Business Bankers – Appointment Setting Services

Goal – To generate a steady flow of “new business” appointments targeting companies with revenues from $2.5M to $10M.

Background – In the fall of 2014, we developed an appointment setting campaign for a regional bank that has 80+ branch locations inside of three major metropolitan areas – their goal was to generate a steady flow of “new business” meetings and to test appointment setting as the method to create increased sales activity. Over 20 business bankers were to participate in the program.

Preparation –
1st – We wrote a message for the telemarketers that professionally represented the bank. The call strategy was low-key and focused on asking decision makers about their current banking relationships and probed into upcoming bank needs.
2nd – Dunlap Marketing built a specific prospect database around companies that produced annualized revenues ranging from $2.5M to $10M inside specific industry classification, targeting headquarter or single location facilities. Once the database was built, we suppressed existing bank customers from the list.
3rd – Internal processes were setup for scheduling appointments and distributing them to the appropriate bankers. CRM applications were built to properly track and manage sales activity. Bankers were held accountable to report on the outcome of every appointment assigned to them.
4th – Kickoff meetings were conducted in all three markets to assure that the calling staff and business bankers were all working in unison with messaging and proper qualification requirements for each appointment set.
5th – Implementation of the calling campaign started and a few days later, appointments were being delivered to the bankers, and steady flow was established and maintained month over month.
6th – Management review meetings were held monthly between the bank and Dunlap Marketing to assess the campaign and modifications were made as necessary to meet bank goals.

Actual Results – 379 appointments were scheduled for the business bankers – after the first meetings occurred, bankers reported:
o 64 of the 379 were considered “immediate opportunities” and
o 138 of the 379 were “interested, requiring follow up steps”
o Significant sales momentum was established that carries into 2015

Because of these sales results, Dunlap Marketing was awarded an agreement to continue appointment setting services throughout 2015.

Summary – The opportunity to significantly increase new business growth is high for our bank clients and the risk is very low. Our pricing is built around a performance-based model; therefore you pay for the appointments we set. Additionally, Dunlap Marketing prides itself on presenting a very professional image to prospecting. Our services are intended to complement business development activities already in place with bankers.

These services are not for every bank – a 15 minute conversation should be sufficient in determining if Dunlap Marketing can become an asset to your business growth in 2015. Please let us know if you have interest in a brief conversation.

Contact Information:
Mike Dunlap
Phone: (877) 386-6275 or (281) 496-9870 ext. 140
Email: miked@dunlapmarketing.com

Interview #1 with a bank client – click here

Interview #2 with a bank client – click here

 

Overview of Client – This is a customer who started using our services in March of 1996. We initially supported their Texas region and then expanded to support all seven regions around the country. The interview was conducted with the General Sales Manager of the Texas region.



Interview


What specific services(s) does Dunlap Marketing provide for you?

• Outbound calling campaigns on our existing lead database
• Event calling for specific sales event
• Research into our existing database


What was your business challenge or need that motivated you to seek the services of Dunlap Marketing?

• We had more leads coming in than we could service
• We had older leads that we were no longer actively working
• We had events scheduled that we needed a large volume of contact calls over a short period of time
• We had questions we wanted asked by a non-biased third party

Why did you outsource these activities to Dunlap Marketing?

They were professional, credible and affordable.




What results did you expect to receive from Dunlap Marketing?

Increased sales and revenue!


Have you achieved these results? Absolutely!

How do these results impact your company / revenue and profitability?

Dunlap has helped us achieve Division of the Year for Anthony & Sylvan Pools 3 of the past 4 years.

What do you feel are the strengths of Dunlap Marketing?

They really work hard to understand our business and to implement scripts and programs that match up well to our potential customers.

Why did you select Dunlap Marketing to serve your needs?

I spoke with 3-4 vendors and they were the ones who really wanted to understand our needs before quoting us their services. They were also priced well (in the middle) of the other vendors we spoke with.

How well does the Dunlap Marketing team work with your staff?

They have responded to all our requests and have customized reporting, work product, and follow through to our needs.


Describe the level of professionalism you experience with the Dunlap Marketing staff?

Absolutely the highest and every member of the Dunlap Marketing team performs professionally with our customers and our staff.

Do you believe potential customers were able to distinguish any important differences between Dunlap Marketing personnel and your organization?

No, the conversation with our customers and potential customers have been seamless to the customer. The Dunlap staff act as an extension of our own personnel.

What impact has there been with your business productivity/efficiency as a result of using Dunlap Marketing services?

We were able to handle three divisions worth of leads and prospects this year with no increase in staff or significant overhead thanks to Dunlap.


How did Dunlap Marketing assist in each of the following areas during the development and implementation of your campaign?

• Database development – N/A, we provide them to Dunlap.
• Scripting and call strategy preparation – Dunlap worked hand in hand with us again this year to develop scripts and promotions for our call campaigns.
• Staff orientation and training – We did this in the early years but Dunlap takes the lead roll in preparing their staff for our calls.
• Early stage remote monitoring and coaching – We have not taken advantage of remote monitoring this year but we continued with occasional site visits here in Houston.
• Reports and delivery of ongoing results – Reports were delivered in a timely, accurate and easy to understand format and we occasionally asked for a different “slice” of the calling data. Those were always provided as requested.
• Importance of your project manager – As I stated, the project manager and all the staff at Dunlap Marketing are top notch professionals.

Overview of Client – This is an IT Services company who specializes in technology applications such as Virtualization, Data Center, Managed IT and Professional IT Services. As a 22-year-old Texas company, they target businesses ranging from 25 employees on up to midsize enterprises. This interview was conducted with the President/CEO. At the time of the interview they have used Dunlap Marketing services for four months.  They started with a “pilot project” and renewed it three times.

Interview

What specific services does Dunlap Marketing provide for you?

Appointment setting and lead generation.

Why did you outsource these activities to Dunlap Marketing?

Our company was unable to get our act together internally. Prospecting is a challenge for us and it’s not what we do best. Rather than train or hire staff we were able to hire Dunlap Marketing and get better results for less money.

What results did you expect to receive from Dunlap Marketing?

Ideally, 6-12 appointments a month. Most importantly was to be in front of well qualified prospects

Have you achieved these results?

We are moving towards that. We have gone on several very strong appointments that are very promising.

How do these results impact your company/revenue and profitability?

Too early to tell

What do you feel are the strengths of Dunlap Marketing?

They are disciplined and have quality people making the calls. Our company is very technical and they can handle the conversations. I was pleasantly surprised to have such a positive experience outsourcing our prospecting calls. I must admit, I didn’t know if it would be a good fit, but they are much more productive and disciplined than we were. It has made a difference. We went into this with a three month trial and we had solid appointments the first month.

Why did you select Dunlap Marketing to serve your needs?

They were highly recommended by another company.

How well does the Dunlap Marketing team work with your staff?

That’s one of the best parts. We are fortunate to very productive meetings with the management team and they are very responsive.

Do you believe potential customers were able to distinguish any important differences between Dunlap Marketing personnel and your organization?

No, that’s the amazing thing. Companies think it is us calling; the staff is very professional.

How did Dunlap Marketing assist in each of the following areas during the development and implementation of your campaign?

• Database development: They helped us work out some kinks early on. Later they did a detailed analysis of our prospect data file and they were able to identify a lot of new prospective companies to add to our master list.
• Scripting and call strategy preparation: They are really good at crafting the perfect message to get the best results.
• Staff orientation and training: We had many sessions with the staff that proved key to a successful campaign. We worked with Dunlap Marketing to get things just right.
• Early stage remote monitoring and coaching: We used this in the beginning of our campaign and it helped us tailor our message. We are now at a point where Dunlap Marketing knows exactly what we need.
• Reports and delivery of ongoing results: These are very timely with good detailed information. Gives you an accurate picture of the status of the calls.
• Importance of your project manager: Very important to the overall success of our job. He is very responsive and professional, easy to work with.

Summary:

Overall impression of using Dunlap Marketing for prospecting services?

I have been pleasantly surprised. I didn’t know if this would be a good fit for our company, but they have the discipline and knowledge to make good, quality calls. They are far more productive than we could have been. They are easy to work with and very professional.

Client Overview – This banker has been a customer of Dunlap Marketing for 4 ½ years and has received approximately 400 appointments with Houston businesses.  Target annualized revenues for these businesses ranged from $1M to $10M.

What is the most significant way you bring new business customers into the bank? 

“By far and away a major contributor is with Dunlap Marketing appointments.  Understand that there are numerous ways that I bring in new customers, but one of the most important is Dunlap Marketing because we are able to control the size and type of company that we are most interested in.  The meetings you set up are almost always with companies that have banking needs that best match the services that my bank excels in providing.”

After all the years you have used Dunlap Marketing services, how do you justify the continued cost of our services?

“Good question as I have to regularly justify the expense.  The nice thing is the program is self-funding.  What I mean is that the profit we generate from Dunlap Marketing generated clients easily pays for many months of future appointments.  Fee income from a single $1M deal will pay for a year of Dunlap Marketing services.”

Can you give me an example of how a single new client will pay for a year of our appointments?

“On a funded loan of $1M, the bank fee is about 1 point.  This income will pay for almost 90 additional appointments from Dunlap Marketing.  This does not even factor in the income we will earn on other services that I will provide to the client; for example deposits.”

On average, what type of success do you have with the actual meetings that you attend resulting from Dunlap Marketing appointments?

“Every banker approaches this question differently. Historically, for me, I try to quickly assess whether there is a fit between the company and my bank.  If there isn’t, I’m not going to pursue a loan packet, even if the company is interested in us.  I see no reason to waste their time or my time.  I probably lose 20% of my meetings because of this.  However, if I feel the company has an approvable request, I will go after them aggressively.  These represent about 25% of my Dunlap Marketing meetings.”

Of the 25% that you go after, what type of success do you have with them?

“Almost 100% of them will actually submit a loan package and almost every one will be approved by the bank.  Of all the approved loans, I will actually fund 80% of them.  This goes back to being selective during early stage conversations with the companies I meet with.”

On a day-to-day basis, what do you like most about your relationship with Dunlap Marketing?

“Flexibility……..our bank is able to select specific type and size of businesses to call, we are able to have you shift from one branch to another within a moments notice, and we are able to adjust the flow of appointments on a weekly basis.”