People tell us all the time that they're 'scared' of doing their own telemarketing, 'afraid' to pick up the phone and 'unsure' as to what to expect.

So today we're asking: What's the worst that could happen?

• You'll get no reply
• The person you want to speak to won't speak to you
• You'll get a 'no'
• You'll mess up your words
• You won't come across as professional

Those are the reasons people use the most to avoid picking up the phone.

The first thing that comes into most people's minds when you say 'telemarketing' is cold calling. Selling to people who don't want to buy what you're offering, don't want to be interrupted, and don't want unsolicited phone calls.

But had you ever thought of the other ways in which to use telemarketing? Here are 3 to get you started!

1) Checking data

Whatever happens during any calling activity, one thing is certain: You will generate results. While it's great that you're using the phone as part of your marketing communications and to stimulate the sales process, a lot of hard work could be going to waste if you have no clearly defined way of recording your results, sorting them into working groups and taking action on them.

If you're using a spreadsheet package for example, you'll want to ensure that the data is sorted in such a way you can take the appropriate actions in the future and avoid data becoming obsolete.

The sun's shining outside, it seems that everyone who is anyone is on holiday.. and you still have a quota to meet. Emails give you the automated "out of office" reply, you're tempted to spend far too much time reading your friends and established contacts via social media.. then there's the phone.

Think about it: If your preferred contact is away from the office, who else does it make sense for you to contact? Their PA? Their closest colleague? Chances are you already have the answer and you're making a big excuse of ONE persons absence? The excuse can cost you for many reasons!

We've all done it. You know that today you have to make those sales calls – the phone is going to be your friend. You make a cup of coffee, sit down, look at the phone and … open your email. An hour later you think about making those calls, reach for the phone and… remember you haven't picked up the post yet. And so on.

Procrastination. Excuses. Anything but make those dreaded calls.

Ever made any of these excuses?

30 excuses for not using the telephone in business:

The last post in our series of blogs about the reasons people give for not wanting to outsource their telemarketing campaigns.

You can find the others here: #1 / #2 / #3 / #4

We don't outsource our sales because:

We don’t need someone full-time

One of the main advantages of Outsourced Selling is its flexibility. 

You might start off needing as little as one day a week – but then you might want to launch a new project, and suddenly want a lot more resource.