How many Google ads have you seen about appointment setting? Yet, how many of them have you clicked already?
Most marketers are cautious in planning their Business-to-Business marketing campaigns. They want to turn every stage of B2B marketing processes into an almost-perfect stage. And if there is such a thing as perfect, they wouldn't hesitate to bring it to the next level!
Unfortunately, some of them believe in 'misconceptions' or others might regard them as 'myths' in outsourcing to B2B lead generation services such as appointment setting.
Outsourcing means reaching out to other companies to represent your business on your behalf. Meanwhile, outsourcing to an appointment setting company is another process that aims to nurture your leads or prospects and turn them into your consumers.
The B2B appointment setting services have a long history that shows high conversion rates for many businesses in different industries. But why do these companies avoid or skip this amazing service?
It might have something to do with their experience with a B2B appointment setting company. The costs associated with the business service could also be another factor.
Regardless of the reason, let's have a look at some of these misconceptions.
For the past several years, we have seen companies and businesses struggle to generate qualified leads and prospects due to the misconception that appointment setting entails. Here we have identified the most common misconceptions and why you should not be too inclined to believe them.
If you consider spending a great amount of time for multiple engagements and revisions of the appointment setting script - as simple, then you might probably agree with it.
But the truth is, exchanging phone and email conversations to nurture leads and qualify prospects doesn't happen overnight. The act of handling one-on-one appointments, especially for those in the B2B industry, may take several weeks or even months.
According to a recent study by Abstrakt Marketing Group, it takes about 47 days between the first dial and first appointment for those in the software industry to schedule an appointment.
Moreover, appointment setting requires more critical actions to implement. Some of these actions include sharing the company's value proposition, updating the database, and scheduling a follow-up call.
In some cases, other businesses may even need to contact around 10 or more companies to get a single qualified lead. It is definitely not as easy as other people thought, which is why more companies seek appointment setting services.
Come to think of it, calling a prospect and keeping the conversation going seems pretty easy. But how convincing are your sales team for a follow-up call? How can they effectively persuade prospects to book for another meeting? Most importantly, how many hours can they delegate to this service?
Salespeople are known better as 'closer.' Meaning, they are more focused on closing deals rather than finding leads.
It may not be a good idea to divide their primary tasks of developing relationships and negotiating agreements along with appointment setting services.
Instead of bringing positive results for the company, it may lead to the loss of qualified opportunities.
Imagine the exhausting process the whole sales team has to go through. The business leaders, managers, and recruiters have to plan the workflow, collect the necessary equipment, undergo the process of hiring qualified appointment setters, give training sessions, and oversee operations. In some cases, they may need to repeat the whole process.
And things don't end here. The inside sales team also needs to develop a strategy to approach, handle, and follow-up calls.
In the end, creating an inside sales team is counterproductive and may require more steps and processes to follow.
Appointment setting services never worked - only if - you outsource to low-quality services. It's probably a lot cheaper and quicker, but they are all about getting appointments regardless if the leads were qualified or not.
But a reliable lead generation company would do more than just calling prospects and crossing out their names on your list. They are open to discuss the set of guidelines you require before passing it as a 'qualified appointment'. They could even consider the BANT (budget, authority, need, and timeline) framework to determine which leads should be prioritized.
"You get what you pay for."
The cheaper item or services doesn't mean better quality. In fact, it may be the other way around.
Some of these 'affordable' services simply aim at scheduling appointments. It doesn't matter if the people were interested or not. The point is, their work is done.
But it shouldn't be that way. This can cost you additional time and money to waste. In this case, you are more inclined to spend more. So why not resort to quality services instead?
You can check this post here about appointment setting costs to get a better idea of the different pricing models for appointment setting services.
Another common appointment setting myth is believing every appointment setters are the same.
Only if this is true, then businesses can easily access and outsource to any companies offering appointment setting services. But it's not.
Every appointment setting company offers a different value proposition. Some companies simply focus on the number of leads they can get booked with, while others focus on properly qualifying appointments.
For instance, a complex-related industry may need an appointment setting service that focuses on commodity sales. But it's not applicable for a healthcare-focused company. The latter is more inclined to a sales team with medical-related expertise and customized appointment setting campaigns.
Outsourcing to an appointment setting service can bring value to your business as long as you choose the most suitable company with whom you can partner with.
In the end, a qualified sales appointment all goes down to your decision. As much as possible, try to avoid these myths or common appointment setting misconceptions, especially if there's no solid basis to do so.
Do thorough market research, ask your sales team, seek expert advice, and choose a highly skilled and experienced partner for your company.
The good news is, Appointment Setting UK knows just where to get such a partner! We can connect you among our list of appointment setting partners in the United Kingdom where your company's decision maker can reach out to.
Contact us today at 020-80599450 to learn more or email us to book a free quotation.
