Comments on: Appointment Setting: Where Does It Fit In Today’s Demand Generation Mix?

By: Howard Sewell

Howard Sewell — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:39:31 +0000

Excellent point Karen. That kind of qualitative insight is a real benefit from this kind of outbound marketing but yet one that wouldn’t necessarily show up in the ROI calculation …

By: Karen

Karen — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:37:08 +0000

Interesting article and reflects what we have found. The other benefit of outbound efforts not discussed here, for us, has been the capture of real market intelligence. It’s given us the ability to test out our value proposition and get immediate feedback from prospects on what questions they ask and learn where our story has the most resonance, etc. We have also been able to use it to gain information on target accounts we would not otherwise be able to get. I’ve been surprised myself by how successful this tactic has been for us.

By: Melissa Paulik

Melissa Paulik — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 00:44:12 +0000

That’s a wonderfully short sales cycle! I think you bring up a good point, Michael. Part of being successful in sales is feeling productive – quickly. If investing in appointment setting can help you get a new rep up to speed, it can pay off even if your cost per sale is higher than inbound.

By: Michael Damphousse, Green Leads

Michael Damphousse, Green Leads — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 22:13:24 +0000

Melissa,

Another point that I raise during inbound/outbound discussions is time to pipeline. Inbound marketing can take months or years to pay off, and it does pay off (we’re making a huge investment in inbound). Appointment setting though can pay off in the short term and the long term. We don’t wait for someone to raise their hands, we target them. Case in point is a software client we have that allocates new sales reps 3X the meetings the veterans get. They do it to jump start them. We just had one guy that started in May call us to tell us he closed a $180k deal this week from an appointment that took place the last week in June. His pipeline is now active and producing with quality opportunities.

By: Melissa Paulik

Melissa Paulik — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 01:18:48 +0000

I’m a big believer in inbound marketing strategies, and I never recommend cold calling, so what I’m going to say doesn’t seem to fit my usual advice. However, if you are going to engage in outbound activities because you feel you must, appointment setting is a lot better use of time and money than some of the other suspects like direct mail and most trade shows.

Like most of Mike’s customers, the technology companies I advise sell big ticket items in a complex sales process. What I ensure they understand is that these appointments are no more qualified than what they will typically get from a trade show. Appointment setting can get your foot in the door, but you better be ready to nurture that prospect for a long time.