What Are The Best Specialist Telemarketing Opening Lines?

Given that many marketing conversations are short, the first few seconds a specialist telemarketer gets with a lead is the difference between a potential sale and someone quickly hanging up.

A fundamental part of telemarketing and other forms of direct marketing is not to close a sale by the time you hang up, but to forge and solidify a connection that builds trust, mutual understanding and an opportunity to show how you can solve their problems.

That is a lot to try and cram into your first six seconds, so an opening line is essential, but which one is right for you and your telemarketing strategy?

The answer will vary dramatically based on your product, your industry, and indeed your caller, and each opening line will need to be somewhat tailored. However, here are four types of effective opening lines and why they work so well.

Should You Start With A Question?

“Hello X, my name is Y from Z. How is your day going so far?”

Starting with an open-ended question is a fantastic icebreaker that starts a conversation, especially if the question is light and largely disarming.

The mistake that is often made following this is assuming that a caller is ready to pitch as soon as the “mandated small talk” ends, but your conversation is vital to building a relationship which slowly builds a bridge to a sale.

This is especially true in specialist fields where your pool of leads will be high quality but low volume, so you have to make the most of every conversation.

Starting with a question, even one as simple as “how are you?” can often provide a lot of insight and open the path to further enquiries, explorations of a customer’s problems and how you might be positioned to sort them.

Should You Be Direct?

“Hello X, my name is Y from Z. We know you are busy, but if you have just 30 seconds, I would love to tell you how we are solving problems and getting results for companies like yours. Does that sound okay?”

Sometimes it is best just to cut to the chase and open with your value offering, but only if you are fairly certain that you know their problems and know how to solve them.

Often reaching the stage of pitching requires several stages of talking to intermediaries, building rapport, checking in on leads and building towards a point where you can present your offering.

In some cases, however, you know what your lead is struggling with, what they are currently using and how your instruments, service or other offering can directly help with their problem.

Should You Be Personal?

“Hi X, this is Y calling from Z. I was wondering if you could get your insight into something?”

The best telemarketing strategies treat calls as contributions to a wider research or industry discourse, and the best types of openers will specifically drill down into achievements the company or an individual researcher has succeeded at.

It proves you have done your research, you care about the people involved, and you want to engage them on a deeper level than merely transactional. It can also skip the stage of identifying pain layers or current tools if you already know them.

When done right, it provides an immediate connection and starts to unpick the layers of protection you naturally build when talking to someone new.

When done wrong, however, it can feel overly intrusive and inappropriately familiar; it is a tool that can be used right and wrong.

Should You Appeal To Emotions?

“Hi X, this is Y calling from Z. What sparks the most joy in your field of research?”

An emotional reaction or an opening question which speaks to one’s emotions is often more immediate than one focused on rationality, and it can be effective to focus less on the data, the product and the pitch and instead on the people who you are trying to help.

This can work, but a lot of callers know the difference between a genuine inquiry about them and the build-up to a pitch, so it is only effective if it is genuine.

Thankfully, even very personal anecdotes related to life sciences research can be illuminating for showcasing your caller’s approach to their research or work, can invite further questions into exploring pain points or can simply provide a broader insight into the industry.

Questions like this are ideal first steps or follow-ups for customers following a purchase or contract; it is free and often underutilised market research.