How to Generate Leads With Telemarketing in 2024

Telemarketing has developed quite the bad reputation over the years. Images of shady call centers blasting out mass robocalls typically come to mind when you hear the term. However, when done right, phone-based outreach remains the most powerful channel for lead generation bar none.

In this guide, we're diving into "conversational advertising" - a fresh and strategic take on telemarketing that uncovers 10x more high-quality leads. We will cover:

The shift from traditional telemarketing to conversational advertising
Why conversational advertising outperforms traditional telemarketing
The 4 principles of conversational advertising
Key components of a successful conversational advertising strategy

Think it's too good to be true? Keep reading to learn why inbound marketing just can't match up to properly executed outbound. It's time to bid farewell to those worn-out telemarketing clichés once and for all.

Why Conversational Advertising Crushes Traditional Telemarketing

Traditional telemarketing indeed deserves the bad rap – it focused solely on squeezing as many meaningless meetings from prospects as possible through mass blasts. No personalization, no quality conversations, just spamming voicemails begging people to talk. An awful, awful approach we can all agree.

Conversational advertising takes the exact opposite tack leveraging very targeted, one-to-one phone outreach. The principles behind it include:

#1: Getting the Right People on the Phone

Rather than calling anyone with a pulse at a target company, conversational advertising identifies the specific decision-makers you want to reach ahead of calls. This allows crafting personalized messaging that will resonate best with someone based on their role and priorities. Suddenly cold calls become warm and intriguing.

#2: Having Real Conversations, Not Pitching

We move past canned sales pitches to instead have meaningful dialogue uncovering prospect needs or interests. Even if they aren’t looking to buy now, this intelligence primes the pump for future sales cycles when budgets free up. Be helpful, not pushy.

#3: Qualifying Leads and Capturing Insights

Each call should seek to gauge where a lead stands regarding the four “I’s”– their intrigue, interest, intent, or need for more info about your offering. These insights help sales nurture leads effectively vs. just passing unqualified meetings onto reps.

#4: Optimizing Follow-Ups with Context

Detailed notes from calls provide invaluable context to sales on what resonated or objections raised with prospects. This helps reps have 5x more effective follow-ups to turn more leads into pipeline. No more going in blind and fumbling around.

In short, conversational advertising takes all that is ineffective about traditional telemarketing and flips it into a strategic lead generation engine. Now let’s explore exactly how to apply this approach for 10x more pipeline.

Executing Conversational Advertising for Maximum Impact

Designing a high-performing conversational advertising program requires nailing four key elements:

#1: Building Hyper-Targeted Call Lists

Truly differentiated lead generation starts with unique call lists. Anyone can buy contacts online and start dialing for dollars. We take a different approach by:

Building contacts through research not just lists. Scour websites, press releases, LinkedIn, funding announcements, etc. to identify ideal prospects. Cast a wide net.
Enriching contacts with specialized data. Layer on intelligence around technologies used, projects underway, org charts, trends impacting the prospect, etc. to further qualify contacts.
Rating leads algorithmically by fit and potential. Determine A-level dream prospects down to C-level long shots based on budget, authority, need, etc. so we know who the whales are.

This process yields very customized target lists with ideal decision-makers tailored to each sales situation. Quality over quantity.

#2: Crafting Value-Driven Messaging

With strong prospect lists in hand, we develop messaging that speaks directly to their needs versus generic pitches. Key elements include:

Highly personalized outreach. Use their name, role, company, situation, etc. liberally throughout calls and emails. Make it all about them.
Position around value. Discuss what outcomes you can drive for them, not just product features and capabilities. Talk ROI.
Get conversational fast. Raise intriguing questions and perspectives that prime a dialogue versus delivering a monologue pitch. Get them engaged.
Bring insights and ideas. Share a relevant perspective that makes them look at their business challenges differently. Surprise them with your understanding.

This positioning captures attention fast while establishing credibility and helpfulness. Way better than selling.

#3: Having Purposeful Conversations

With our target prospects and messaging ready, it’s time to get them on the phone. In these discovery conversations, we uncover their intrigue, interest, intent or simply need for more info using artful questioning.

Elements to build rapport and sus out their situation include:

Asking “why” to unearth root needs. Don’t accept surface level issues, dig deeper to find the heart of the matter.
Rephrasing their perspectives to validate understanding. Show you really get what they just said before responding. People love to feel heard.
Discussing desired outcomes, not just features. What is the business impact they want ultimately, not just capabilities needed. Ascertain decision drivers.
Exploring changes on their end. What new projects, investments, challenges have emerged that might open doors for us? Perhaps funding was just secured allowing a purchase or new execs came on board with different priorities. Understand their landscape.

Skilled conversational advertising specialists use dialogue, not monologues, to reveal prospect needs while building connections. This intimacy pays dividends in sales cycles.

#4: Equipping Sales for 5X More Effective Follow-Up

The final piece ties everything together – capturing insights uncovered for sales follow-up post calls. Rather than just passing along generic “I set a meeting” notes, we provide rich intelligence so reps can have breakthrough conversations when circling back.

Helpful elements to share with sales include:

Detailed notes on prospect objections, concerns, interests. Where did the contact perk up or resist? Give sales an inside look.
Assessment of overall fit. Do you see strong alignment to their situation or mile wide, inch deep alignment? How hot a lead are they ultimately?
Relevant information resources. Send over assets discussed that the prospect seemed particularly intrigued by. Primes the next touch.
Suggestions for framing the value prop. Given their specific tensions or goals, what elements of our offering should sales focus on? Tell them what will be most compelling.

With these insights in their back pocket, sales reps can have exponentially more impactful follow-ups to progress leads faster. Alignment between sales development and account executives pays dividends.

10X More Qualified Leads Await

Hopefully this gives you a whole new perspective on what effective phone outreach looks like today. Conversational advertising puts old school telemarketing to shame through detailed targeting, insightful messaging, purposeful conversations, and sales alignment.

Sound intimidating to put into action? Don’t fret. World-class telemarketing suitable for 2024 and beyond isn’t easy. But by partnering with specialists who live and breathe this methodology daily, you can shortcut the learning curve while skyrocketing qualified leads immediately.

The leads are out there just waiting for the right type of outreach. With the frameworks above, you now hold the keys to unlocking 10x more pipeline without any extra spend or effort. Conversational advertising represents the future of outbound prospecting in the modern sales era. The time for change is now. Let’s start connecting.

How to Generate Leads With Telemarketing in 2024

Joey Gilkey

How To Master Sales Prospecting For High-Profile Executives