Some companies we speak to, and in fact nearly all as they mature, will turn to in-house telemarketing and sales lead generation functions.
Why?
It’s probably a control thing.
Most organisations want to shape their own sales destiny, and not leave it in the hands of a third part supplier.
Natural evolution is another reason. As companies evolve, their professional sales departments need to evolve and grow with them. You need a good ‘internal sales‘ learning ground to breed the next generation of field sales people.
Past a certain point in their persuasion we can’t stop companies brining telemarketing ‘in-house’. But we can still present the reasons why we think it might not be the best idea.
Before we can help you understand why outsourced lead generation works, you need to appreciate just how difficult establishing an in-house sales team can be.
Here’s our thoughts on some of the challenges faced by companies looking to develop internal sales lead generation functions. You’ll see the process poses difficulties and problems right from the beginning.
1. Recruiting The Right Internal Sales Person
Okay picture the scene, you decide the way to grow your business is by hiring an internal sales person. There’s just a few hurdles to get over: You’ve got no sales people. You’re not a sales person and you’re not really sure what they should be like.
Sounds impossible from the start, yes?
Well it’s the situation most growing technology and digital media businesses find themselves in when they move from relying on word of mouth and referrals to grow onto creating sales with outbound sales and promotion.
Unless you’ve worked in sales-driven organisations, amongst true sales people, it will be very hard to know what to look for.
In most situations we have seen, the recruitment process fails to deliver the right amount of quality short listed candidates, normally because the job role was written poorly. Right from the start, you’ll have to chose from ‘the best of a bad bunch’ for your new sales person.
So, often the most outgoing and pushy person wins out.
Being outgoing is only one of a much wider set of skills needed. A great sales person should be outgoing as well as confident, systematic, analytical and many others. Being pushy is probably one of the traits you least want in a sales person.
All this means that your company’s leap of faith into the sales world is starting with the recruitment of what seems to be a good ‘sales type’ person. In truth that person is likely to be a long way from what is really required.
(You can see ‘what to look for in a sales person in an upcoming post. Subscribe to our RSS feed so you don’t miss it)
2. Training Your New Sales Person
Just for a minute, imagine you’re the new sales person. And it’s your first day in your new telesales job.
“Here you go: Your desk, your PC and the phone – off you go!’
Sounds extreme but believe me: I’ve been there.
Many internal telemarketing functions are set up by non-sales people. Normally they have a preconceived idea the new sales person will be a ‘go getter’, who will magically start delivering qualified sales leads to the company.
True, if you’re lucky enough to find a gem of a telephone sales person then, yes, this might work. But whoever they are, they will require in-depth training. Before they can start making calls, your telesales person will need a solid understanding of your company, its proposition and, most importantly, the outbound sales techniques that work best in your industry.
Who is going to train them? I hear you ask.
It is unlikely to be the technical/creative/production manager or director that’s trying to create the new function.
Unless the trainer has been in direct sales roles and understands what’s required in a ‘cold calling’ function, you’re setting it up to fail.
3. Keeping Your Sales Person Motivated
Sales people are strange folk. Many outside of the profession consider sales people to be fundamentally motivated by greed and money. Whilst remuneration is never far away from their thoughts I can honestly say I’ve never met a sales person whose primary concern is building their bank balance.
Sales people are generally driven by:
- Professional pride (of a job well done)
- Satisfaction (of developing a sale and contributing to the success of the business)
- Recognition (of management and peers)
- Reward
4. Managing, Coaching & Mentoring A Sales Person
Ok. So you’ve been lucky enough to find a natural sales professional, who took to your industry, products and customers like a duck to water. Now you face an even bigger challenge.
How do you manage a sales person in the long term?
As mentioned many times already, sales people are a unique bunch. And therefore, managing their results, coaching their performance and developing their skills is extremely difficult at the best of times. If your company doesn’t already have an experienced, successful sales manager it becomes nearly impossible.
When a sales person isn’t managed, coached and developed in the right way, you’re soon left with a sales person who’ll quickly be looking for their next challenge – often in the job section of the local paper.
5. Recognising & Reward A Sales Person’s Achievements (read: Commissions!)
It’s widely known most sales people are rewarded for their efforts by commission payments on top of their basic salaries.
Commission structures can be complex: Complex to design and complex to administer.
If your company has never had an internal sales person before, it is unlikely your office systems are designed to cope with a commission earning employee and your payroll person will also start asking awkward questions when their workload suddenly increases.
6. Providing The Camaraderie A Sales Person Needs To Succeed
Like most other people, sales-types are herd animals. They enjoy the competition, support and banter that comes with working in an existing team of other sales people. The desire to out-perform their colleagues is often what pushes them to achieve their best results.
When a business is experimenting with an internal sales role, the gamble is a small one. So the sales person finds that they are alone. Like a horse in a herd of cattle. Usually, after a while, the horse goes looking for other horses to run with.
Outsourced Lead Generation Sounds Like An Appealing Alternative
Now you’ve seen how fraught with danger, the in-house option is, I’m sure you’ll be considering outsourcing your lead generation a bit more seriously.
Using a professional lead generation business is easier because:
- You don’t have the pressure of hiring the right people
All of our Business Development Execs are trained professionals, experienced in the latest sales techniques.
- You don’t have to train someone in the art of lead generation
Finding businesses more sales leads is our passion. To help our client’s increase their top-line sales, we constantly learn and test the latest in telesales, e-mail and social media lead generation techniques.
- You don’t have to bear the financial strain of an internal sales team
By outsourcing to a lead generation company, you can save on the salary, commission, NI, expenses and other costs associated with hiring a full time employee.
Need More Information About Pay-On-Results Lead Generation?
Take a look at our lead generation page or read about some of the clients we’ve already helped with outsourced business development.
