Small Business Call Centers

If you're a small business, you may debate the necessity of having a call center. Would it be worth the investment? There are a lot of call center software systems out there, but are they really designed for a small business? Small business call centers are more prevalent that you think--and they can be tiny powerhouses that can help small businesses become large ones.

Did you know that by the end of the 1990s, 150 billion dollars' worth of services and goods had been sold over the phone? And that's just in the United States. Telemarketing works for businesses of any size. And it's popular because it's fast: you can inform your potential customers about new products or special offers just by dialing the phone. Creating and implementing a telemarketing campaign is far less expensive than producing print, radio, or television ads. Plus, it's easy to change a telemarketing campaign--just alter the script. Compare that to the graphic design and print work it would take to make new brochures.

To maximize your agents' call time, you may want to consider installing predictive dialer software. Even small businesses can benefit from a program that dials hundreds of numbers and connects only live prospects to sales representatives. And it doesn't take a lot of bulky equipment: there are "soft dialers," or software-only solutions, that are reasonably priced and can grow with your business.

Think Big with Small Business Call Centers

Even if your telemarketing staff consists of three employees--and your brother Al pitching in from time to time--wouldn't you prefer that they spend up to 50 minutes per hour speaking to prospects? It's estimated that with manual dialing, agents can spend only 20 minutes per hour doing their job--talking! Small business call centers can be an inexpensive yet effective way to increase sales and maximize efficiency.