There are specific attributes the top telemarketing sales appointment setter's posses. Without these traits, they fall into the "also ran" pack of telephone callers who will help your business to the extent a blind squirrel finds an acorn.

Using a phone to convey value and set an appointment with a qualified decision maker is a skill that is inherent. Learning it is hard, at best. That's why enlightened sales management separates appointment setting from selling. The skill sets are very different.

Whether you run an in-house call center or outsource appointment setting here are the traits your telemarketer must have:

1. Intelligent. Not MENSA Society smarts, but knowing the regional difference between Kankakee and Poughkeepsie is nice.

2. Conversationalist. The ability to engage in intelligent discourse about the prospects' business, hobbies, family or pets.

3. Quick thinker. Must be able to react quickly to the hundreds of verbal curve balls that are pitched every day. The answers are not on the script.

4. Driven. The desire to dial and dial again when most prospects tell you no. Substitute the description Fearless in this category.

5. Meticulous. A carefully constructed note about conversations and follow-up activities is the difference between success and abject failure.

6. Punctual. Time waits for no man. Calls to prospects are carefully planned and coordinated and must be made during assigned periods.

7. Proud. The deep-seated conviction that an entire deal is built on the foundation of the first telemarketing call.

8. Competitive. An innate need to win-to set more appointments and make more money for the company.

Finding top sales appointment setters isn't easy work. They come in many shapes and sizes and from all walks of life. Use the list above to qualify and put the right telemarketers to work for you. It'll mean the difference between beating sales projections and struggling to make budget.

Brian Grinonneau is a partner with MaSM, a sales performance consulting and appointment setting firm in Toledo, Ohio. He has written extensively on direct marketing topics. http://www.masmllc.com Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_K_Grinonneau