Hello! Outbound Calling Doesn’t Have to Be a Drag

Do you struggle to get your team on board with outbound calling initiatives? Can you almost hear the eyerolls when you ask your employees to start calling out?

That’s a pretty normal reaction. But it doesn’t have to be.

Approaching the slower seasons, inbound demand calls can slow. However, during these lulls, I encourage our Nexstar Network members to be opportunistic and proactively train their call center team to be adaptive and receptive to switching gears. Outbound calling might not be anyone’s favorite task, but when your team puts aside other work and comes together to perform outbound calls, they’re doing important work. They’re directly helping the service team by putting calls on the board. And that is a valuable contribution to your company.

If you’d like your team to better see the value of outbound calling, here are a few questions to ask yourself:

1. Do your call center employees know the value?
Does the team know the value of the service inspections your company provides? Specifically, have your customer service representatives (CSRs) ever had a technician come to their home to offer an inspection? If your employees understand the value of having a technician offer a detailed system inspection, they’re far more likely to personally recommend this service to customers over the phone.

2. Who are they calling?
Your team’s output is only as good as the input they get. Consider the call list you’re providing. Your employees aren’t all calling from the same list, are they? Do you have a solid, updated list that allows each CSR to independently dial and schedule appointments? Imagine a CSR’s frustration when they finally reach a customer, only to find their colleague has just spoken with that customer moments ago. Update your list!

3. Do they have a killer script?
Does your call center team have a script that prompts customers to take action? And does your team feel confident presenting the script to customers? If not, enlist your team to collaborate on writing a new script. Then, take some time to role-play and practice.

4. Do they have a great offer?
Do your CSRs feels feel empowered to offer a promotion to help sway customers? Letting customers know how much they’re saving by booking early on an outbound call is an excellent way to fill the call board.

5. Do you practice what you preach?
If you’re telling your team that filling the call board for tomorrow is a big priority, consider picking up a headset. This will help your team get closer to their goal, and you’ll also earn respect with your call center team.

Outbound calling doesn’t have to be a drag. Your team will be directly helping the company by filling the call board; all you have to do is show them how.

Nexstar members, for added support, consider upcoming Call Center, Call Center Management and Call Center Fundamentals trainings taking place both in-person and online. If you are a prospective member interested in learning more about Nexstar’s mission to help turn the world’s best tradespeople into the world’s best businesspeople, contact us today!