IT Lead Generation: Gain the Best Benefits with Telemarketing

With competition brewing up a storm within the information technology industry, IT companies dedicate their operations in seeking for innovations in marketing to increase profit gain with lowered costs. Clients and customers that deals transactions are so important for most purchasers are considered to be “locked-in” to the business for long periods of time. If a buyer is satisfied with the purchase, they will most certainly come back to the IT company again and again to transact more business. In a case study brought upon by Hal R. Varian entitled Economics of Information Technology, the author states a number of things about the relevance of customers for the technology business. The case study states that: “When switching costs are substantial, competition can be intense to attract new customers, since, once they are locked in, they can be a substantial source of profit. Everyone has had the experience of buying a nice ink jet printer for $150 only to discover a few months later that the replacement cartridges cost $50. The notable fact is not that the cartridges are expensive, but rather that the printer is so cheap. And, of course, the printer is so cheap because the cartridges are so expensive. The printer manufacturers are following the time-tested strategy of giving away the razor to sell the blades.In a related story, Cowell [2001] reports that SAP's profits rose by 78 percent in the second-quarter of 2001, even in the midst of a widespread technology slump. As he explains, ``... because SAP has some 14,000 existing customers using its products, it is able to sell them updated Internet software...''As these examples illustrate, lock-in can be very profitable for firms. It is not obvious that switching costs necessarily reduce consumer welfare, since the competition to acquire the customers can be quite beneficial to consumers. For example, consumers who use their printers much less than average are clearly made better off by having a low price for printers, even though they have to pay a high price for cartridges.The situation may be somewhat different for companies like SAP, Microsoft, or Oracle. They suffer from the ``burden of the locked-in customers,'' in the sense that they would like to sell at a high price to their current customers (on account of their switching costs) but would also like to compete aggressively for new customers, since they will remain customers for a long time and contribute to future profit flows. This naturally leads such firms to want to price discriminate in favor of new customers, and such strategies are commonly used.”The case study, although passed during the year 2001, has some views that can be seen and are still relevant up until this day and age. The report clearly signifies the fierce competition between companies within the IT sector. In other words, clients for technology companies last longer than other business sectors.To level the playing field, many of these companies have decided to get outsourced IT lead generation services; more preferably that of an IT telemarketing firm. Through the generation of technology leads, the company poses a greater chance of winning over long-term clients and even the possibility of acquiring business affiliates. Additionally, when generating such leads with the power of telemarketing, this can all be accomplished with a hastened pace.Outsourced telemarketing services can be deemed as the key element for the IT company's financial welfare and growth. Professional telemarketers take charge in completing calls for the company in order to search for strong leads. These call center agents are known for their expertise on the industry and to apply their knowledge and skill in getting the attention and interests of potential clients.When generating technology sales leads through this method, an IT company can cut through the competition and be at the top of their game before they can even know it.Source: http://people.ischool.berkeley.edu/~hal/Papers/mattioli/mattioli.html#tth_sEc6.2