New sales generation

[ITL]

We are small start up company & are currently trying to generate sales.

What is the best way of generating sales?

Do we just cold call companies? We have contacted a few companies this way but have discovered that perhaps we shouldn't have because of the risk of them being TPS.

We have done some research & there are a couple of local companies that we would like to present ourselves to but when we have checked TPS they are registered. How do you present yourselves to companies like these?

Is the best way to purchase a database? If so are there any recommendation?

[squalid]

what industry are you in?

[ITL]

Hi Squalid,

IT and communications solutions to small businesses, say up to 50 employees.

[squalid]

ltd companies cant be on the tps register - only sole traders ( as far as when i knew about it)

anyway, i used to just phone people anyway and never had any problems even when they didnt want calls

the tps register is largely ignored by the companies that it aimed to stop anyway and it something with very little teeth

depends on where you are getting your leads from though - phoning via the yellow pages is alway bad news - so stay away from there

[Peter Bowen]

Hi,

One of the typical problems faced by small businesses - especially during the startup years - is the "feast or famine" cycle. You see, many of the lead generation activities are uncomfortable so they only get done when the pain from being dead quiet is greater than the pain from picking up the phone.

Ideally you've got to have a whole lot of lead generation processes as part of your marketing system - and these have to work all the time - no matter how busy you get - preferably run by your staff or automatically.

Some of these processes require effort - like cold calling, others are "fire and forget" - you do the work once and then it keeps bringing results. I always advise my clients to start with the "fire and forget" methods and get them in place before they put effort into the more labor intensive methods.

That's it in a nutshell but feel free to ask more questions.

Cheers

Pete

[joshwcw]

Ltd companies can be registered on the TPS, using the busines version called the Corporate Telephone Preference Service (or CTPS obviously enough!).

There are over 2 million business numbers registered on the CTPS already, which can also include charities and public sector organsiations. Plus, to make matters more complex, the number for one department within a company might be CTPS registered but another may not be.

Complaints about companies flouting the TPS are handled by the Information Commissioners Office. In the first instance their try and get companies to start observing the law, before getting heavy handed. But persistent offenders are dealt with: http://www.ico.gov.uk/what_we_cover/...forcement.aspx.

[joshwcw]

As a PS to the last post, it is worth pointing out that there is not a Mailing Preference Service for businesses (only consumers) so if your prospects are all CTPS registered then the only way for you to reach them is by mailing them. It may be worth a courtesy call to the switchboard first (NOT a marketing call in breach of the CTPS regulations!) who may be able to tell you who to address the letter to, although some companies dont even release this information now.

[wecando.biz]

In reality, not many companies are on the CTPS list - probably 5% of organisations my lead generation gets data for are on it. It needn't stand in the way of a cold calling campaign, but you do need to ensure that either data you already have has been swept for CTPS registration every 28 days (or immedietly ahead of a compaign if they are infrequent) or that data you buy has been CTPS checked. Most of the reputable data brokers will do this for you but only if you ASK!

I am just about to add a post on cold calling so feel welcome to check that out for help.

IH