the business ladder

30 November 2009

Felicity Kemp is Managing Director of Talk Results, a specialist provider of business-to-business (B2B) telemarketing services.

TBL: Tell us briefly about your new company and your role in it.

FK: I started Talk Results after the previous company I worked for closed down its Stamford office. We provide business-to-business (B2B) telemarketing services and specialise in a ‘no hard sales’ approach to telemarketing, which is a new kind of strategy in that field. We’re starting small, but we have a good range of clients and we’re expanding and growing at present.

TBL: You mentioned a ‘no hard sales’ approach – that sounds an unusual proposition for the telemarketing sector. What does it consist of?

FK: Essentially it means we don’t use scripts. I hate it when people call me up, and within the first couple of seconds ask “how are you today?” very mechanically, even though I have no idea who they are, and then don’t really listen to your answer but just say “that’s great” or something to that effect. Obviously that’s very impersonal and we don’t work that way. When it comes to telesales, I use a ‘sales story’. To develop this, I do a lot of research, I spend a lot of time with my clients, learning their business, becoming part of their business, and taking on their USPs. I have on average an 11-page sales story, starting with a ‘hot button’ statement, which includes an introduction and credentials. I then explain about the company I’m representing in further detail, and have a statement of intent and control, followed by open questions to establish their need (which of course is the most important part of sales). Then generally the customer tends to do the talking and I apply a page of features and benefits to the answers they give. By the time I get to the close, usually the prospective client is asking for the product or service and I don’t have to ‘sell’ anything!

TBL: Tell us about what Talk Results does and which sectors you work with.

FK: What we do includes the whole spectrum of telesales activity, really. I don’t want to bore you with lists, but… Sales and marketing, lead generation, appointment making, direct sales, letter follow-ups, feedback gathering… We work with clients in a range of sectors, and we look to learn about new ones all the time: financial, legal, SEO [search engine optimisation], web design, recruitment, advertising, medical, health & safety, suppliers, web-based advertising, eco-friendly living, general building products, graphic design, networking…

TBL: That is quite a list! Tell us a bit more about what kind of candidates you look for when recruiting for telemarketing roles.

FK: At Talk Results we look for people with a pure, natural talent but who don’t necessarily have the experience ‘on paper’. Instead, we look for people with strong personalities and the ability to learn quickly, appreciate and feel passionate about the client’s product or service and who can experience emotion and show personality from the call. An employee I helped recently had very little sales background but did have a degree in drama! This proved a fantastic choice as he can flex his personality to the prospective caller. Therefore he has not only got no bad habits that need removing but he can tailor his personality for every call.

TBL: Can you relate that to your own experience?

FK: Well, I have no real ‘background’ in sales of the kind that some sticklers for qualifications might expect from new sales executives before taking a punt on them. I sometimes joke that my CV is atrocious! But because of the real skills and commercial understanding that I’ve developed along the way, I’m now running my own company. I think that says a lot.

TBL: In a world where so much information about businesses is available freely on the web, do you think this will spell the end for cold, impersonal sales scripts – and bring about a move toward ‘stories’?

FK: To be honest, I don’t feel that hard selling will ever really end. I think with large companies – BT, Sky, those companies flogging you insurance over the phone – you will always get a hard sell, and the numbers must be working for them or else they probably wouldn’t keep doing it. I think the new way forward, though, certainly for smaller companies, is a softer sell. I find with the way the world is moving technologically, some people find it easy to think that they can do sales and marketing on their own – but companies can’t do it without somebody using a more personal sales approach, you can’t expect people to simply respond to a letter or an e-mail, you need to be able to call, make it more personal, and get business that way.

TBL: You’ve started your new business in a recession. How have you found the current climate in terms of building new client relationships?

FK: I’ve generally been working locally, and I’ve found as long as you don’t expect to be paid a fortune, being reasonable with your clients will prove you’re a worthwhile person or company to work with. Also the simple fact of working on a ‘basic plus commission’ basis proves effective as it gives the client enough time to realise how good you are – because on a commission basis you really have to prove yourself and earn everything.

TBL: What makes a good telesales executive?

FK: The main thing is being able to think on your feet in a sales context. You have to have a convincing answer to everything, plus the ability to use open questions (who, what, where, when). You need open questions to establish a need, not closed questions.

TBL: Tell us about the ideal personality for telesales and marketing.

FK: I call telesales a Marmite job: you either love it or you hate it. Firstly you need to have confidence, not only in yourself but in what you’re selling. If you don’t respect the product, or the company, you can’t sell it. Secondly you need to be mentally strong: it’s vital to be able to overcome objections, and customers always have objections! Thirdly – I find that people with a background of drama or some form of acting ability tend to work very well as they can really empathise with the customer and put themselves ‘in their shoes’ to build rapport. And finally, you need to think on your feet, move fast, adapt the thrust and the emphasis of what you say, like in any other discussion or argument scenario.

TBL: With regard to cold calling, what would be your number one tip for people who can’t help getting nervous?

FK: Remember that people can’t hurt you down the phone! [laughs] Being extremely polite is always the best road to follow. If you’re always sincerely nice to people, they find it difficult to be horrible back. If you’re too impersonal and dive in with a ‘salesy’ voice, they don’t like it, they get defensive, and they can become frosty toward you and brush you off. But if you act friendly, particularly for getting past the ‘gatekeepers’ – i.e. receptionists – you will get a lot farther, and if you start with a little charm for the little people, you can work your way up the chain of command a lot faster.

TBL: You mentioned the infamous gatekeeper / receptionist figures well known to all salespersons. How has your own strategy evolved in dealing with them?

FK: Always be friendly and open with them, encourage them to engage and help you out. But when you’re struggling to get past one who isn’t co-operating, a sneaky tip is to ask for the wrong department. If you’re trying to get through to the head of procurement, for example, ask for the utilities team, the cleaning side of the company – go through to them, then apologise and say “Whoops, I’ve been put through to the wrong number, could you transfer me over to the head of procurement?” It’s worth trying this way to get to them a lot faster than banging your head against the wall. Personally, my expertise of getting past gatekeepers is based on the experience of being one for a while! You need to respect them, that is key to getting them to (1) give you the contact name, (2) put you through and (3) occasionally getting them to do the sale for you!

TBL: How do you see the developing challenge from outsourced telesales companies based in non-UK or non-EU locations?

FK: It’s an important issue, definitely. It’s crucial to appreciate that we’re now working in a global marketplace, a global environment. But from a consumer’s point of view, I’m not best pleased when I sit down to my dinner at 7pm and a well-meaning salesman clearly from a long, long way away rings me up, asking woodenly ‘And how are you today, madam?’ before trying to sell me something I have no interest in and building zero rapport. So I take this experience from one end of the phone and apply it to the other, in analysing telesales. I prefer local companies, or at least one whose personnel can make a real, genuine interpersonal connection. There are unique benefits in having salespeople who can make that connection, develop that useful understanding with the typical person you’re trying to sell to. I think very much when you’re at a distance from that local or national environment, it can’t be replaced by a simple crib sheet, and it can’t be replaced with a quick summary of what has happened on the soaps on TV. A salesperson that has been badly trained, whose method is heavily script-based, and with insufficient knowledge of the product or the company being pitched just won’t work well. Shortcuts and quick fixes don’t build rapport, whatever the cost-cutting benefits or doing so, and I think the value of the locally based telesales operation shines through. You get results with the personal approach, such as the ‘story-based’ approach we follow at Talk Results.

TBL: In your experience how does gender interact with sales and marketing skills (if at all)?

FK: I have the most experience in working mainly with other women within a sales department. Generally I’ve found that males can definitely work better assigned to certain areas, while females can give their best when they have a more rounded role. But really, I don’t see any problems with both sexes working together or separately; they both have equal value and bring benefits to the operation. It’s horses for courses and there’s no point getting hang-ups about that sort of thing, because what matters is the individual’s abilities not their gender.

TBL: Would you say it would be a benefit to any sales operation to consider implementing a more personal sales approach?

FK: I would say it’s a definite need for many businesses. Whether it’s getting appointments for financial advisors, or ringing up a builder and trying to sell them an eco-friendly boiler… You need to do that on a personal level, not just sending out brochures or e-mails. The way forward, for every company out there, is to work on a personal level, because what we do is proven to bring in more business.

TBL: If you were to walk into another business now, and you saw a telesales exec struggling to perform their best, what’s the most important tip you would give them?

FK: I would try to build up their confidence levels. They need to realise that they’re the one in control during their calls. You have to hold the reins of the call fairly tightly; if you let the potential customer take over control of the conversation, that makes selling much more difficult. In order to achieve your objective, you need to be in control every minute of that call: ask the questions you need answered and explain the things you need to explain. That’s why I consider research to be such a crucial element of telesales: you have to know the product very well before you can sell it confidently.

TBL: What does the future hold for telesales as a business sector?

FK: I can’t emphasise it enough, I see the future as heading toward being more personal in sales. That doesn’t necessarily mean, for example, it has to be done within the same city as the client’s location. But if your client or customer’s dog has broken its leg, be sympathetic when you call them back, make them feel that connection with a person who really does understand them. Besides making them feel valued, you will also get further on a sales basis: you need to find that one-on- one personal level. Instead of pushing something they clearly don’t want or ‘hard selling’ them, you have to establish their need. Personal rapport is the way to do it.

TBL: Thank you, Felicity, it has been a very enlightening interview and we wish you and Talk Results all the best in the future.

To find out more about Talk Results please click here to visit their website, or call 01780 483 888 or e-mail felicity.kemp@talkresults.co.uk.

© Copyright 2009 The Business Ladder (UK) Limited

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