Gibsons Business Consulting has partnered with Forrest Contact since 2013, booking face to face appointments.  Steve Ross, the Director at Gibsons, couldn’t be happier with the results.  We interviewed him to get his feedback on how successful the outsourced lead generation strategy has been for his business.

 

Q. Did you sign any new clients or close sales in the first few months?

“Yes we made some sales and closed some deals.”

 

A. Yes, we made some sales and closed some deals. They were not big sales, but this along with the quality of the appointments being set was enough to show us the potential of the partnership. One of the biggest learnings during the first few months was that we were not set up properly internally to manage the leads coming in, so if anything, this period was a time for us to set the systems in place internally for us to manage this new channel of potential business.

 

Q. At what point of working with Forrest Contact were you really confident that this partnership was delivering the results you were wanted?

“… 3 months I was sure this would be a part of our long term sales strategy”

 

A. For me it was fairly early on – probably after about 3 months, I was sure this would be a part of our long term sales strategy. My business partner did take longer (but he is definitely there now).

 

Q. How did you feel at the conclusion of the first few months of the campaign with regards to the appointments being made by Forrest Contact?

 

“This was a learning curve for both parties and showed me that Forrest Contact were the right partner for us”

 

A. In the early days, some of the appointments being made were not quite right. We talked through this with our Account Manager and made some changes to the script to make sure the qualifying questions were right and we also had a detailed look at the prospects we were targeting. This was a learning curve for both parties and showed me that Forrest Contact was the right partner for us, working through the issues until we were both happy. It was not a case of setting up the initial campaign and that was it.

 

Q. What made you decide to continue past the initial few months and continue an ongoing campaign with Forrest Contact?

 

“In my mind I had committed to at least 6 months before we even started”

 

A. We continued straight on with no question. I always knew when we first started that we needed to give the partnership a reasonable chance. In my mind I had committed to at least 6 months before we even started – there is no way that a few months is long enough to have a real idea of what the eventual outcomes will be.

 

Q. What would you say to others who are concerned about demonstrating a return on investment in the first few months of their outbound lead generation campaign?

 

“Some people think that partnering with a company like Forrest Contact is a magic pill.”

 

A. I would say that during the first few months of the campaign, it is a time of learning. Some people think that partnering with a company like Forrest Contact is a magic pill – you sign up and they will cure everything and leads will land on your desk. This is not the case and the first few months is the time to get it right. Work with your partner, talk through anything you are concerned with and make changes until both parties are happy. This is what we did with Forrest Contact over the first year and have not looked back.

 

Q. At what stage did you start to see a consistent flow of sales in your pipeline and sales closing?

 

“At about the 6 month mark we were regularly closing sales”

 

A. As I mentioned, we did close some deals quite early on however they were smaller deals. It did take a bit of time for us to start to close the sales we were looking for regularly. The quality of the leads was great from early on, but we didn’t have the systems or support set up internally to maximise them.

 

At about the 6-month mark we were regularly closing sales that were coming from the Forrest Contact appointments. Historically, we have seen a sales cycle of around 3 months from the first appointment to sales being closed, and we have found this is consistent with the leads that Forrest Contact is bringing in.

 

Q. Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience working with Forrest Contact?

 

“…we actually see over 95% of the appointments made. Of those people we are putting together proposals for over 80% of them. This is exceptional”

 

A. In the business we are in we have come across a lot of telemarketing firms in our time and a lot of them can be best described as ‘ordinary’. Forrest Contact is different, it was obvious from the start working with their clients is a long-term partnership for them.

 

Looking at results and the quality of leads Forrest Contact have brought to us, what I can say is we actually see over 95% of the appointments made (obviously a few don’t happen for numerous reasons). Of those people we do see, we are issuing proposals for over 80% of them. This is exceptional – we just need to get better at closing them! As I mentioned before, this is a long term ongoing strategy for us and we plan to continue partnering with Forrest Contact as we see real value in the partnership we have with them.