Telemarketing

What is telemarketing?

Telemarketing refers to the process of using the phone to make sales, generate leads, or gather marketing information. For small businesses, telemarketing saves time and money as compared to selling in person. At the same time, it provides the advantages of direct contact with customers.

Telemarketing is also known as “inside sales” or “tele-sales.”

Telemarketing is helpful when customers are located in hard-to-reach places, or when a seller needs to contact many prospects. Some businesses operate exclusively by phone, others use telemarketing as a part of an overall marketing program. 

There is inbound and outbound telemarketing:

• Inbound telemarketing refers to handling incoming phone calls and taking orders for products. Those phone calls can be generated by broadcast advertising, direct mail, or catalogs. 
• Outbound telemarketing aims directly at the end customer. It can also be part of a business-to-business marketing program. In this case, actual selling is involved compared to inbound telemarketing.