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Reverse Telemarketing
By Robyn Greenspan
October 2, 2000

There are many ways to solicit sales for your e-business but utilizing a telemarketing service is difficult. Most people view telemarketing as an unwelcome intrusion by a stranger, calling with the sole purpose of parting the recipient from their money - usually at an inconvenient time. By the same token, it''s also difficult to solicit sales via the web because of the impersonal nature of the Internet. Deleting an email is much easier than hanging up on a human voice, but therein lies the dilemma: not many people are receptive to a telemarketer''s call, yet a human voice is more persuasive than an unwanted piece of email.

So, wouldn''t it be great for your site visitors if there was a way to integrate the familiarity of using the telephone with the convenience of web-based sales? Instant LiveTalk does just that by taking advantage of the immediacy of talking to a potential customer by telephone at the moment of interest. Sometimes an online shopper needs additional information before making a purchase and if they cannot find answers quickly, they may leave without buying. Instant LiveTalk helps to alleviate site abandonment due to unfulfilled questions.

Here''s how it works: when a potential customer is browsing your site, they can click on a "Call Me" button, taking them to a simple form. From there, they input their telephone number and some contact information and choose when they want to be called. Options range anywhere from an immediate phone call to receiving a call in twenty-four hours. All you have to do is have well-trained, customer service telemarketers on the other end to receive the call and provide enough information to close the deal.

Ordering the service is easy and there are some customizable features, such as specifying the hours that calls are accepted, queue times, "no holding" options and implementing the link in promotional email. Instant LiveTalk allows you to follow up on site visitors that click on the link by emailing you the customer''s name, email address and phone number.

This service complements your online store with a push towards sales via the telephone - at a time that is most convenient for your customer.