Telesales is the process of making sales over the phone. In telesales, you connect with prospects and customers directly by phone to encourage them to buy from your company’s offerings. Telesales is categorized into inbound and outbound telesales. Calls from prospective and current customers are handled by inbound agents, while outbound representatives contact potential customers to close sales deals.

Telesales necessitates patience, perseverance, and persuasion. Telesales agents also need to have excellent phone and communication and phone skills. The goal of telesales is to cultivate long-term relationships with customers by providing excellent service. For field sales, telesales officers help by calling customers to promote offers or set up appointments.

Who are telesales officers?

Telesales officers are employed as members of a sales team. They make direct telephone contact with customers to close sales or assist field sales representatives by scheduling appointments and qualifying prospects.

Customer relationships are the foundation of repeat sales, and people in effective telesales representative jobs build them by focusing on the wants and needs of their customers rather than using high-pressure sales techniques.

The majority of telesales executives work in inbound and outbound call centers. They connect with customers or prospects over the phone to persuade them to buy the products and services of the companies they represent. They generate leads for outside sales teams, respond to customer queries and complaints, manage customer accounts, among other responsibilities.

Most of the working hours in telesales representative jobs are spent persuading prospective and existing customers to purchase products or services.

Also Read: How To Increase Telesales Agents Productivity? (21 Proven Ways)

Key skills required for becoming a telesales officer

To be successful in telesales, a person’s abilities must match or exceed those of a sales representative’s. Since they conduct all of their sales and persuasion activities over the phone without meeting the client in person, a successful telesales employee must possess the following skills:

Interpersonal skills:

Telesales agents should build rapport with the person they’re selling to over the phone. To convert leads and persuade current customers to become repeat buyers requires empathy, patience, and persuasion. 

Communication:

Excellent verbal and written communication skills are required for success in telesales. They must be able to strike up meaningful conversations with strangers. In addition to being able to express themselves clearly, they must be able to actively listen and be patient enough to hear the concerns of their customers. So that they can offer more tailored services, resulting in happier clients.

Sales experience:

Telesales agents should have industry knowledge, sales acumen, and strong negotiating skills. Businesses seek candidates who can meet sales targets by phone, schedule appointments, and track down new leads. 

Knowledge of telephone and computer systems:

Working knowledge of computers and understanding of telephone systems is an added advantage for telesales officers. 

Fast learning:

They should be fast learners as they need to learn the calling scripts and grasp a thorough understanding of the company’s products or services to convince them to purchase the services presented to them. 

Calm disposition:

A calm demeanor is a prerequisite for working in telesales. You must learn how to deal with rejection calmly and not let it affect your job performance.

Responsibilities of telesales officers

Listed below are some of the key responsibilities of telesales officers:

Direct Sales:

Telesales agents contact customers and prospects to sell them products or services. Searching a database yields results for customers who have previously purchased a product, as well as prospects whose profiles indicate they are likely to do so. They discuss the product features and benefits using a pre-written script.

Additionally, they also provide answers to common objections that customers might raise. It is possible to increase sales and reduce costs by employing a telesales team to sell directly to customers rather than a field sales team.

Lead Generation:

Lead generation is critical to the success of telesales officers. They contact prospects who have responded to direct marketing campaigns or advertising. They ask prospects a series of questions to gauge their level of interest in a product before a sale is made. The telesales officer then forwards a qualifying lead to a field sales representative for follow-up.

This increases the number of high-quality sales leads generated and frees up sales representatives’ time to concentrate on closing deals.

Order Processing:

Telesales officers can also be given the task of handling repeat orders of low-value products from existing customers. As a result, field sales teams spend less time chasing down repeat customers and more time pursuing new ones. When customers call to place orders, telesales agents can cross-sell other products. Telesales representatives’ productivity improves due to cross-selling, which leads to increased sales and profit.

Customer Service:

Customers servicing is also an important job of telesales officers. They call customers to obtain updated information such as address and contact number. Customers are also informed of new products or promotions relevant to their preferences and needs. Telesales responds to questions from customers about delivery and product quality.

Customer satisfaction surveys post-sales are also at times conducted by them. Customer service calls are a great way to retain old customers and build stronger relationships with new ones.

Dispute/Conflict resolution:

Telesales agents should also be proficient in handling customer disputes effectively. Because they are constantly interacting with customers, they can quickly resolve any issues that may arise. This ensures that customers get the most out of their purchases and that the company’s reputation is protected.

Activity reports:

Efficient telesales agents also keep track of their activities by creating and updating reports. Calls, customers, leads, sales, and other important metrics are all included in the reports.

Meet sales targets: As part of the company’s revenue goals, telesales officers are expected to meet monthly and quarterly sales targets. To get closer to their quotas, they must make a certain number of calls and close a certain number of sales.

 Related: What Is Telesales And How To Be Successful At It?

Conclusion

In general, telesales entails representing the company or brand in front of everyone and encouraging them to buy from it. Telesales agents spend most of their time selling value-added services and products from a company to its customers. They ensure that the right customers are contacted at all times.

Excellent interpersonal skills and relevant abilities like persistence and empathy are required to become an excellent telesales specialist.