[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
numbers.
A call centre can be used as an intermediate measurement for a
number of activities. For example, the measurement of the number
of customers actually redeeming vouchers at suppliers was the
target for one marketing activity – there was a correlation between
take-up and supplier distance from customer. This correlation
exercise was achieved using call centre data. A review of distribu-
tion resulted and additional suppliers were found to improve
national coverage.
Key performance indicator mechanisms
Modern telephone exchanges often have facilities to store details
of all calls made in and out – alternatively a detailed statement can
be ordered. This is a source of additional and sometimes valuable
information on the performance of any marketing activity that
uses a telephone line.
Measuring the differing response levels to different marketing
activities all linked through a call centre can be a helpful and cost-
effective way of assessing achievement. Call centre staff can assist
with suggestions.
Call centre logs should provide data as agreed. Analysis of the
data will allow measurements such as regional interest, perception
as to price and value, comprehension or otherwise of the product
or service offered.
Call centres measure other marketing activities. Call records
analysis can confirm that an advertising regional insert has indeed
gone to a region. Measure the cost of marketing activity versus
target.
What costs will be involved in call centres and telemarketing?
The contract is usually a mix of a fixed fee for management and set
up charges and an operational per call fee. First-time customers
will be asked to pay a deposit up front to cover costs, which is
refunded if the call levels are not achieved.
136
■
Direct Marketing
Code of practice and the law
A DMA Code of Practice exists for call centre operations.
Disclosure of the company name and any third party must be
made to the recipient; the calls must be honest (not masquerading
as research when they are sales calls); the calls must be made at
reasonable hours, conducted with courtesy and procedures to
allow the customer to withdraw at any time or call back and
cancel. Finally, numbers called must not be at random but follow
an agreed list following the Telephone Preference Service rules.
(The Telephone Preference Service is voluntary and enables
customers to register their telephone number if they do not wish to
receive sales telephone calls through a freephone number. The
service is paid for by firms who are given access to the list and
saves them wasting time on telesales calls to unreceptive
customers. Note there is also a similar mailing preference service,
which conversely allows encouragement of preferred sales mail-
ings if requested.) See also Chapter 4.
Associated topic
Customer relationship marketing (CRM)
CRM is an amalgam of database marketing, customer relations
and (key) account management. The coming of age of the mobile
phone, the Internet and IT capability (that is, computers operating
with enough speed and memory capacity) and a better grasp of
knowledge management (supplying just the information required
when it is needed and in a comprehensible form) have made CRM
take off. In essence, CRM allows you to:
■ increase market share;
■ reduce the costs of customer management;
■ recruit new, high quality customers in a more targeted fashion;
■ defend and retain existing customers, reducing the cost of sales;
■ develop more value out of existing customers long term and in
profitability;
■ protect companies against riskier customers.
The latest book on Successful Customer Relationship Marketing is just
out by Brian Foss and Merlin Stone (published by Kogan Page).
Customer Relationship Marketing, another excellent book in this
Call Centres and Telemarketing
■
137
series on this subject, which is already into its second edition.
Published by Kogan Page it is written by Merlin Stone, Neil
Woodcock and Liz Machtynger.
CRM is defined (by Merlin Stone et al) as ‘The use of a wide
range of marketing (including field marketing), communication,
service and customer care approaches to: identify a company’s
named individual customers, create a relationship between the
company and its customers that stretches over many transactions
and manage that relationship to the benefit of the customers and
the company’. In other words, CRM finds you the customer, gets to
know you, keeps in touch with you, tries to ensure you get what
you want from a company in every aspect of a company’s dealings
with you, checks that you are getting what you were promised and
overall it is mutually worthwhile to both the customer and the
company.
CRM is particularly good at recognizing the stage of the buying
process that a customer has reached. Few customers make quick
leaps from prospect to loyal customer to lost customer. The CRM
process also allows the level of relationship to match that required
by the customer. The book, having looked at the customer and the
customer’s needs, then looks at the company and how to develop
contact strategies. Key to CRM success is training people within
the company to deliver CRM. The book covers technology and e-
CRM.
Director magazine reports that a recent survey found that 67 per
cent of customers go elsewhere because nobody has kept in touch
with them. It is important to keep in touch with them. The report
goes on to say, ‘Remember it costs six times as much to get a new
customer than to keep an existing one. Follow up a sale or a
completion of service by asking your customer if they are happy
with it and if there is anything else you can do for them’.
Unfortunately the UK tends to have a customer culture of silence:
that is, rather than being vocal people tend to complain with their
feet and go elsewhere. Unless you make the effort to ask why, you
could lose those customers forever.
The author has experience of this, now refusing any service of a
communications provider who has never been in touch to ask why
the author ceased to use the provider.
So what can a business do to keep in touch? To find out all about
your service and how customers view it, use a marketing consul-
138
■
Direct Marketing
tant routinely to carry out a sample client survey for up to say 500
customers. Use mystery shoppers (see Chapter 13) for customers
servicing a large number of consumers. For more than 500
customers you may need structured market research to find out.
The remedy though is to apply CRM alongside the marketing
consultant, market research or mystery shopper activity.
Clearly, anyone contemplating using a call centre or indeed
undertaking any direct marketing activity, needs to have a grasp of
CRM. The subject is a book in itself. The Stone et al book is readily
available. It demonstrates how to implement CRM.
Other associated topics
For information on catalogues see Chapter 7.
For lists, see Chapter 4.
13
Field marketing
WHAT IS FIELD MARKETING?
Field marketing, as it is now known, includes direct selling, exhibi- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl freetocraft.keep.pl
numbers.
A call centre can be used as an intermediate measurement for a
number of activities. For example, the measurement of the number
of customers actually redeeming vouchers at suppliers was the
target for one marketing activity – there was a correlation between
take-up and supplier distance from customer. This correlation
exercise was achieved using call centre data. A review of distribu-
tion resulted and additional suppliers were found to improve
national coverage.
Key performance indicator mechanisms
Modern telephone exchanges often have facilities to store details
of all calls made in and out – alternatively a detailed statement can
be ordered. This is a source of additional and sometimes valuable
information on the performance of any marketing activity that
uses a telephone line.
Measuring the differing response levels to different marketing
activities all linked through a call centre can be a helpful and cost-
effective way of assessing achievement. Call centre staff can assist
with suggestions.
Call centre logs should provide data as agreed. Analysis of the
data will allow measurements such as regional interest, perception
as to price and value, comprehension or otherwise of the product
or service offered.
Call centres measure other marketing activities. Call records
analysis can confirm that an advertising regional insert has indeed
gone to a region. Measure the cost of marketing activity versus
target.
What costs will be involved in call centres and telemarketing?
The contract is usually a mix of a fixed fee for management and set
up charges and an operational per call fee. First-time customers
will be asked to pay a deposit up front to cover costs, which is
refunded if the call levels are not achieved.
136
■
Direct Marketing
Code of practice and the law
A DMA Code of Practice exists for call centre operations.
Disclosure of the company name and any third party must be
made to the recipient; the calls must be honest (not masquerading
as research when they are sales calls); the calls must be made at
reasonable hours, conducted with courtesy and procedures to
allow the customer to withdraw at any time or call back and
cancel. Finally, numbers called must not be at random but follow
an agreed list following the Telephone Preference Service rules.
(The Telephone Preference Service is voluntary and enables
customers to register their telephone number if they do not wish to
receive sales telephone calls through a freephone number. The
service is paid for by firms who are given access to the list and
saves them wasting time on telesales calls to unreceptive
customers. Note there is also a similar mailing preference service,
which conversely allows encouragement of preferred sales mail-
ings if requested.) See also Chapter 4.
Associated topic
Customer relationship marketing (CRM)
CRM is an amalgam of database marketing, customer relations
and (key) account management. The coming of age of the mobile
phone, the Internet and IT capability (that is, computers operating
with enough speed and memory capacity) and a better grasp of
knowledge management (supplying just the information required
when it is needed and in a comprehensible form) have made CRM
take off. In essence, CRM allows you to:
■ increase market share;
■ reduce the costs of customer management;
■ recruit new, high quality customers in a more targeted fashion;
■ defend and retain existing customers, reducing the cost of sales;
■ develop more value out of existing customers long term and in
profitability;
■ protect companies against riskier customers.
The latest book on Successful Customer Relationship Marketing is just
out by Brian Foss and Merlin Stone (published by Kogan Page).
Customer Relationship Marketing, another excellent book in this
Call Centres and Telemarketing
■
137
series on this subject, which is already into its second edition.
Published by Kogan Page it is written by Merlin Stone, Neil
Woodcock and Liz Machtynger.
CRM is defined (by Merlin Stone et al) as ‘The use of a wide
range of marketing (including field marketing), communication,
service and customer care approaches to: identify a company’s
named individual customers, create a relationship between the
company and its customers that stretches over many transactions
and manage that relationship to the benefit of the customers and
the company’. In other words, CRM finds you the customer, gets to
know you, keeps in touch with you, tries to ensure you get what
you want from a company in every aspect of a company’s dealings
with you, checks that you are getting what you were promised and
overall it is mutually worthwhile to both the customer and the
company.
CRM is particularly good at recognizing the stage of the buying
process that a customer has reached. Few customers make quick
leaps from prospect to loyal customer to lost customer. The CRM
process also allows the level of relationship to match that required
by the customer. The book, having looked at the customer and the
customer’s needs, then looks at the company and how to develop
contact strategies. Key to CRM success is training people within
the company to deliver CRM. The book covers technology and e-
CRM.
Director magazine reports that a recent survey found that 67 per
cent of customers go elsewhere because nobody has kept in touch
with them. It is important to keep in touch with them. The report
goes on to say, ‘Remember it costs six times as much to get a new
customer than to keep an existing one. Follow up a sale or a
completion of service by asking your customer if they are happy
with it and if there is anything else you can do for them’.
Unfortunately the UK tends to have a customer culture of silence:
that is, rather than being vocal people tend to complain with their
feet and go elsewhere. Unless you make the effort to ask why, you
could lose those customers forever.
The author has experience of this, now refusing any service of a
communications provider who has never been in touch to ask why
the author ceased to use the provider.
So what can a business do to keep in touch? To find out all about
your service and how customers view it, use a marketing consul-
138
■
Direct Marketing
tant routinely to carry out a sample client survey for up to say 500
customers. Use mystery shoppers (see Chapter 13) for customers
servicing a large number of consumers. For more than 500
customers you may need structured market research to find out.
The remedy though is to apply CRM alongside the marketing
consultant, market research or mystery shopper activity.
Clearly, anyone contemplating using a call centre or indeed
undertaking any direct marketing activity, needs to have a grasp of
CRM. The subject is a book in itself. The Stone et al book is readily
available. It demonstrates how to implement CRM.
Other associated topics
For information on catalogues see Chapter 7.
For lists, see Chapter 4.
13
Field marketing
WHAT IS FIELD MARKETING?
Field marketing, as it is now known, includes direct selling, exhibi- [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]