If you are in the responsible shoes of a sales person or an outbound call centre executive, and cold calling is a prime duty of your job description, there is a decent chance that you dislike it as much as others who have to receive these calls. Many leading BPO companies working towards generating qualified leads that have won numerous awards for their contribution to the BPO industry realize that that these are probably the least liked jobs in the industry, hence contributing to a lot of attrition. There are a handful of reasons for employee’s dissatisfaction in this job but the most prominent ones being the efforts that need to be put in without guaranteeing much success. The amount of negative call responses actually lead to a lot of frustration among the workforce. Cold calling is like a blind shot that call centres fire and keep their fingers crossed that it will end up as a qualified lead that will emerge as an eventual sale.

Let us now examine some of the guidelines to effectively play the cold calling game and emerge as true winners in generating an effective lead that can be converted into sales after an appointment or two. These factors need to be remembered by the call centre executives while cold calling to generate those leads.

• Not sounding desperate or intimidated is the key
In a call centre environment, if an executive sounds like he/she is trying too hard to convince a customer to buy a product or service and be registered as a qualified lead, there’s a good chance that such an executive might not get one. Even if an executive is desperate to fix an appointment, then also he/she should not make it evident and obvious from the tone. The lead generation executive needs to make a careful selection of words. Many professional BPO companies train their executives to maintain their cool and interact with the prospects in an indifferent yet professional tone. The tone should convey an indirect communication to a prospective lead that even if the prospect is not interested in their offering, it will not be an end of the world for either of the parties in contact.

• The power of delivering a savoring experience
What is the major differentiating characteristic between a failed lead generation call and a successful one? Ostensibly, it is when a call centre executive tries to force as much information about the offering as he/she can, in the mind of a prospective customer in those couple of minutes of conversation on the call. The hasty attitude is what actually repels a prospect and also often creates a salesman image in their mind. There is no prize for guessing what actually happens to the calls made by such executives. It can only go two ways with either a straight ‘no’ coming from the prospect or might also lead to a middle call hang up of call.

However, it is important to note that if an executive formulates his/her message based on the experience that the offering is bound to provide or devises a message that is focused on the value proposition of the offering, the executive is much more likely to engage the attention and interest of a prospective lead. The leading BPO companies train their executives to direct the conversation towards the benefits of the offering and not just focusing on the functional aspects.

• Focus on becoming customer oriented
This is a well-renowned fact that lead generation executives need to take care about their clientele’s interests and should be willing to go the extra mile to ensure that they receive the best service experience. But it is important to note that we should not express it directly as it might sound forced. It is vital to share some insights from mutually exclusive resources and it would eventually lead to believing in the call centre’s credibility over a period of time.

However, the bottom line is that lead generation is not an easy process by any stretch of imagination. It requires a lot of persistence and perseverance to finally acknowledge a potential lead that could be converted into eventual sales. The best call centres across the globe focus on the quality of leads to fulfill the requirements of their clientele. Most organisations outsource the lead generation vertical to a professional BPO so that they can save on their cost and direct their actions towards their core set of operations. It is important for an executive to plan and practice the art as it will be instrumental in deriving maximum qualified leads for their clients.