Appointment setting is the process of scheduling meetings with leads and prospective clients. It is a sales and networking tactic that opens up avenues for new customers and business partners. Appointment setting is different from lead generation, which is the process of identifying and cultivating potential customers for a businesss products or services.
As an appointment setter, you contact leads, often on cold calls, from a list to explain the product or service your company offers and to gauge the interest of the potential client. Your goal is to encourage the customer to schedule an appointment (in person or by phone) with someone from the sales team who will finalize the sale. Appointment setters are provided a base hourly wage, which is guaranteed income, and they also receive incentives or a commission for each successful sale.
Appointment setting is important because it helps businesses to generate leads and qualify potential customers. Outsourcing appointment setting for your team provides a variety of benefits, such as freeing up time for your team to focus on more important tasks, driving revenue, and increasing warm leads.
To become an appointment setter, you do not need to meet any specific educational requirements beyond a high school diploma, but appointment setters need exceptional people skills and should be great conversationalists. They usually possess excellent conversation and people skills, and experience with customers is required. Successful appointment setters require skills such as communication, organization, persistence, and adaptability.
