Millennium Marketing Research®

Tom Schori DBA Millennium Marketing Research®, 808 Ironwood, Normal IL 61761, 309-532-8466

Starting Page    Millennium Marketing Research?    Types of Research    Principals    Articles   Quote

Telemarketing doesn't have to be a 'bad word.'

By Thomas R. Schori, Ph.D., and Michael L. Garee, Principals,  Millennium Marketing Research, 808 E. Ironwood, Normal, IL 61761-5239. 

Over the years, we’ve worked with people who literally detest anything and everything about telemarketing. They say things such as, "If I want something, I’ll go buy it. No one needs to call me." "When telemarketers call, I simply slam the phone in their ears." Wow! Those are some mighty strong reactions! Is that how everyone feels about getting a call from a telemarketer? We think not. In fact, we know not because over the years, through numerous focus groups and other research projects, we have learned it’s not so much that the calls are made but how some telemarketers conduct the calls. Some telemarketers simply will not take "no" for an answer, and that’s the approach that really irritates most people!

That is not to say that great hordes of people are waiting by their telephones in anticipation of receiving calls from telemarketers. Of course they aren’t! When we’ve asked people what they think about getting a call from a telemarketer, they do tell us that they’re not offended when a telemarketer calls, politely asks the sales question, and then can take "no" for an answer. Sometimes, people tell us, their answer to the sales question may even be a "yes"¾ if the product or service is something they genuinely want or need.

Of course, we’ve done more than simply ask people what they think of getting telemarketing calls. We’ve made a fair number of telemarketing calls ourselves, prospecting for new customers, seeking support for political candidates, or simply inviting people to join our church community. Regardless of the purpose of the call, we’ve consistently observed one thing: The vast majority of those we call are unfailingly polite. They may say "no," but rarely, if ever, do they resort to slamming down the phone in our ears! From our experience, people are much more likely to say something like, "No, but thanks for calling." Some, however, do say "Yes, I am interested."

To us, it appears that there are basically two types of telemarketers:

n Those who won’t take "no" for an answer.

n Those who will take "no" for an answer.

In our opinion and experience, people are far more likely to find the first approach the most offensive of the two. Let’s take a look at how each of these approaches generally works. We’ll use a common solicitation in our examples, one coming from the local telephone company.

"Won’t take ‘no’ for an answer" approach

Ring-ring-ring!

Potential Customer: Hello.

Telemarketer: Mr. Smith?

Potential Customer: Yes.

Telemarketer: Mr. Smith, this is Terry Jones calling for Acme Telephone Company. We believe that we can save you a great deal of money over what your current telephone company charges you. Would you consider switching to us?

Potential Customer: Not interested!

Telemarketer: But, Mr. Smith, don’t you want to know how much money Acme can save you?

Potential Customer: I told you I’m not interested!

Telemarketer: Do you even know what your current company charges?

Potential Customer (now becoming agitated): I’m still not interested!

Telemarketer: Don’t you want to save money on your phone bill?

Potential Customer: How many times must I tell you that I’m not interested?!

Telemarketer: Okay, but if you want some more information about how much Acme can save you, simply give us a call at 800-457-2000.

Potential Customer. Sure, I’ll do that. CLICK!

Not having any personal experience making "won’t take ‘no’ for an answer" calls, we still suspect that most recipients nonetheless will try to remain as courteous as possible under the circumstances. It is this kind of call, however, that leads many people to have such a low opinion of telemarketers in general.

Now, let’s take a look at how the telemarketer could have better handled the solicitation.

"Will take ‘no’ for an answer" approach

Ring-ring-ring!

Potential Customer: Hello.

Telemarketer: Mr. Smith?

Potential Customer: Yes.

Telemarketer: Mr. Smith, this is Terry Jones calling for Acme Telephone Company. We believe that we can save you a great deal of money over what your current telephone company charges you. Would you consider switching to us?

Potential Customer: Not interested!

Telemarketer: Thank you very much. Good-bye.

Potential Customer: Thanks for calling. Good-bye. CLICK.

The "will take ‘no’ for an answer" approach is the one with which we’ve had considerable professional experience. And, as we’ve indicated, most people say that they don’t mind getting this type of call, and when we’ve made this type of call, 99% of the recipients are extremely courteous. And, of course (as is also the case with the "won’t take ‘no’ for an answer" calls), some actually do say "yes." We suspect, but don’t know for a fact, that long-term, more people end up saying "yes" to the telemarketer who practices the "will take ‘no’ for an answer" approach.

The basic philosophies behind the two types of approaches are obviously quite different. In the case of the "won’t take ‘no’ for an answer" calls, the marketer obviously doesn’t believe the recipient when he or she says "no," which, by the way, is immediately insulting to the recipient. On the other hand, the marketer who utilizes the "will take ‘no’ for an answer" approach obviously believes that the recipient knows best what he or she does and does not want at that particular time. And, it’s been our experience that recipients are genuinely amazed when, in response to a "not interested" response, the telemarketer simply says, "Thank you very much. Goodbye" and then hangs up! This, we have found, leaves the recipient with a far more favorable impression of that telemarketer. Consequently, when the "will take ‘no’ for an answer" telemarketer calls again in 6 months, the recipient will probably be more likely to say "yes," or at least be more willing to hear the telemarketer’s sales pitch.

Conclusion. To many people, telemarketing clearly is a "bad word," and for the reasons we have outlined in this article. Nonetheless, telemarketing still remains a very valuable component of the entire mix of marketing tools, and it shouldn’t be discarded merely because of the negative image created by the "won’t take ‘no’ for an answer" practitioners. Used correctly, telemarketing offers some unique, valuable benefits not necessarily found in other marketing tools, such as instant sales results and valuable sales leads.