The Best Telemarketing Spiels: Lines For Every Situation

Telemarketing is by no means dead.

It still forms one of the most integral pillars of outbound lead generation, and it still manages to rake in thousands of leads for a lot of industries monthly.

In this guide, we take a look at common telemarketing scenarios, and what to do to win in each situation!

Opening Spiel

How have you been?

A lot of telemarketers and lead generation unanimously agree that this is one of the best openers in the book.

In fact, even the guys over at Gong did a test using the phrase and it performed 6.6x better than their baseline test results.

There are a lot of reasons why it works, and here’s a couple of them.

First of all, it’s different. Everyone is used to “How are you?”, “Do you have a minute?”, “Am I interrupting you?”, but using a line like this sounds fresh and nobody really uses it.

It also permits for a more open-ended response, the phrases that we mentioned earlier usually generate superficial answers that don’t leave room for any communication apart from “Fine” and “Yes”.

By using a line such as “How have you been?” a marketer can disarm their prospect and get a more candid response.

Lastly, it makes the call feel more familiar without being creepy, it’s a line that’s often used by friends, without really overstepping the boundaries of formal communication. People are hardwired to respond kindly to people that sound familiar.

You Don’t Know Answer to a Question

Let me find out for you now!

This is also a common question from customer reps, and the best way to deal with it is to tell the person on the other line that you’re going to get them the answers they need right away.

When a prospect starts asking questions that’s a good sign.

Now, even the best telemarketers don’t have all the answers, but it’s critical to tell the prospect that the marketer is willing to get them the answers immediately and that they are happy to do so.

During this time, a telemarketer can raise the concern to a supervisor or have the call transferred.

Whatever happens, they need to make sure that their prospect is aware that something is being done about the situation.

Facing a Gatekeeper

What’s the best way to reach them?

The dreaded gatekeeper.

There’s no avoiding them and almost all high-level DMUs have them around. However, this doesn’t mean it’s the end of the line.

When facing a gatekeeper, the best thing to do is to respect their position in relation to the DMU.

They are put there for a reason, so a telemarketer should greet them, state their intentions, and ask them kindly, “what’s the best way to reach them? [the DMU]”

By doing this, telemarketers acknowledge the gatekeeper and their position, make sure that they are following formal protocols for marketing communications, and maintain a possible way to create a relationship with the gatekeeper.

Adding lines such as, “what’s the best way to go about this?”, “what would you advise is the best way to contact them?” or even, “when can I call you again to check up on the proposal?” are also great additions.

If they want to hang up or if they’re busy

Don’t let me keep you, are you free on [INSERT DATE and TIME]

Don’t let me keep you, are you free on ____ at ____?

A lot of prospects can get elusive, but sometimes they are truly busy and they need to attend to a fire in the organization, so the best way to get a follow up call is to propose one.

Here’s why it works.

If telemarketers just ask their prospect when they’re free, this gives the prospect unlimited options and adds to their mental workload. If a more specific time is suggested, then the prospect starts thinking about that particular time slot and a negotiation is initiated.

When an open negotiation is initiated, it makes it harder to dodge a follow-up call and puts the prospect in the mental state that another meeting is going to take place.

It’s the same old technique used when asking someone out on a date.

If they really don’t want to buy into the solution or aren’t interested

Simply end the call or:

You’ve been so great to talk to, is it alright if we keep this line open for the future?

Thank you so much for the insight, I learned a lot from this call, do you think you might be able to refer me to someone else?

Thank you for your time, I know you’re busy, do you have any advice for me?

There’s something marketers have to know about their prospects, they’re human, too. And, depending on how well the call went, there’s a chance that it could still lead to another lead later on.

This is what telemarketers should capitalize on, if rapport was developed and a call was indirectly prolonged, there’s a chance that a prospect would offer some advice or even a referral.

People like helping other people out.

There are a lot more scenarios out there, but these should cover the most common ones that telemarketers face daily. By knowing how to respond to these scenarios, they should have most of their bases covered.

Find out how Callbox can help with your lead generation today!