The Resurrection of the Phone
Author: From co-partner at Resource Referral Center – RRC RESOURCES
With the isolation caused by the pandemic, people started relying more and more on their phones to connect with others, both personally and professionally.
Covid 19 caused unrest, fear, and uncertainty. Many of us were confused, bewildered, and afraid of what was happening. We often were petrified to leave our homes. People across the globe were forced to work from home.
Underlying it all was the isolation. We are built to be social animals and we need to feel connected.
More and more we used our phones to call and text. Thus, the phone became the tool everyone increasingly used for human-to-human communication.
This includes business communications, for both customer-facing and internal communications. Customers and employees still want to know that there are real humans behind your business and on your management team.
Calls to Customer service increased.
“Thirty-six percent of respondents in the Customer Communications Review over the age of 56 rank phone calls as the top preferred communication channel, while it comes in at a close second (30%) to email (31%) for respondents aged 40-55. Even for the 18-39 demographic, phone is a very close third at 22%.
Consumers also aren’t just picking up, they are calling, too. An Invoca survey found that 65% of people have called a business in the last month, compared with only 22% who contacted a business through social media.
And, maybe you are thinking these phone users must be an older crowd, but the same survey found that 66% of millennials are likely to contact a company by phone.
Furthermore, marketers report that inbound phone sales have a big to medium impact on the company’s bottom line, so those calls are having a real influence on your business.”
The Resurrection of the Phone Call
B2B Appointment Setting for Zoom, Webex, and Teams initial sales calls.
Good selling is always about making a connection and generating a relationship. Person-to-person trust is important, especially in B2B selling where the scenario may be more like partners. Telemarketing to get the first appointment starts that process of trust building. Using the phone never goes out of style in spite of an increasingly digital world. During the pandemic, professional telemarketers used the phone to set up Zoom, Webex, and Teams meetings for first appointments.
Internal company calls increased between team members.
According to Gallup, internal communications have proven to be impactful on crucial business outcomes. For instance: 41% lower absenteeism, 17% higher productivity, 20% increased sales, 21% higher profitability. and 10% higher customer ratings. Happier and more engaged staff create better customer outcomes yielding a stronger bottom line.
“With 62% of American workers working remotely during COVID-19, and 59% of employees reporting that they would prefer to work remotely as much as possible” indefinitely, internal communications are most engaging to employees when they are flexible. They want options: phone calls as well as instant messaging, group chats, video calls.” Phone calls also reduce Zoom fatigue.
Yes, there are many great online platforms that can be used effectively (and should be explored) for marketing. But, don’t underestimate the value of the phone call.
Mike Connolly is a co-partner at Resource Referral Center. He has spent his professional life in the world of sales and B2B appointment setting. You can read more about Mike at RRC Team.
