As a business owner, you want your employees to be as productive, focused, and reliable in all ways possible. With determination and coordination, you can devise strategies to do so, yet in a technology-driven society, wouldn’t it be nice to tap into newer developments to boost business growth and reap profits just the same? You have to start somewhere if you want to navigate a competitive market.
Outbound calling is an excellent way to increase productivity while engaging with customers, but it can be time-consuming if you have to make all the calls yourself. With automated outbound calling software, you can have an assistant make calls on your behalf at any time of day or night with just a few clicks of the mouse. So, what exactly is automated outbound calling? How does it work and why should you consider using it in your own business? This article will answer all these questions and more.
What Is Automated Outbound Calling?
Before you learn what automated outbound calling is, you need to know what outbound calling is. Outbound calling is the process of making calls to prospects and customers. It’s a great way to reach out to your active customers and contacts in your database who may not have heard from you for a while. Even though it’s most commonly used to follow up on lead generation, automated outbound calls have many other uses. For example, many companies use it to set up appointments with their sales teams after cold calls.
Outbound calls can be made manually or automatically with an auto-dialer. This is an automated piece of software that dials numbers from a list, usually stored in a database on the company’s server or cloud storage system. The calls are made through VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol), which transfers audio over the internet instead of through traditional phone lines. If you’re unsure which auto-dialer would be best for you, consider looking at Power Dialer software and many others within the range.
You can use automated outbound calls for both inbound and outbound purposes. An example of this would be when an automated call system calls someone who has called into your company or signed up for your newsletter; it will thank them for their interest and offer additional information about products or services that may interest them. This process is often referred to as ‘call tracking.’ It can also be used to contact people who have visited a specific page on your website. Thus, if they’ve clicked through Google Ads or another ad platform like Facebook Ads, this means there’s a level of intent behind their visit. Using an automated call system allows businesses like yours to capitalize on this intent by engaging with potential customers before it expires (i.e., before they lose interest).
Types Of Outbound Calls
- Cold Calling
The most traditional type of call, cold calling involves contacting a prospect on the phone with no prior contact. This approach is more effective than email messaging because it allows you to connect with prospects who may not have received or opened your emails. However, it can be difficult to get through to them if they don’t know who you are or why they should be interested in your product or service.
- Warm Calling
Warm calls happen when there is some familiarity level between your company and the prospect. Unlike cold calls, warm calling allows you to call prospective customers that have shown some interest in your products. For example, you might use warm calls when a customer has requested information about additional services but hasn’t taken any action yet, so they may still be interested in what your business has to offer.
- Hot Calling
Hot calls are made when prospects have already shown interest by clicking on an ad or downloading an e-book from one of your marketing campaigns. This means that hot calls are made to prospects to stir interest in your products and services. Clicking on your advert or whichever action they may have taken means there’s a high chance you can convert them into becoming your customers. So, the goal here is simple: turn these people into paying customers.
How Does Automated Outbound Calling Work?
There are a few things to consider should you opt to outsource your outbound calling. First, you’ll want to select the right kind of vendor that can provide you with the type of service or product that best fits your business needs. You also want to make sure they offer a wide range of features and services so they can meet all your needs.
You’ll also want an easy-to-use platform that simplifies sales processes and scripts, while still maintaining quality standards, for employees who aren’t familiar with automated outbound calls, like customer service representatives.
Automated outbound calling is vital for companies looking for ways to increase their number of leads and those looking for better ways of managing their existing clients’ databases and their overall marketing efforts.
How You Can Get Started With Automated Outbound Calling
Now that you know a bit about automated outbound calling and how it functions, let’s get to know its process. As mentioned, there are different platforms available to help you automate your campaigns. Some of these can be used for free, whereas others require a paid subscription. Popular choices include Call Cowboy and many others that are sure to fit your needs and requirements.
Once you’ve chosen a platform, signing up for it is as simple as filling out basic information about yourself and uploading some files (such as contact lists). You may also need to connect any other accounts for the platform to import data from these platforms into its system so you can send emails or text messages through these accounts later on.
Outbound Calling Process
The process of outbound calling follows some steps.
It begins with a call from your call center to a prospective client. The prospect picks up the phone and hears a recording that tells them to press 1 or 2 on their keypad, depending on whether they’re interested in hearing more information about the product or service you offer. This makes outbound calls flexible to a point where the receiver has the freedom to go on with the call or discontinue it if they’re uninterested. For example, if they press 1, you have permission to talk with them live and further explain why your company’s offering is right for them. If they press 2, they don’t want any more information at the moment but will listen to your pre-recorded message.
Your company’s marketing team has already created a script that explains what it does and why this would benefit them. You can play this script into their earpiece while they’re waiting for an operator from your call center to pick up on the other end of the line within some prescribed period. This also means that the automated outbound call will help create a platform that allows you to keep in touch with a prospect. At the same time, the prospect can listen to the pre-recorded call at their own convenient time.
Benefits Of Automated Outbound Calling
Using automated outbound calling as a form of digital marketing has many benefits. These are as follows:
- Provides Convenience To Your Schedule
Expect a more convenient work schedule when you employ an automated outbound call. Thus, you won’t have to squeeze into your schedule to make business calls. In most cases, a live conversation would be best, but there are instances when an automated call can be helpful, like when a prospect is busy and can’t talk at the time. Your outbound calling program will leave a message that they’ll get back to you at their convenience.
You can’t always reach your target or get through to them by phone. Hence, you can use automated outbound calling to get in touch with prospects who aren’t available on the phone or who won’t take your calls. These are two of the most common reasons salespeople decide not to use outbound calling programs. It’s not uncommon for reps to spend hours trying to contact someone so they can tell them about their product or service. When they finally connect with them, this prospective customer already has a solution in place or is not even interested. With an effective automation strategy, though, these salespeople could have been speaking directly with qualified prospects from day one instead of burning up valuable time making cold calls.
- Increases Returns On Investment (ROI)
The other benefit of automated outbound calling is that it increases productivity. You’ll likely increase your company’s ROI when you employ automated outbound calling. This comes through when you manage to convert customers as you use the customer demographics in making the calls. This is to ensure that you engage the prospect in a call talking about something they’re most likely interested in. Therefore, to boost your campaign, ensure that your automation is set up rightfully to meet potential customer interests and avoid wasted calls, increasing sales and customer satisfaction. Therefore, automated outbound calling can increase your customer lifetime value, customer retention, and referrals by providing a better consumer experience that can lead to repeat purchases and word-of-mouth referrals.
- Boosts Productivity
There’s no longer a need to call yourself to make cold calls or schedule time-consuming face-to-face meetings with prospects. With an automated outbound calling system, you’ll be able to free up valuable time by spending it on other areas of the business that need further attention. This means that when you automate your outbound calling system, you’ll have time to deal with different issues concurrently. For instance, you can make calls automatically while attending to other business needs. This will ensure productivity for your company because you don’t have to be physically there to stress yourself about other prospects not picking up the calls. Thus, automated outbound calling is a convenient way to help grow your business without having to worry yourself along the way.
- Increases Sales
An automated outbound calling system can help you close more deals with warm leads—people who already know about your business and might be interested in buying your product or service. It also helps generate new leads through scripts, which aren’t as effective when done manually over the phone because most people hang up before they hear what you have to say. Automating these tasks means that sales reps don’t have to spend as much time trying to convince someone to be interested enough in what they’re selling. Hence, they can focus on pursuing those who may become clients instead.
How Much Do Automated Calls Cost?
The cost of an automated outbound call is generally much lower than the cost of a live call. This is because you don’t need to hire employees to run your automated calling campaigns, and your phone equipment doesn’t have to be as sophisticated.
However, there is still some variation in how much you’ll pay for automated outbound calls, depending on the type of call. For instance, answering machines are cheaper than voicemail systems or live answering services (like those used by receptionists). Besides, live answering services tend to charge more than voicemail systems (although if you’re making several calls, this might not matter to you).
Conclusion
Owning a company or business entails facing responsibilities and having a lot on your plate daily. The use of automation in increasing company productivity is gaining traction in many industries today. However, you have to choose a service provider that guarantees you exceptional outcomes so that you’ll realize your business objectives.
If your goal is to reach prospective customers, consider using automated outbound calls to meet this. It’s a great way to get your sales team to talk to prospects, especially those who may already be interested but still need a little push to make a purchase. By making calls automatically, you can free up more time for your sales reps to focus on closing deals and selling products, boosting your sales and profits in the long run.