Appointment setters are individuals with expertise in scheduling meetings for sales purposes. They reach out to leads after identifying and qualifying them to create interest and book appointments for further discussion.
Businesses generate qualified leads for their sales team through appointment setters. This eliminates the need to prospect, and the sales team can only focus on closing deals for efficiency.
This article will deeply dive into what is an appointment setter and what do they do to achieve that efficiency. Once you go through those, you will know how hiring one will benefit your business.
What is an Appointment Setter?
Appointment setters are those who connect businesses with their qualified potential clients. They handle the time-consuming initial contact and screening task while the salespeople close the deal. They aim to find genuinely interested and qualified leads for the product or service.
These uncredited heroes come with various names in different organizations. The most common ones are –
- Sales Development Representative (SDR)
- Business Development Representative (BDR)
- Lead qualifier
All the names signify the same action but with some little tweaks based on the role responsibilities.
While they are not as glorified as sales representatives, they play a critical role in business growth. With their efforts in generating and qualifying leads, the whole sales process becomes much more productive. They shorten the sales cycle and save time for sales teams to focus on closing deals.
What Does an Appointment Setter Do?
Appointment setters become a key part of the sales process for any business. They closely work with the sales teams and help them in the prospecting phase of the sales cycle. Below are some key tasks where they provide their support.
1. Handling Administrative Tasks
There are some key administrative tasks in the sales process, like cold calling, managing statistics, and handling customer relationships. An appointment setter does all of it to keep your business on track.
2. Qualifying Leads
Appointment setters are responsible for assessing if the offerings align with the needs and interests of the leads. In short, they qualify the leads who are worth entering the sales funnel. They do this through different lead qualification methods like BANT, CHAMP, GPCTBA/C&I, SPIN, etc.
3. Building Relationships with Potential Clients
You can never convince someone without building relationships. Appointment setters build that connection and bond so that the sales team can easily close the deal. They do it through an impressionable first contact to encourage the potential clients and process with them.
4. Possessing In-Depth Product Knowledge
While appointment setters aren’t meant to sell the product, they still need the knowledge. They have to know the value proposition of the product to entice the clients or customers.
5. Overcoming Sales Objections
Objections and questions are very common in the sales process. When prospects raise such concerns, an appointment setter has to know how to overcome them. Otherwise, they can’t convince the prospects for appointments.
6. Scheduling Follow-Ups & Reminders
Usually, the sales process doesn’t end on the first attempt. It requires several follow-ups. Appointment setters must create systematic follow-up schedules to keep track of the leads. Otherwise, they may lose them.
7. Delivering Effective Sales Pitches
It’s important that the appointment setter can craft and deliver compelling initial pitches. They ensure it’s effective by tailoring the pitch to the prospect’s needs, generating interest, and creating an opening.
8.Generating Reports & Analytics
Keeping track of the performance is very necessary to understand what’s working and what’s not. Appointment setters are responsible for generating reports and analytics to show you the results of their work. This also helps in refining the sales strategies.
9. Handling Inbound & Outbound Calls
Appointment setters also do some inbound and outbound calling to ensure availability. They do outbound calls to reach and connect with prospects. Also, attend inbound calls to answer queries from interested prospects.
10. Maintaining Call Logs
Nurturing leads is a crucial part of the sales process. Appointment setters maintain detailed call logs to keep a record of the contacts. They can even include the outcome of each call to ensure the progress with the prospects and contacts.
11. Performance Record
Aside from the performance of their strategies and approaches, appointment setters also keep track of their performance. They maintain records on metrics like conversion rates, appointments set, and quality of leads. So, you can decide how well they are doing.
How Appointment Setters Contribute to the Sales Process?
Appointment setters contribute a lot to the sales process. But it’s often overlooked. Most of the time, appointment setters are the ones who lay the groundwork for the sales team to close the deals later on.
Here’s how appointment setters contribute –
Lead Pre-Qualification: In the appointment-setting process, they don’t just schedule meetings but also qualify leads for the sales team. They ask targeted questions to the prospects to assess their needs, budget, and decision-making authority.
All these things are part of the pre-qualification process. This pre-qualification saves a lot of time for the sales representative. They only have to focus on the prospects who genuinely qualify as a good fit for their offerings.
Sales Pipeline Optimization: Appointment setters prioritize lead generation and qualification a lot. They ensure there is a consistent flow of qualified leads. It keeps the sales pipeline full of potential opportunities.
Due to the efforts of appointment setters, the pipeline is always replenished with promising prospects for the business.
Improving Conversion Rates: Thanks to the lead pre-qualification, sales representatives get a high-quality pool of leads. With such quality prospects, they get an increased likelihood of converting leads into paying customers.
As a result, the conversion rate improves significantly for the business and sales pipeline.
Essential Skills for an Appointment Setter
Appointment setters don’t just set appointments. They generate leads for the sales team. Generating leads requires some key set of skills, as it’s all about convincing prospects and converting them.
All the appointment setters need to have two sets of skills to fulfil their duties. These are soft skills and hard skills. Take a glance at those below –
Soft Skills (People & Communication Abilities)
Soft skills are all about interacting with people and convincing them. These skills help appointment setters effectively communicate, persuade, and manage relationships.
Excellent Customer Service: Excellent customer service skills help appointment setters create a positive first impression. It encourages potential clients for further engagements.
Strong Communication: Strong communication is the key to hooking prospects. Appointment setters should have strong communication skills so that they can interest the prospects.
Persuasion & Negotiation: Appointment setters must have persuasion and negotiation skills. They have to convince prospects and convert them using these skills.
Active Listening: It’s not just about talking and convincing an appointment setter. They also need to have good listening skills. This helps them understand the prospect’s needs and demands.
Time Management: Efficient time management is a very beneficial skill for handling leads and setting appointments. This helps the appointment setter to satisfy prospects with timely responses.
Problem-Solving: The ability to think on their feet helps appointment setters solve prospect problems. It’s crucial in building rapport and increasing retention, as the prospects get solutions to all their problems.
Emotional Intelligence: With emotional intelligence, appointment setters can understand their prospects more. This helps in building a connection with prospects for long-term benefit.
Organizational Skills: As the appointment setters need to keep track of a lot of things, organization skills prove crucial. Organizing leads, appointments, and follow-ups helps them save time and effort.
Hard Skills (Technical & Job-Specific Abilities)
Unlike soft skills, hard skills are all about technical expertise focused on particular tasks or jobs. These skills are essential for fulfilling their job-specific duties.
CRM Software Proficiency: Managing and tracking leads is key for appointment setters. Being proficient in CRM software helps them do that properly. It also helps them collaborate with the sales team easily.
Task & Calendar Management: Task and calendar management is crucial for maintaining appointment schedules and doing tasks timely. They can also use an organized calendar to keep up with the follow-ups.
Data Entry & Record-Keeping: Often, appointment setters must keep a record of prospect data and enter them into the database. It can be information on leads or their appointment details.
Product & Industry Knowledge: In order to convince the prospects and promote the product, appointment setters need extensive knowledge of the products. They also need industry knowledge so that prospects are convinced that the appointment setters truly understand how things work.
Sales & Marketing Analytics: Since appointment setters are meant to generate leads or initiate the sales process, they need to know sales and marketing analytics. This helps them adapt to the running marketing trends to strategize their approaches.
In-House vs. Outsourced Appointment Setters: Which is Right for You?
Deciding whether to hire an in-house or outsource an appointment setter always gets difficult. In-house and outsourced appointment setters both have a lot of value but have some drawbacks as well.
Below, we highlight their advantages and disadvantages to help you compare which is the right approach for you.
In-House Appointment Setters
Hiring in-house appointment setters is the typical approach that many people take. When hiring an in-house appointment setter, the benefits you get are –
Advantage – Better Alignment: It’s easy for an in-house appointment setter to become a part of the company. Also, they can collaborate with all the other teams in the company to understand their culture.
They learn about the products, services, and target market, which helps generate leads and set appointments.
Advantage – Easier Communication: With in-house appointment setters, there are barely any communication barriers. In-house appointment setters can communicate with all the different teams and easily communicate any issues.
Easy communication helps with quick feedback loops, strategy adjustments, and better collaboration.
However, there is a drawback to in-house appointment setters. It is –
Disadvantage – Higher costs: When hiring in-house appointment setters, you have to count for significant costs. This includes salaries, benefits, training, and office space. These costs may feel substantial for small businesses.
Outsourced Appointment Setters
Outsourcing employees has become a lot more common in recent years because of the benefits they provide. The most effective advantages include –
- Advantage – Cost-Effective: What makes outsourcing great is its cost-effectiveness. If you go outsource appointment-setting services, you don’t have to consider the overhead costs. These costs include salaries, benefits, and other employee expenses.
- Advantage – Experienced Professionals: It’s very easy to outsource experienced appointment setters compared to training an in-house appointment setter. You can look for an agency or freelance appointment setter with a lot of experience and hire them easily.
Well, just like everything else, outsourcing appointment setters also comes with a drawback.
- Disadvantage – Less Control: The issue with outsourcing appointment setters is that the company can’t control them fully. They can’t communicate with urgency, which can sometimes be challenging.
When deciding on the appointment setter hiring process, you have to evaluate the budget, industry needs, and internal resources. These factors will help you understand whether you should hire an in-house appointment setter or go for an outsourced one.
Appointment Setter vs. Sales Representative: Key Differences
Appointment setters and sales representatives are crucial to the sales process. They both are part of the initial sales cycle, making them confusing. Here’s a table that should clear out all the confusion with their key differences:
| Aspect | Appointment Setter | Sales Representative |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A professional who specializes in scheduling meetings between sales representatives and potential clients. | A professional who guides potential clients through the sales process and closes deals. |
| Primary Role | Generate qualified leads and schedule appointments for the sales team. | Build relationships with potential clients, present products/services, and close deals. |
| Interaction Level | Primarily focuses on initial contact and qualification of leads. | Engages in deeper conversations, conducts presentations, and negotiates contracts. |
| Sales Process Stage | Top of the funnel: Lead generation and qualification. | Middle to bottom of the funnel: Product demonstration, negotiation, and closing. |
| Success Metric | Number of qualified appointments set. | Number of deals closed and revenue generated. |
Appointment Setter vs. Appointment Scheduler: Key Differences
People often use appointment setter and appointment scheduler terms interchangeably. However, there are some significant differences between the two. The table below shows you how the two responsibilities differ –
| Aspect | Appointment Setter | Appointment Scheduler |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Role | Qualifies leads and schedules appointments for sales representatives. | Primarily focuses on scheduling appointments, often without a heavy emphasis on lead qualification. |
| Industry | B2B sales, high-value sales, and industries with complex sales processes. | Healthcare, professional services, and customer service. |
| Key Responsibilities |
|
|
| Goal | Generate qualified leads for the sales team and maximize the number of qualified appointments set. | Efficiently manage appointment schedules and ensure smooth operations. |
| Required Skills |
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How Much Do Appointment Setters Make?
The salary for an appointment setter varies based on a lot of factors. It includes location, experience, and so forth. Below, we go through a detailed analysis of the appointment setter salary –
Salary Range: According to Zippia, the typical salary range for appointment setters in the USA can range from $30,113 to $102,051. It all depends on the factors we discussed above.
Salary based on location: For instance, if you go by location, then the hourly rate will vary in the following range:
| State | Entry Level |
|---|---|
| USA | $12 - $40 |
| Canada | $13 - $41 |
| UK | $13 - $38 |
| France | $11 - $35 |
| Bangladesh | $1.35 - $7.20 |
| India | $1.20 - $7.20 |
Salary Based on Experience
Experience also plays a huge role in the salary range. The salary range for appointment setters in the USA, according to their skill, is as follows –
| Skill Level | Hourly Rate |
|---|---|
| Junior Level | $12 - $16 |
| Mid Level | $17 - $25 |
| Senior Level | $26 - $40 |
Payment Structure: There are a variety of payment structures for appointment setters. Some common ones include –
- Salary: An appointment setter gets a fixed amount of money every month.
- Salary + Bonus: In this model, an appointment setter gets a base salary and a bonus based on performance or milestones.
- Commissions: Appointment setters get a commission on every sale made through them.
- Pay per lead: The pay-per-lead model pays a certain amount to appointment setters for every lead they get.
- Hourly Rates: Hourly rates are a common model for outsourced appointment setters. They get paid for their work hourly.
Conclusion
Summing it up, appointment setters are the first line of contact in your sales process. If you want to save up on cost and make it even more efficient, then outsourced appointment setters are the way to go.
Hire a reliable appointment setter and turn your sales cycle into a profitable money-making machine.
FAQs About Appointment Setters
What is the difference between an Appointment Setter and a Telemarketer?
Appointment setters focus on qualifying leads and scheduling appointments. Telemarketers are primarily focused on selling a product or service over the phone.
Who do appointment setters work with?
Appointment setters primarily work with the sales team of a company. They are closely in touch with the sales representatives quite a lot.
What role do appointment setters play in the sales process?
Usually, appointment setters are responsible for generating leads, qualifying them, and setting up appointments for the sales representatives.
What’s the difference between an appointment setter and a lead generation specialist?
The key difference between an appointment setter and a lead generation specialist is in their strategy. An appointment setter uses a direct outreach approach. In contrast, a lead generation specialist uses marketing tactics to generate leads.
Which industries typically employ appointment setters?
Industries that use a business-to-business (B2B) sales model or have high-value products or services employ appointment setters. Some common industries include:
- Software and Technology
- Financial Services
- Healthcare
- Real Estate
- Manufacturing
- Consulting
- Marketing and Advertising
- Telecommunications
Do appointment setters work on commission or salary?
The pay of appointment setters can vary. Some receive a base salary, some work on commission, and some get a combination of both.
What are the best practices for improving appointment-setting success rates?
Some best practices include personalizing outreach, actively listening, qualifying leads effectively, and following up promptly.
How can businesses measure the performance of an appointment setter?
To measure the performance, businesses can track the number of qualified appointments set, conversion rates, and the quality of the leads.
