history of cooperation with the company.
Customer Segmentation for Outbound Calls
Customer segmentation involves dividing customers into groups based on certain criteria (age, gender, place of residence, field of activity, etc.). In this way, your customer base will be divided into separate target groups for which you can offer specific offers.
For example, offer students special discounts, and parents with children – favorable conditions for the purchase of additional goods (stationery, children’s clothes, etc.).
Call center technologies like Outbound IVR, allow businesses to use segmentation as a tool and strategy to ensure personalized service delivery and achieve the best conversion and customer satisfaction results.
Do Your Research Before Calling
Effective cold-calling lead generation is only possible if your operator is as familiar as possible with each specific lead before making the call. Who will answer the phone on the other end? How to communicate with him, and most importantly, what does he need? These questions will help the operator choose the right conversation strategy and interest the potential client from the first seconds.
Integration of the CRM system is extremely important for call center optimization. It simplifies pre-call research and prospecting by using all benefits of the automated call center software. Your operators will be able to find all information for a call in one place and communicate with leads in the most effective way.
Development of Conversation Scripts
Thanks to the call center technologies, each company can independently develop its conversation script, based on ready-made templates and its own experience. The conversation script may be the key factor in the operator’s successful work, as it provides him with a ready-made toolkit for productive work. Thanks to scripts, a new employee will be able to start working immediately from the first day, and the quality of his work will meet company standards.
A well-designed script anticipates many conversation scenarios and possible client responses. Scripts are made in order not to put your operators in an unconfident position during the call. If you consistently follow the scripts or conversation scenarios, the search for customers will turn from a challenge into an ordinary task.
Prepare for Objection Handling
An objection from a potential client does not mean a refusal to buy your product or service. On the contrary, it indicates the presence of doubts and fears that the operator must dispel for a successful transaction. It is not right to claim that the client is wrong. Instead, explain to him or her the benefits of working with your company. An effective proposal is key when dealing with objections.
For example, if your prospect complains about the high price of the product and compares it to the competition, emphasize the unique advantages that the competition does not have. Explain why you should pay more. Effectively handling objections will ensure the desired revenue from lead generation.
Take Initiative in Outbound Calls
The operator must be active during a conversation with a potential client, directing the dialogue in the right direction. His interest in talking to each lead and finding effective answers will help you succeed in cold calling, especially in bulk calling where an operator makes hundreds of calls in one shift.
Keep Constant Contact with the Customers
The customer base remains relevant thanks to systematic appeal. Most people need time to make a purchase decision. Therefore, you should periodically remind yourself, stimulating the client to decide in your favor. It is important to find a balance so as not to look like an intrusive call center that only annoys people.
Regular follow-up with your customer base will help you not only provide pre-sale support but also get feedback and inform customers about new promotions, discounts, products, or services.
Boost Outbound Calling with Auto Dialer Software
Today automated dialer calls are one of the most effective tools for leads generation and informing customers with outbound calls. In general, there are four main modes of automatic dialing, which are used depending on the purpose set by the company. Let’s look at each mode separately so that you can determine which one is right for you.
What is Power Dialer?
Dialer software performs sequential dialing performed by the system based on a defined list. In simple mode, the operator does not have the opportunity to choose whom to call and in what sequence, the software is responsible for this. If the auto-dialed call is not answered, it goes into the redial queue, and the dialer dials the next number on the list, and so on until everyone is called. In this way, you will avoid problems when the operator simply forgets to dial the number again, and the contact database will be processed as efficiently as possible.
What is a Predictive Dialer?
Predictive Dialer is an improved automatic dialer mode that allows you to ring contacts more efficiently.
Based on the average call duration, the automatic dialer system calculates the number of numbers that need to be dialed simultaneously so that all operators are connected to customers. Therefore, dialing occurs when the operator has not yet completed the conversation with the previous potential customer. Thus, there is no need to wait for a connection, and the operator conducts more conversations during the work shift. Predictive Dialer is the fastest autodialer.
What is Preview Dialing Mode?
The preview dialer for a call center allows operators to have more control over the automatic callback process. The call center operator is able to review the contact information before making a decision on the call and rejecting it. The contact handling script can also be configured so that the call will be made automatically without the operator canceling it.
This auto-dialing mode is often used when working with VIP clients, as it allows the operator to review the client’s profile before the system makes a call. Also, it can be useful during telephone sales, or clarifying information regarding applications or appeals.
What is Outbound IVR?
Sometimes, a large number of outbound calls do not require the direct participation of an operator. In this case, it is worth using a voice bot combined with outbound IVR. This is a more accessible and convenient tool when automatically calling customers. The IVR system can provide basic information, solve simple customer requests, inform about the status of the application, remind about the scheduled meeting, talk about promotions and new products, get feedback on the quality of services, and much more.
Global Bilgi Power Dialer for Your Outbound Call Strategy
Global Bilgi PowerDialer is an automatic dialer system that will help you quickly and efficiently process a cold database of contacts. Using this solution, you can easily launch dialer campaigns in various modes, including using outbound IVR.
Thanks to the Predictive mode, this dialer ensures the fastest and highest quality processing of the database, while operators do not need to waste time on manual dialing. You can also distribute tasks among a group of operators and configure the call distribution logic, which contributes to the efficient loading of the call center.
Dialer from Global Bilgi provides call details – information on the status of each call and operator performance indicators. This allows you to get a clear idea of the success of the department’s work. A flexible system for setting up conversational scripts helps to achieve maximum results, and lead generation takes place by established rules and norms that shape your company’s image on the market.
Effectively calling customers and working with a cold base can become important tools for increasing your company’s profits. Most importantly, it is important to understand the specifics of cold calling and use solutions such as Global Bilgi’s dialer to optimize the process and ensure maximum effectiveness.
Features of Global Bilgi PowerDialer:
- CRM integration: PowerDialer can easily integrate with your CRM system, allowing operators to quickly retrieve customer information and track interaction history.
- Monitoring and analysis: Dialer from Global Bilgi provides the opportunity to monitor the work of operators in real-time, as well as analyze the effectiveness of campaigns, which helps to improve processes and increase efficiency.
- Customization of the operator’s workplace: The system allows you to customize the operator’s workplace according to your needs, including access to the necessary information, conversational scripts, and other tools.
- Flexibility and Scalability: PowerDialer is suitable for companies of all sizes, from small businesses to large corporations, and provides the flexibility to configure and scale the system according to your business needs.
Using an autodialer from Global Bilgi, you get a modern and efficient tool for processing your customer base. By providing operators with comfortable working conditions and up-to-date customer data, you will be able to improve lead generation rates and, ultimately, increase your company’s profits. Contact us if you want to learn more about how auto-dialer can help in your outbound call strategy!
