Telemarketing, also known as telemarketing calls, is a technique of direct contacting potential customers for the purpose of selling products or services, usually by telephone. Telemarketing can involve both voice and data communication. In a few countries, telemarketing comprises the use of email and internet. In United States, the Federal Trade Commission has defined the guidelines for telemarketing to protect consumers from unsolicited phone calls and to aid businesses in getting more customers and clients.
The Federal Trade Commission laid down guidelines in Telecom Relay Services (TRS) that are required to be implemented in all commercial phone markets to protect consumers. The guidelines enable companies to make a choice regarding who they give their business calls to. It says that telemarketers may not initiate any contact with a consumer on the list of opt-out persons. However, they may use “defined contact techniques” to contact these persons when it is in their legitimate interest to do so. The guidelines also state that telemarketers may only make calls to persons on the list of opt-out and express permission for other telephone calls to be made by the consumer if the consumer gives such authorization.
Telemarketing has been defined as a marketing practice in order to increase the sale of a product or service by using personal contact with the customer. Telemarketing is an especially valuable tool for marketing particularly during holiday seasons when sales are especially high. Telemarketing helps companies by providing cost effective means to communicate directly with customers and this enables companies to generate leads and strengthen their business marketing strategy by communicating directly with customers. Telemarketing is a particularly valuable tool for marketing particularly during holiday seasons when sales are especially high.
Telemarketing allows the company to make sales without having to set up an expensive or inefficient cold calling strategy. This saves companies money, because they don’t have to hire out additional manpower that costs them money and time. It also eliminates the need for the salesperson to travel to the potential customer’s home or place of employment. By eliminating the need for the salesperson to leave his/her workplace, the company saves money and time. In addition, telemarketing allows the company to focus more of its resources on other core business functions such as research, development, testing and manufacturing.
When using telemarketing, the telemarketer should remember that they are not calling for business only but should emphasize that they are a good telemarketer as well. Many people do not realize that a good telemarketer can be just as good at non-telemarketing telephone calls such as making cold calls or making sales calls. A good telemarketer should understand how to listen effectively to what the prospective customer is saying and should know how to speak to people in their language. By knowing how to do these two things well, it allows the telemarketer to develop good rapport with the potential client.
Telemarketing has been an essential part of the structure of direct marketing and has been especially valuable for small businesses that cannot afford to spend a significant amount of money on advertising. Telemarketing has helped many small businesses survive tough times and continue to operate. It saves time for many business owners and has helped increase sales for some companies.