National Association of Pension Funds Brief To retain and grow membership subscriptions across the UK. Action We began by spending time with the pension company to understand the value of the proposition offered so we could clearly get those benefits across to the prospects. We then cleansed and managed the data to establish the main decision maker, DDI and direct email address. A telemarketing campaign then commenced to the target prospects, including diarised follow ups and continuous interaction with the client to ensure the process was fully managed from opening to sign up. Results A very high response in subscription together with subsequent campaigns for field meetings and a conference booking. Client Comment “I hired Perfect Pitch to work on a member engagement project and was delighted by the response, outcomes and professionalism of Nigel and his team. My simple recommendation is that I have since given Perfect Pitch a further three projects of increasing complexity and they keep on delivering excellent results. I will be adapting our marketing implementation plans for next year to include Perfect Pitch as a partner/supplier.” Dan Torjussen-Proctor National Director
Electrical Wholesaler Brief To book phone calls and set up accounts for companies and individual engineers across the South of England, together with a data cleansing exercise of over 6000 records to be linked geographically to their nearest branch. Action We invested time in understanding the client’s key strengths and offering to ensure our telemarketing delivered maximum impact across multiple meetings that took place both onsite at the clients and weekly visits to our telemarketing team in house. A team of ten telemarketers were established with any six being used each day to ensure a fresh approach and healthy competition for results. We were responsible for the allocation of all leads and liaised directly with each branch manager to ensure any meetings that did not take place were reappointed. In addition, we contacted lapsed clients that had not traded for one year to establish the reasons why and how we could bring them back to life. Results We booked appointments with over half of those prospects we pitched to; specifically that’s 1128 leads generated, cutting their cost per lead by a substantial amount. With an initial investment of £28,000, they generated £230,000 from Perfect Pitch’s leads alone. Client Comment “We initially used Perfect Pitch alongside another agency but very quickly Perfect Pitch’s impressive results and flexibility meant we worked with them on an exclusive basis. Their idea to use actors amongst their team worked incredibly well, highly recommended and referred.” Jason Hibbs Interim Director
Perfect Presentation Brief To help the client build their confidence with public speaking and learn how to present to varying numbers of audiences. Action Initially we identified the issue the client was having with their presentation skills such as; their voice drying up, becoming uncomfortable during the presentation itself and their nerves. We were then able to pin point these issues to their breathing techniques for example, breathing in the wrong place in the body. To provide the client with the right techniques and give them more confidence in their speech we then looked at the presentation as if it were a monologue – speaking it at various speeds to also combat rushing through, teaching the client the importance of timing and breaks in speech. Upon finishing the session, we offered an assessment of how the client felt about the techniques advised and practiced. Results Understanding the correct use of breath, controlling the voice and the ability to engage the audience with the presentation.
Perfect Training: Global Translations Company Brief To assist a member of the Sales Team with their lead generation and confidence with pitching over the phone. Background Our client is an interpretation consultancy who provides document translation and language interpretation services worldwide. The role of the Sales Team member was to contact targets over the phone and to pitch to them. Once they had become a qualified lead, the employee would transfer them to another division to close the deal. The client sought help with their telemarketing skills through the London Chamber of Commerce, who connected them with Perfect Pitch. After an initial meeting, terms were agreed to go ahead with a three days of training, with each workshop lasting a day and spread across 2 months. Action Ahead of the training commencing, the client was asked to provide a self-assessment which focused on areas they felt strong in and aspects they wanted to improve. The workshop provided the fundamental training required for telemarketing but it was created in such a way that it tailored to the client’s specific requirements. On the first day, the client made some dummy calls which were recorded by Perfect Pitch. These were examined and dissected. Aspects such as what is required for a call to be successful, understanding the situation and how to ask questions were all explored. There was also an analysis of the pitch the client was using. This was reworked from a lengthy script and refined into 8-10 key points. The client worked on progressing the conversation and knowing how to create a positive outcome ranging from obtaining an information request from the target, through to qualifying them as a prospect who is ready to convert to sale. The second half of the day focused on how the client could make their performance on the call feel and appear more natural and to show complete incorporation of brand values. After a few weeks break, day two began with a short feedback session where the client detailed how and where they had improved. They also explained any areas they felt they needed to work on and further edits were made to the client’s pitch. The focus of day two was on presentation, with the spotlight being on vocal skills. This included how to sustain vocal control and modulation. The purpose of this was to ensure clarity and to become competent in responding to a target’s questions, confidently through voice and pitch. There was also an analysis of posture check and breathing technique. The day completed with some time spent with Perfect Pitch’s telemarketers. The client was able to hear the variety of telemarketing techniques that professional callers were using. They also made calls to their own targets whilst the trainer gave feedback. After another short interval, day three concentrated on reinforcing the techniques taught over the preceding days. It began with another dummy call being recorded. This was then compared to the one carried out on the first day of training. The session progressed with a further explanation of effective telemarketing techniques and the client was taught exercises they could do to encourage mindfulness, calmness and clarity. They spent a second session calling with Perfect Pitch’s telemarketers, and also spent time with the Telemarketing Manager, for some final bits of advice. Results The client felt more confident in their ability to pitch effectively. They said that they now felt equipped to navigate gatekeepers and to ensure they were speaking to the decision maker. They also felt more at ease when presenting to senior level staff and they were now able to convey product details and brand values in a professional manner.
Perfect Training: Telecomms Company Brief To help an internal salesperson improve their appointment making results and produce a better and more consistent pitch. Background Our client is a business telecommunications consultancy, who provides a comprehensive portfolio of telecom solutions to a range of clients. The client already regularly outsource their telemarketing to Perfect Pitch, and impressed by our results, requested that their internal sales person attend a Perfect Training Course. A large part of the position is developing a sales pipeline through cold calling to prospective clients which should potentially lead to a face-to-face appointment. Comparing the results between their internal sales person and Perfect Pitch showed that there was a difference in both call volumes and bookings per day. Action After an initial assessment Perfect Training suggested a two day course with a week’s interval. The first day consisted of mapping what qualifies as a lead and how to obtain this information from the first phone call. Composing a versatile script that would cover every criteria, but allow room for natural conversation. Examples and demonstrations were shown throughout the day and eventually leading to practice calls and role playing. The trainer used these exercises to teach the relevant skills to improve call rates and boost daily lead generation through a better qualification process and concise pitch. The second day concentrated on addressing the leads generated in the last week and how to further them along the sales pipeline with a target for booking an appointment. This revolved around calling previously contacted prospects and progressing the relationship and ending the conversations with a positive outcome i.e. appointment, diarised call back, further information. Results After the first session there was a large increase in call volumes which naturally led to an increase to their sales pipeline. During the second day’s calling the first appointment was booked and the ever increasing pipeline created more appointments in the coming days.
Perfect Training: The Kia Oval Brief To assist members of the Events and Hospitality Team with their face to face networking skills. The client wanted the team to develop its ability of marketing the corporate opportunities to new and existing contacts. The training was to be conducted through a three hour workshop run by Perfect Pitch’s Training Manager, Paul Bryant. Background Our client manages the events and hospitality at The Kia Oval, the home of Surrey Cricket Club. Action Perfect Pitch carried out an assessment with the client to examine their needs and the areas they wanted the workshop to focus on. We then tailored the programme accordingly and provided the client with a bespoke session which they approved ahead of delivery. The workshop focused on the fundamentals of face to face networking, using a mixture of skills required for business development and those that a trained actor would employ to achieve more control of their self-portrayal. Topics covered included the importance of posture, breathing, voice tone and reading people’s body language and status. The workshop also covered business etiquette, assessing the commercial value of a conversation and how to set the stage for the next action, by using tools such as verbal contracts. The aim of the first hour of the programme was to give the attendees more control over how they presented themselves. The focus was on understanding how to use self-awareness, physicality and mindfulness to their advantage. This involved examining posture, breathing techniques and how to read and convey status within a networking environment. The second hour looked at how the teams could introduce their company and show value to the person they are talking to. This emphasised the importance of concision and clarity when describing their product, particularly in the introductory phase of a business conversation. Aspects such as conversational pattern, suitable questions to ask and techniques to show value and to create intrigue were all explored. By this stage, the attendees had been coached on how to portray themselves and how to have a successful verbal exchange with a potential new customer. The next lesson was in assessing the commercial value of a conversation, how to engage efficiently and ways to control its direction. This section of the workshop focused on the possible outcomes of a conversation in a networking environment, examining a scenario where the contact could be converted to a prospect. The attendees were taught how to identify if the client had a need for their services, if they had budget, if they were looking to buy and whether they were the decision maker in the purchasing process. Once these qualifying pieces of information were obtained, the aim then was to exchange business cards with the contact and to suggest the next step in the process, maintaining business etiquette at all times. To conclude the session, Training Manager Paul Bryant conducted a recap of the points covered and took questions from the floor. Results The members of the Events and Hospitality team reported that they found the session useful and enjoyable. They liked the use of drama based games to illustrate points and several remarked on how useful they found the guidance given on conveying status, breathing and posture techniques. Testimonial “Paul gave good examples on how you can have more self-awareness, along with giving people more confidence to those who are not always corporate facing.” “I thought that the card game (to rate the impression a person gave) was very interesting and really highlighted the use of acting in communication.” If you would like to experience a Perfect Pitch workshop then please get in touch.
International Marketing Company Brief Lead generation for an International Marketing Company, following an e-shot campaign in South East England. To establish a database of suitable companies, decision makers, and short and long term marketing needs, together with qualified appointment making at director level. Action We spent time with senior company members to fully understand the offering, what a typical client should look like and why that client might buy from them. We then established an outbound call campaign with daily feedback to the client to accelerate the learning process and to ensure immediate results. In addition, a discussion took place following each appointment completed to help improve quality of future appointments and assist with any follow up activity. We were responsible for the management of client diaries and email requests for information and all diarised call backs. Results A very successful on-going campaign expanding to new areas with new clients gained following initial meetings. Client Comment “Every penny spent on marketing needs to count – the investment RCR has made with Nigel has given us great results. Nigel has taken time to understand our business and how to deliver that to our prospects. Perfect Pitch does what it says on the can – ‘we sell what you do best’ – thanks Nigel and Jonathan.” Debbie Richardson Owner RCR Partnership
International Telemarketing – Education Client Global curriculum leader for degree level IT courses. They have created an ecosystem of IT leaders, developers, and partners to provide industry leading educational IT products. Brief 1) Call across Europe & Middle East. 2) Identify universities who are interested in running specific courses. 3) Find the decision maker for the courses and assess their status as a lead. Action Our foreign language team called to promote these courses abroad. We spoke to senior decision makers, qualified them in line with a criteria set by the client, and arranged a meeting with them. • Held conversations about what the courses offered. • Researched student intake and the options available. • Discussed course implementation timeframes involved. • Explored opportunities for partnerships and future projects. Results We successfully produced qualified leads for the client which they managed to convert to business. We had to adapt the calling strategy for different regions and we believe this helped in part to lead to the success of the campaign. The Middle East were keen to engage but initially were harder to contact as there was a preference to be contacted on mobiles. We had to source these numbers from their colleagues, but once we spoke with the contact, the conversations were positive and yielded results. Contrastingly, some countries were easier to penetrate than others. Eastern Europe, Russia and Spain required less lead time. In Eastern Europe in particular, we found decisions could be made much quicker compared to the rest of Europe. For instance, typically the UK targets needed a longer sales cycle as they had often already set budgets and so funds were committed. We have compiled a report for the client which included observations from calling different areas of the globe. Consequently we have since worked with the client to help shape their marketing strategy based on these findings. Read more about our International Telemarketing.
Global Fitness Equipment Manufacturer Brief To book qualified field appointments for a national sales team, manage diaries, appointment confirmation, data entry and CRM management. Action Initial and subsequent site visits with the client to help understand their culture and benefits of the products. We had a training day on the client’s CRM tool, together with individual meetings with each regional Sales Manager to set up diary management. We ran an initial trial telemarketing campaign to the target prospects, including diarised follow ups and continuous interaction with the client to ensure the process was fully managed from the initial call to an appointment follow up. Results As a result of consistently booking appointments, the campaign increased in the UK and to further campaigns internationally. We have a current ratio of one appointment per five hours of calling. Client Comment “Having previously worked with Nigel, I had no hesitation in recommending Perfect Pitch at my new company. However, there had to be a genuine opportunity and when there was the team at Perfect Pitch didn’t let me down, instantly surpassing expectations and getting results that had never been achieved in previous telemarketing campaigns. Nigel’s consultative approach means you feel that you have employed a partner rather than a supplier, and his strategic knowledge and execution of telemarketing, market research and lead generation is second-to-none. The Perfect Pitch team have become part of our team and this is reflected in how they are seen as an extension of our sales force as opposed to serving it. I have always believed in their ability and I can state without a doubt that if you need a telemarketing agency, try Perfect Pitch before you go anywhere else – you won’t be disappointed.” Jonathan Griffiths UK Marketing Executive