Telemarketing: Careers with Growth Opportunities
27 May 2009
Read by 2060 persons
To meet significant and growing needs, the telemarketing sector is seeking telesales representatives with diverse profiles. Professionals are no longer just recruiting; they are courting candidates and promising advancement opportunities to top-performing telemarketers. What are the career paths for advancement in telephone marketing?
To meet significant needs, the sector remains open to a wide range of profiles and promises advancement opportunities to top performers...
Far from slowing down, telephone marketing continues to recruit at full speed. The number of call centers is increasing, and staffing levels are keeping pace with growth. Today, there are approximately 3,500 "contact centers" (integrated and outsourced combined) employing more than 200,000 people.
For the insurance and provident fund group AG2R, "the goal is to double our teams by 2009, with five call centers in Paris and the provinces," explains Patricia Davideau, head of human resources management. "Some of the new remote advisors will be recruited internally, but we also plan to make about forty external recruitments in 2007, the same number as in 2006."
More than recruiting, courting...
For the software publisher Ciel (300 employees), hiring mainly serves to offset the high turnover, a common phenomenon in the profession. "About ten customer service representative or technical advisor positions are available on an ongoing basis," estimates Thomas Sarazain, director of human resources. This illustrates the difficulty call centers have in retaining employees, especially in the Ile-de-France region.
According to official industry figures, 30% of telemarketers have less than one year of experience. As a result, job offers are always plentiful. For Gilles Roussel, the recruitment manager at B2S, one of the leading French telemarketing groups (2,500 people), professionals "no longer recruit, they court!" "Candidates are more skeptical, even more aggressive, and it is vital to dispel their preconceived notions about call centers and to listen to them. Our needs are constant. Currently, we are looking for telemarketers to work in banking and insurance." To ensure a sufficient pool of candidates, the company did not hesitate to create a special hotline where applications can be submitted. Simply answer a few questions before leaving your phone number. B2S will call you back if your profile is of interest.
One hundred calls a day
Because of recruitment difficulties, the profession remains accessible to candidates with low qualifications. Even those with just a high school diploma have a chance. "We are open to diverse profiles ranging from high school diploma to bachelor's degree level or higher. We prefer to focus on personality rather than a diploma," says Thomas Sarazain (Ciel).
However, integrated telephone centers of large service companies set the bar higher. "Our policy is to recruit our customer service advisors with a bachelor's degree and prior experience in customer relations by phone." insists Patricia Davideau (AG2R). Having experience in the field is an advantage because you know what to expect. Indeed, dealing with sometimes unhappy customers, making appointments, or selling products by phone requires resilience.
For Gilles Roussel (B2S), the hiring interview begins with the first phone contact. "80% of the recruitment process takes place by phone. I take into account how the candidate expresses themselves, their ability to respect grammar, their tone of voice. In short, the overall charisma they convey when speaking to me." At this stage, the selection is ruthless. "You need about 10 CVs sent for one candidate to be hired."
If the profession still struggles to attract candidates, it is because it still suffers from a negative image. A false idea? It is not always easy to spend several hours in a row in front of a screen, headset on, making calls. A telesales representative can make over 100 calls a day. And yet, "telemarketing is an excellent training ground for sales," argues Thomas Sarazain (Ciel). "It is more difficult to convince a customer by phone than face-to-face. In addition, close management helps to develop the expertise of our customer service representatives, particularly through coaching and product training. In a few months, you acquire the skills and reflexes of good salespeople."
The fact remains that many young people consider telemarketing a transitional job, a stepping stone to something better. However, the possibilities for advancement are far from negligible, the professionals agree. "A customer service representative can, after two or three years, move to a specialized customer service position, focusing on retirement, health, insurance, or account management. After a few years of experience and management skills, they can also move to a team leader position," says Patricia Davideau (AG2R).
Climbing the ladder
Ciel also focuses on internal advancement. "We use continuing education to broaden the range of tasks assigned to customer service representatives or technical advisors. So, in a few years, they are able to supervise a team when a team leader position becomes available. Experienced tele-technicians can also join our development or specialized support engineer departments. Advancement within Sage, the group to which we belong, is also possible," summarizes Thomas Sarazain.
As for B2S telesales representatives, those who have proven themselves can climb the internal ladder. "The manager of one of our entities started as a telemarketer ten years ago," says Gilles Roussel. Advancement can also occur in other departments: the sales department responsible for selling the company's services, but also the back office. A significant example noted at B2S: "One of our telemarketers was recruited for a management control position when a position became available."
Bonuses for telesales representatives
For advisors who only receive calls, salaries range from €1,500 to €1,600 gross per month. In this case, their annual compensation rarely exceeds €21,000 gross per year. Variable compensation is also used when the position justifies it. For all telemarketers involved in telephone sales, there will be bonuses determined based on sales. A good telesales representative can thus reach €1,800 gross per month for 35 hours of work per week with this variable component. Note that Parisian telemarketers are not better paid than their counterparts in the provinces.
Frédéric Chartier
Posted online July 18, 2008
frederic-chartier.com
To meet significant needs, the sector remains open to a wide range of profiles and promises advancement opportunities to top performers...
Far from slowing down, telephone marketing continues to recruit at full speed. The number of call centers is increasing, and staffing levels are keeping pace with growth. Today, there are approximately 3,500 "contact centers" (integrated and outsourced combined) employing more than 200,000 people.
For the insurance and provident fund group AG2R, "the goal is to double our teams by 2009, with five call centers in Paris and the provinces," explains Patricia Davideau, head of human resources management. "Some of the new remote advisors will be recruited internally, but we also plan to make about forty external recruitments in 2007, the same number as in 2006."
More than recruiting, courting...
For the software publisher Ciel (300 employees), hiring mainly serves to offset the high turnover, a common phenomenon in the profession. "About ten customer service representative or technical advisor positions are available on an ongoing basis," estimates Thomas Sarazain, director of human resources. This illustrates the difficulty call centers have in retaining employees, especially in the Ile-de-France region.
According to official industry figures, 30% of telemarketers have less than one year of experience. As a result, job offers are always plentiful. For Gilles Roussel, the recruitment manager at B2S, one of the leading French telemarketing groups (2,500 people), professionals "no longer recruit, they court!" "Candidates are more skeptical, even more aggressive, and it is vital to dispel their preconceived notions about call centers and to listen to them. Our needs are constant. Currently, we are looking for telemarketers to work in banking and insurance." To ensure a sufficient pool of candidates, the company did not hesitate to create a special hotline where applications can be submitted. Simply answer a few questions before leaving your phone number. B2S will call you back if your profile is of interest.
One hundred calls a day
Because of recruitment difficulties, the profession remains accessible to candidates with low qualifications. Even those with just a high school diploma have a chance. "We are open to diverse profiles ranging from high school diploma to bachelor's degree level or higher. We prefer to focus on personality rather than a diploma," says Thomas Sarazain (Ciel).
However, integrated telephone centers of large service companies set the bar higher. "Our policy is to recruit our customer service advisors with a bachelor's degree and prior experience in customer relations by phone." insists Patricia Davideau (AG2R). Having experience in the field is an advantage because you know what to expect. Indeed, dealing with sometimes unhappy customers, making appointments, or selling products by phone requires resilience.
For Gilles Roussel (B2S), the hiring interview begins with the first phone contact. "80% of the recruitment process takes place by phone. I take into account how the candidate expresses themselves, their ability to respect grammar, their tone of voice. In short, the overall charisma they convey when speaking to me." At this stage, the selection is ruthless. "You need about 10 CVs sent for one candidate to be hired."
If the profession still struggles to attract candidates, it is because it still suffers from a negative image. A false idea? It is not always easy to spend several hours in a row in front of a screen, headset on, making calls. A telesales representative can make over 100 calls a day. And yet, "telemarketing is an excellent training ground for sales," argues Thomas Sarazain (Ciel). "It is more difficult to convince a customer by phone than face-to-face. In addition, close management helps to develop the expertise of our customer service representatives, particularly through coaching and product training. In a few months, you acquire the skills and reflexes of good salespeople."
The fact remains that many young people consider telemarketing a transitional job, a stepping stone to something better. However, the possibilities for advancement are far from negligible, the professionals agree. "A customer service representative can, after two or three years, move to a specialized customer service position, focusing on retirement, health, insurance, or account management. After a few years of experience and management skills, they can also move to a team leader position," says Patricia Davideau (AG2R).
Climbing the ladder
Ciel also focuses on internal advancement. "We use continuing education to broaden the range of tasks assigned to customer service representatives or technical advisors. So, in a few years, they are able to supervise a team when a team leader position becomes available. Experienced tele-technicians can also join our development or specialized support engineer departments. Advancement within Sage, the group to which we belong, is also possible," summarizes Thomas Sarazain.
As for B2S telesales representatives, those who have proven themselves can climb the internal ladder. "The manager of one of our entities started as a telemarketer ten years ago," says Gilles Roussel. Advancement can also occur in other departments: the sales department responsible for selling the company's services, but also the back office. A significant example noted at B2S: "One of our telemarketers was recruited for a management control position when a position became available."
Bonuses for telesales representatives
For advisors who only receive calls, salaries range from €1,500 to €1,600 gross per month. In this case, their annual compensation rarely exceeds €21,000 gross per year. Variable compensation is also used when the position justifies it. For all telemarketers involved in telephone sales, there will be bonuses determined based on sales. A good telesales representative can thus reach €1,800 gross per month for 35 hours of work per week with this variable component. Note that Parisian telemarketers are not better paid than their counterparts in the provinces.
Frédéric Chartier
Posted online July 18, 2008
frederic-chartier.com
