Do People Still Pick Up The Phone? What You Should Know About Phone-Based Marketing

If you’ve got more than a few years of sales experience under your belt, you may have noticed that it’s harder and harder to get through to a real person when you’re making a sales call. Many people send calls right to voicemail, or completely ignore them without a second thought.

It’s definitely still possible to reach potential prospects by phone. But it’s important to understand why pickup rates are dropping, how you can maximize your success rates, and the other channels you can use to augment a phone-based marketing strategy. In this blog, we’ll discuss all of this and more!

Why Don’t People Pick Up The Phone As Often? Understanding This Trend

So, we know that it’s harder to get through to potential prospects on the phone these days. But what’s behind this trend? It’s impossible to list all of the factors, but here are a few that we think are the most impactful:

• Spam calls just keep growing – According to a 2023 study from Truecaller, the average American receives up to six spam calls per month, adding up to more than 25.2 billion calls per year. Standing out from a field of unwanted spam calls can be tough, particularly if you’re cold-calling.

• People are way less likely to answer calls from unrecognized numbers – Along with the above point, most people are likely to ignore calls from numbers they don’t recognize. According to one survey done by TNS, 75% of Americans will “never” answer phone calls from unrecognized numbers. If your customer doesn't already have your number, they may never pick up at all!

• Some phone numbers can get automatically filtered – Because of the rise of spam, some mobile carriers have introduced tools like T-Mobile’s “Scam Shield.” These features automatically block reported spam numbers – so if your calls are regularly reported as spam, you could get blacklisted without even knowing it.

• Millennials and Gen Z prefer to avoid phone calls – Millennials already make up the majority of the workforce. And their younger counterparts, Gen Z, will soon overtake baby boomers in the workforce, too. According to a study by Sky Mobile, 75% of Millennials prefer to avoid phone calls, and 26% of Gen Z “actively ignore” phone calls. This means that today’s workforce is less likely than ever to answer business calls.

6 Tips For Successful Sales Calls – How To Increase Your Answer Rates

Phone-based outreach may be more difficult in today’s business environment. But that’s a double-edged sword! Since it’s harder, fewer companies are using it as part of their prospecting plans – and a well-developed phone strategy can help you stand apart from the pack.

But what can you do to maximize your chances of business results? Here are a few tips that can help you cut through the noise and get more people to pick up the phone.

• Look into branded caller ID – First, we highly recommend asking your phone provider about branded caller ID. With this feature, you can display the name of your business and even your logo to a prospective customer.
  Your call won’t simply show up as an “unknown number,” which will make it harder to ignore! According to the TNS survey referenced in the beginning of this blog, 78% of survey respondents are “more willing” to pick up the phone if the caller ID shows a brand name and/or logo.

• Find qualified, interested prospects – Weeding out low-quality prospects is a good way to avoid wasting time on unanswered or unproductive calls. Who is more likely to answer your call – someone who entered their phone number into a form on your website, or someone whose number you found in a third-party prospecting list? Focusing on “hand-raisers” who have already shown interest in what you have to offer is sure to boost your success rate.

• Go for quality over quantity – If you make hundreds of calls per day, your number is much more likely to be marked as spam, compared to if you made just a few dozen calls per day. So again, it’s best to focus on chasing high-quality prospects than it is to call hundreds of people who may not even be interested in your B2B products or services.

• Avoid bad calling habits – Along with high call volume, other things can cause you to get flagged by phone companies – and annoy potential prospects, too! You should avoid double and triple dialing, hanging up immediately, calling after business hours, or making a lot of very short-duration calls. 

• Call at the right time of day – According to Phoneburner, the best time of day for a cold call is between 10 AM and 11 AM. Most people are in the office, aren’t on their way out for lunch, and are the most likely to pick up the phone.

• Leave a voicemail – You may think that voicemail is dead. But that’s not the case! In fact, this is a great way to connect with a potential prospect, even if they don’t answer your call. 67% of Americans will check a voicemail from an unknown number. So leave a brief message with information about yourself, what you have to offer, and how a prospect can get in touch with you.

• Develop a multi-channel prospecting approach – If someone doesn’t answer their phone, don’t just call again. Send a text, shoot them an email, or see if you can connect on social media! Using a multi-channel prospecting approach is the best way to maximize your chance of engaging with a prospect – even if they're not picking up the phone!

Improve Your Call Success Rate With Our B2B Prospecting Services

At Incept Grows, we’re specialists in multi-channel B2B prospecting. With our services, we can find the best prospects in your industry, pass them on to you, and streamline the sales process. Cut out the busywork, forget pre-made prospecting lists, and turn to the experts. 
When we’re on your side, you can focus on what you do best – selling your products and services and growing your business. Want more info? Give us a call at 330-994-1349 or schedule a consultation with our team online.