B2B telemarketing is about to become the most direct and personal form of new business generation. Under the new EU Data Regulations business development will be severely restricted as companies will be banned from gathering personal data without consent.
B2B telemarketing is a solution; as the one platform for new business which will still have the ability to get personal and reach the right prospects.
What is ‘personal’?
The new EU Data regulation makes no distinction between B2B and B2C with regard to data restrictions. ‘Personal’ data is defined as ‘full name, job title, work email address, direct line and more’. This will have massive implications for email campaigns, direct mail and some social media interactions. This ‘personal’ data can only be held with ‘explicit consent’, this ultimately shifts direct marketing from being an opt-out system to an opt-in rule.
Marketing without personal?
Under the new rules business development becomes far more difficult; companies will no longer be in a position to reach out to prospects via the traditional methods. For direct mail available data is confined to a generic company address e.g. ‘Dear Marketing Department…’ such correspondence ultimately ends up in the office recycling bin.
A similar issue arises within email campaigns, generic email addresses such as ‘[email protected]’ are often neglected and the majority of emails remain forever unopened.
Ultimately the new EU regulations will remove any ‘personal’ element for new business campaigns.
Reintroducing the ‘personal’ into new business development – B2B telemarketing
With 89% of new purchases requiring some form of human interaction, new business lead generation will suffer greatly when devoid of a personal element. B2B telemarketing is the one medium almost entirely unaffected by the new regulations.
Often the initial data used within such campaigns are already completely impersonal, a company name, a company address and a company switchboard number.
Telemarketing agents are able to convert this data into warm leads, obtaining the personal details of a new prospect alongside industry intelligence, company mapping and even other potential leads.
B2B telemarketing ‘a golden age’.
Our whitepaper on human interaction outlines the importance of a ‘personal’ element within new business accumulation. The EU data regulations severely handicap the effectiveness of email and direct mail to reach potential prospects.
B2B telemarketing should be the number one consideration for companies interested in generating new business without risking the €1,000,000 penalty for breaching the new laws. With the implementation of these new procedures fast approaching companies will have no option but to search alternative ways to generate new business.
For more information regarding the new EU Data Regulation please download our infographic.
