When hiring a Teleseller for your business it pays to hire well the first time around. There is nothing worse than investing hours and hours of your time and energy in a new recruit who then decides that Telesales is not for them or who just isn't capable of getting the results that you need.

You must keep in mind the type of calling your business does and who your target customer is. So when looking for new Telesales staff you need to consider:

Firstly, who are your customers? Are they professionals? Moms? Small Business Owners?

People generally relate best to people like themselves. This doesn't mean that you can only hire people who are like your clients, but its best if they can easily relate to your target customer. You will find a lot of information on implementing the best sales process and on Consumer Behavior at my web site.

Secondly, what hours are you wanting your telesellers to work? If you are looking for people to work after 4pm, then parents of small children are probably not going to be your best telesales staff prospects. Instead you might advertise on university or college websites (which is usually free) as we know that students are mostly free of an evening (they are also usually motivated and fairly intelligent, which is great for you as a business owner).

And lastly, what are the product/ service you are marketing?
If for instance you are selling products for retired people, it may not be the best idea to have 18 year olds calling these clients. They simply will not relate to each other.

If you were calling high level executives to talk about your training services it would make no sense to have a teleseller who is still at high school, they would probably feel totally out of their league, and we know that telesellers need confidence to succeed. It would also not instill confidence in your executive clients.

The Qualities of a Good Teleseller

These are good general guidelines for what type of person makes a good Teleseller.

They must have a clear telephone voice

Speak fluently and at a nice pace

You must enjoy speaking to them

They must sound happy, enthusiastic and friendly

Do they communicate clearly who they are, what their experience is and
why they think they are suitable for this role?

Are they available the hours you need?

Can they commit to the role long term or are they after a short term role?

All of this is information that you will get when you have your first telephone contact with your new recruit. For this reason it is imperative that all job applicants call you to apply for the role, rather than emailing through a resume.

Listening to their phone manner will be the most important part of your interview process. If they can't sell you on why you should interview them, then there is a great chance that they are not right for a Telesales job.

Do I Need Staff with Experience?

Not necessarily. As per usual, it depends on your type of business. Ask yourself these questions:

Will the call be detailed and require an in depth knowledge of my industry?

Am I providing a script that can be followed word for word? Or am I providing telesales guidelines only for the call?

Are you doing cold calling? Or are you calling an existing client database or warm leads?

Are you selling or appointment setting? Lead generating or introducing your business to people?

Are you confident in the telesales training you are providing new staff?
For me, I have always found that telesellers with no prior experience are my preference. That is because I know I provide great telesales training, I know what to look for when hiring new staff and I know that I provide a script for every occasion. People with no experience also come to me with no bad habits for me to retrain, which I appreciate.

Having said that, if you require product or industry knowledge, if you are selling your product/ service in only one or two phone calls, if you are cold calling, if you provide no firm script or if you don't provide much telesales training you should hire experienced telesellers.

Source: Cathy Halliday