In an age of PPC, social media and email marketing, there's still one old‑school method of driving sales that cannot be beaten: the humble telephone.
Since the new millennium, the internet has grown to dominate B2B and B2C marketing. Incredibly powerful, virtually ubiquitous and versatile — the internet has transformed sales strategies forever. Even so, the telephone remains a tried and tested part of the sales toolkit, a great way to canvass clients early in the sales journey, and an excellent tool for maintaining strong relationships going forward.
In B2B sales, developing strong relationships is everything. Even in large companies, it's almost always a small number of individuals who make the final purchasing decision — and people are far more likely to buy from someone they already know.
The telephone is king for relationship building. It's much easier to get to know a person via phone and gauge their personality than by email. Telephone conversations can expand and contract, covering more ground in quicker time.
When we speak to someone over the phone, we automatically analyse everything they say — the subtleties of their tone of voice, as well as the words they use — to decide whether they're trustworthy. The more we speak to someone, the more trustworthy we're likely to believe they are.
Companies that trust a supplier are much more likely to do business with them, both initially and in the long term.
Emails are easy to type and send — but they're also far easier to ignore, with the average click‑through rate a woeful 1–4%. Telephone calls take more effort and are harder to ignore.
That's not to say phone calls don't have their own challenges with gatekeepers, TPS or anti‑spam apps — but once you reach the right person, it shows a commitment to the business relationship and demonstrates your company values the personal touch.
Personal, professional and direct — the telephone is a confident and powerful sales tool. Find out how our range of VoIP and dialler products could fit into your sales strategy.