Why Field Sales Teams Need to Pivot to Survive

The current pandemic has had a drastic effect on field sales teams. They’re no longer able to go and knock on peoples doors to promote products or services. So what can field sales teams do to survive?

What should field sales teams do?

The next best option for speaking with people face to face is via phone. Emails and social posts are less direct and can easily be ignored. However, it’s human nature in most cases to listen to a person on the phone (especially when people are locked down with nothing to do).
We’re seeing increased answer rates for data sets as more people are working from home and able to take calls without judgement from coworkers.

Why should they pivot to telesales?

The term ‘pivot’ seems to be the new buzz word at the minute as businesses are changing the way they operate to survive. If your business heavily relies on field sales, then it could be a while before consumer confidence resumes. The elderly and those with underlying health conditions will be reluctant to answer the door to strangers. This could take a while for normal service to resume.
By converting to telesales they can still continue to talk to prospects and pitch their products or services in a similar manner.

What would they need to run a successful telesales campaign?

Data
If your company doesn’t currently have data then you will need to purchase some. We’d recommend using a reputable data provider that has up to date data.
A Predictive Dialler
Manually dialling data 1 by 1 can be tedious and is prone to typos. It also means you need to manage data in a more time-consuming way. If working in a team this could cause issues.
Therefore we recommend a predictive dialler, you can simply upload data and the software will work out who to call. Once the call has finished you can log a disposition such as busy and filter the data when you recycle.
There are also advanced analysis tools to see how well your agents have performed and when they were making calls. Perfect when monitoring agents working from home.
CRM
A CRM allows you to manage your data easily so agents across the board can see what has happened in certain cases and what stage of the sales process they are on. When making large amounts of calls it will be difficult to keep track of individuals. So using a CRM integrated with the dialler will allow anyone who calls back to have their data pulled up on the screen instantly.

What to look for when looking for call centre solutions

Speed
As your field sales team need to adjust quickly, using providers who can get you set up quickly will help get you started.
Feature Rich
Dialler providers that have plenty of features can help you try different tactics to work out the best methods for converting clients. Helpful features such as internal chat can help keep teams connected.
Custom Development
Connecting your Dialler to your CRM will help your operation run smoothly and allow field agents to focus on what they do best, selling. This is why it’s important to look for a predictive dialler provider with custom integration.
Compliant
You need to make sure that your dialler provider is compliant as you want to make sure you’re keeping to industry guidelines. Having the ability to add TPS filtering will stop you making calls to people on the telephone preference service.
Mobile Friendly
As agents will be working remotely, they will need equipment to make calls. Most call centres use headsets and computers. However, not all sales agents will have the equipment. Therefore you will need a provider with the ability to allow agents to use the software via mobile phones or tablets.
Tier 1 Connectivity
Making sure calls are of high quality will drastically improve connection and conversion rates. Make sure your provider has tier 1 connectivity so your calls run smoothly.
If you would like to learn more about how Primo Dialler can help you convert your field sales team to a telesales team. Please get in touch. We offer a predictive dialler which can help agents work remotely and knowledge which can help your business push forward.
Email: hello@primodialler.com
Phone: +441617102740