Call-Based Appointment Setting

Posted on by Kaitlin Dunlap

Properly Identifying Your Best Prospects

Last week both of these emails were sent to me by Dunlap Marketing customers. 

“I just wanted to give your team a quick shout out. I just got off a call with the TMRS and they are a perfect fit for our platform, the appointment was set by your team. I know your guys are working hard and I want them to know how much we appreciate the help. Keep up the good work and thanks for everything!”
J W
Account Executive – Texas

“Great one Mike! Thank you. We looking forward to connecting with this prospect.  They are exactly the type of company we want to call on.”
M R
Global Manager

Both messages were the result of properly planning call campaigns in advance of implementation.

While there are many elements of properly planning a call campaign, there are three worth reflecting on:

1st – Knowing Who To Call

To have a successful call campaign, we have to know who the best companies are that need to be called. This is the only way for there to be a “perfect fit”.  With a 15-minute Q&A session between you and us, we can typically determine this answer.  If we can’t, we will model companies that you say are great customers, and we will build a profile of like-minded companies.  As part of this process, we usually factor in annual revenue ranges, employee count ranges, geography, and industry classifications.

2nd – Knowing What To Say

After we identify who to call, we hone in on what to say. This looks like crafting a call message that efficiently communicates your services. This often is a “to the point” approach, using as few words as possible. It includes knowing who the decision maker is, or identifying who this person is.

A common strategy is writing a message where we ask high-quality probing questions, and when favorable answers are given, we do not try to be the expert with follow-up responses. Rather, we ask to schedule a meeting so the prospects can talk to you, the expert.

3rd – Proper Training

Once we have a list and a call message, we train and prepare our staff to professionally represent you while making prospecting phone calls.  These are employees who work inside our West Houston office and who have experience making B2B phone calls.  A unique skill we foster within our team is the ability to be tactfully persistent, while calling with a smile.

Summary

The second half of 2023 seems to be taking shape as challenging for business development. With high interest rates, inflation, global conflict, and political parties that have difficulty working tighter, this might become a time when going back to the basics is healthy.

Maintaining or growing our businesses is necessary, going back to the basics and fundamentals of adding new customers might be the best game plan for the balance of this year.

We are happy to brainstorm ways to do this with your sales team.  Feel free to let us know if you have an interest in talking.

Mike Dunlap – President

Phone: (281) 496-9870 x140

Email: miked@dunlapmarketing.com

5 Tips to Increase Success on Prospecting Calls

Posted on by Kaitlin Dunlap

While conducting a recent team meeting, I asked the staff to share their thoughts on what it takes to have successful prospecting calls. The result of this question lead to a handful of outstanding tips, which prompted me to write this article so I can share them with you. 

According to the Dunlap Marketing team members, their five top prospecting call tips are:

  1. Listen carefully to the prospect’s tone and behavior, then adjust your approach to match
  2. Try holding the prospect’s attention long enough to deliver the intended message
  3. Get the prospect interested enough to start talking
  4. Keep calling, do not give up
  5. Be polite and grateful

Listen carefully to the prospect’s tone and behavior, then adjust your approach to match

In my early days of selling, this was called “mirroring the prospect”. I believed and saw this technique work in the early stages of my career, and I continue to see it work now.

You might ask yourself – how can I mirror a prospect I can’t see?

If the prospect answers the call, but sounds like he or she is in a hurry, consider talking a bit faster and tell them, “I know you are busy so I am going to quickly get to the reason for my call”, then do as you said you were going to do. 

The objective is to match your tone and talking speed to that of your prospect.

Try holding the prospect’s attention long enough to deliver the intended message

This notion of holding attention long enough to deliver your message reminds me of writing call scripts. Call scripts should be short and to the point. Your prospects are busy and were not waiting for your call. Because of this, keep in mind that you should be grateful they took your call and avoid making them feel like you’re wasting their time. 

A good way to cut back on time spent on the front end of your conversation is to consider not asking the prospect how they are doing or how their day is – often this falls into the category of wasting time.  Rather, as an ice breaker, use a friendly and engaging voice and speak with a smile on your face. You might be surprised how this approach not only saves you time, but also yields better results.

Get the prospect interested enough to start talking

This goes hand in hand with holding the prospects attention, mostly because if you can get them talking, you have likely caught their attention. In most instances, the best way to get someone talking is to ask them a question. 

Before you can ask a question, I feel it is important that the prospect knows why or what you are calling about – make this brief and get straight to the point.  Once they know the purpose of your call, you ideally want to ask a probing question that identifies a pain or deficiency within their current situation.  In our office, we have a goal of asking this initial question inside the first 15-20 seconds of the conversation. Your approach here is to get your “foot in the door”.  Do not feel like you have to push yourself all the way in, just get your toes in, especially if you represent a longer sales cycle offering. 

Three probing questions you can try using are:

  • Does your current provider ____?
  • Does ____ present a challenge for you?
  • If there was one thing you can improve, what would it be?

Keep calling, do not give up

Tactful persistence is the key to success. 

If your call goes unanswered or your voice mail is not returned, it is not good to assume your prospect is not interested. Chances are, it simply means your prospect is busy and has more pressing issues to deal with.  At some point in time, your offering will become important to them.  Your job is to stay engaged so you can learn where they are in the buying cycle or life cycle of their current situation.  You want to identify trigger dates so you know when to turn up the intensity to have constructive conversations.

If you have difficultly speaking to the decision maker during early stage prospecting, try connecting with other people in the company in an effort to learn about their current situation, future timing, and satisfaction level. This information can be uncovered by different people inside one company – not just your top contact person. And most importantly, these nuggets of information will help you gauge your future timing. Capture this information and set follow up reminders in your CRM to call back accordingly.  Even more, ask for email addresses and send periodic emails that contain relevant information.  Be disciplined with your follow up tasks.  Over time your efforts will pay off.

These habits are most critical for salespeople who manage smaller, more finite-sized prospect lists.  The smaller the population of who your prospects are, the more tactful persistence will pay off for you and your prospecting efforts.

Be polite and grateful

Always make your prospecting phone calls with a smile on your face.  Some of my staff are outstanding at speaking to a prospect as if the person is right in front of them.  This is a gift. 

Be respectful and do not be afraid to call your prospect back if they tell you they are very busy.  Politeness and gratitude require you to have faith that the game of numbers is in play – and if you play the game properly, you will get your fair share of opportunities.

If you force a conversation, the likelihood is you will compromise quality outcomes (in our office, we prioritize quality outcomes over quantity of outcomes).  The more you force, the more disappointment there will be down the road when implementing next steps.

If you feel like you need to be forceful, consider asking the prospect for a better time to call back.  Record this information in your CRM and call them back at that time.  If they do not answer, leave a voice mail and try again later in the day or the next day.  It might not be easy to get them back on the phone, but keep trying.  When you do connect, chances are better that you have a more productive conversation.

Being polite and grateful often go hand-in-hand with tactful persistence. Tactful persistence is most rewarding when you are also polite and grateful.

For more information on successful prospecting, feel free to reach out to me at miked@dunlapmarketing.com or call at (281) 496-9870 x140.

Dunlap Intern Q&A Cont.

Posted on by Kaitlin Dunlap

By: Tammy Tran 

Welcome back to our internship series! Recently, our interns gave us a glimpse into their day-to-day tasks at Dunlap Marketing. From market data research to cold calling, our interns were fully immersed in learning about behaviors of prospective clients. They have put in their fair share of hard work this summer! These future business leaders have learned a lot this summer and without further ado, let’s dive into part 2 of our intern Q&A!

Click here for part 1 of our intern Q&A. 

        

How would you describe your experience this summer?

“Overall, my experience at Dunlap was positive and I am truly grateful to have participated in their internship program. Everyone here welcomed me and the other interns immediately and made us feel like very crucial parts of the company, which is something rare for an internship.”

–Owen Steinle, Sport, Strategy, Sales, Baylor University 

“Overall, my experience interning at Dunlap Marketing this summer has been amazing from the leadership of Mike and Kaitlin to our weekly breakout sessions to gain industry knowledge from other professionals.” 

  -Tammy Tran, Marketing, Texas A&M University 

“I would say that I had a great experience at Dunlap this summer, I was able to do quality work while also being in a great work environment. I am grateful that I was able to work for Dunlap this summer and I believe that it is an internship that sets me up nicely for the future.”

–Marshall McDuffie, Finance, Baylor University

            

What are your major takeaways from the internship?

“My major takeaway from working at Dunlap is that my communication skills have vastly improved. I am now able to talk to anybody and not have any kind of anxiety on the phone. Secondly, I learned a ton about being a young professional, improving my resume, building my network, and how to create a stable financial budget – which were all topics we covered in our weekly breakout sessions”

-Marshall McDuffie, Finance, Baylor University

“One of my major takeaways has been improving my communication skills, especially through cold calls and setting appointments.” 

-Tammy Tran, Marketing, Texas A&M University

Is there anything that you have learned here that will be beneficial in your future within the business world? If so, what is it?

“One thing I learned is the importance of being involved in professional organizations. There is an assumption that when you graduate from college, leaving all your university’s programs and clubs, you will have to be “on your own” in the professional world. I learned this is not the case and there are numerous opportunities to be in an organization with like-minded people working in the same field as me, which is comforting.”

 -Owen Steinle, Sports, Strategy, Sales, Baylor University

  “I learned the first impressions you have with others, business or social, are vital to the relationships down the road and those connections and networks can help shape your career path.”   

-Tammy Tran. Marketing, Texas A&M University 

It’s been a terrific three months here at Dunlap Marketing! We are proud to be part of our intern’s continued growth and anxiously await to see the impact they will have on the business world. For even more on our 2022 summer interns, check out our Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Summer 2022 Intern Blog PT 1

Posted on by Kaitlin Dunlap

By: Tammy Tran

Summer has flown by in a blink of an eye and our Dunlap Marketing interns are gearing up to return to campus. For the past seven years, Dunlap Marketing has been passionate about developing the next generation of aspiring business leaders with our summer internship program which allows college students to gain valuable real-world experience and essential knowledge, all while growing their professional skills in a supportive and encouraging environment. The heart of our internship program is without a doubt, our dedicated leadership team that works hands-on with our interns to prepare them for their post-graduate careers.

This year Dunlap Marketing was excited to welcome three college students, from Baylor University and Texas A&M University, onboard our program. They worked on various entry-level campaigns, such as research calls and basic surveys. “We have been gathering marketing data through different mediums all summer. We have called hundreds of people, representing numerous companies, to help these companies better understand their target market,” said Owen Steinle, Baylor University. Contributing to the success of these campaigns, interns gained skills in cold-calling, lead generation, social media marketing, and B2B marketing. 

Here’s what our interns had to say about their work this summer!

“Throughout my internship at Dunlap Marketing, I got opportunity to work on several B2B campaigns, work with Kaitlin to learn the ins and outs of social media logistics and apply my creativity with managing the Dunlap Marketing social media accounts.”

– Tammy Tran, Marketing, Texas A&M University

“In summary, I would call what we did this summer ‘marketing grunt work’ because we captured the data that might initially seem insignificant, but in reality, is absolutely crucial to the marketing and sales processes.”

– Owen Steinle, Sports, Strategy, Sales, Baylor University

Of course, our summer internship programs would not be complete without our weekly breakout sessions led by Kaitlin Dunlap Cuevas. Breakout sessions function to bridge the gap between what they’ve learned in class and how to apply it. Interns had the opportunity to have Q&As with both, Mike Dunlap and Kaitlin Dunlap Cuevas and learn from industry experts on young professional involvement, personal finance, resume optimization, and much more. It has been a wonderful summer with the addition of these talented individuals, and we can’t wait to see what comes next for them!

“My favorite thing about working at Dunlap was the breakout sessions. I learned a ton from talking to Kaitlin, Mike, and the other professionals that we met with. I felt like they were so beneficial for all the interns, and they became my favorite part of the weeks.”

– Marshall McDuffie, Finance, Baylor University   

Stay tuned for next week’s blog where our interns talk about their experience being Dunlap interns and what they’ve learned. For even more on our 2022 summer interns, check out our Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. To read about our previous summer interns, check them out here; 2021, 2020, 2017, and 2016!