On the Line...with Jason Fisher

The Final Countdown for Veteran Callers- Hitting the Wall

Ever wonder what to do with those callers who seem to have hit a wall?  They are usually pretty apparent and easily found this time of year, with spring break having recently passed or right around the corner.  It seems like nothing management does can make them happy, and they do not have the ability to motivate themselves to greater heights.  They used to be a great caller, but now they just go through the motions.  They can see the end of the semester- the finish line- and all they want to do is enough to get by until that day of freedom arrives.

 

If you’re experiencing this right now with a few of your employees, you are not alone.  Almost every phonathon has at least one or two.  They make for frustrating nights as a manager, pondering what to do about the situation as you travel home from the calling shift.  Veteran callers, especially seniors, are the most likely candidates for this “syndrome”- mainly because they have eyes on what is happening after graduation.  They may be a little apprehensive about their future, especially if they don’t have a job lined up yet.  Their mind is not in the game.  Hey, in this job market, they have a reason to lose sleep.  I might be thinking ahead too if I were in their situation.  But it doesn’t do phonathon managers any good to have a used-to-be-great employee simply mopping up hours on their way out the door.  It sets a bad example for the rest of the employees who aren’t mailing it in early.

 

So what can you do to get the best from these employees before they leave?  Here are a few things to keep in mind when making your next moves.

Some Shortcuts in Phonathon Lead to Big Cuts in Productivity

We’re all guilty of taking shortcuts at times.  We tell ourselves that finding a quicker way to get things done will make our jobs easier and our bosses happier.  But before we stencil our name into the employee of the month trophy, consider that some time shavers in our industry have serious and often unforeseen consequences.  What starts off as a good intention or a passing thought turns into a more serious issue down the road.  We may not immediately notice a problem, but over a period of weeks, months, and years, results can suffer. 

 

Here are a few shortcuts in phonathon that aren’t worth the time saved. 

 

Copying and Pasting Scripts and Training Materials

Some things get better with age…wine, cheese, wisdom, a good story, etc.  But phonathon materials are not one of them.  In fact, using the same materials year after year will leave your message stale and your prospects unimpressed.  As a phonathon manager, your job is to deliver the vision of your institution or organization to your constituents.  There is a tendency to believe that “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it”.  I think this is a mistake.  After hearing what is essentially the same scripted message 2 or 3 times in a row, your prospects will have a much easier time telling the callers no.  If your students are tasked with persuading the prospects, then at the very least they need fresh verbiage- even if the general message and reasons to give have not changed all that much.  Consistency is important in phonathon, but not at the expense of losing the listener.  Take the time at the beginning of the campaign to fine-tune training materials and thoughtfully revamp your calling scripts.  The quality of your calls will be better in the end.

The Art of Persuasion in Phonathon

At first glance, there appears to be a limitless number of factors that go into creating and running a top-notch phonathon.  Just take a look at the number of different topics that I blog about as evidence of how complex I consider a good-running phonathon to be.  If phonathon were simple and easy to run, there wouldn’t be any reason for me to continue writing this blog.  The fact is that most phonathon programs operate in a basic fashion that allows them to get most of the lowest-hanging fruit.  They produce results that are in line with the most basic of expectations, and anything else they are able to achieve is considered icing on the cake.  But the best programs in the industry always seem to have something extra in their performance, as indicated in their ability to consistently surpass their previous year’s numbers and set new records.  Make no mistake; their success is not an accident.  It’s the result of the ability to teach what I consider to be The Art of Persuasion to their callers.

 

One of the most common mistakes that I see in phonathon is that managers are not picky enough when it comes to hiring their callers.  Not every applicant that walks through the door has the skills to be hired, and not every student hired will end up being a superior caller.  It takes a combination of keen identification of skill sets and talent by the hiring manager, an outstanding training program, great coaching, and timely motivation by management to get the most out of your staff.  These management processes should be put into place to enhance and teach what I consider to be the common thread in all great student-fundraising presentations, and that is persuasion. 

 

I have a simple definition of phonathon persuasion that I use in all my materials and presentations:

Why Phone Monitoring Equipment is Worth Every Penny

Telephone monitoring equipment should be considered a necessity, not a luxury.  Unfortunately, many phonathon programs still do not take advantage of this important technology for a variety of reasons, often revolving around the misperception that the price of the equipment is too high or that management can get by without it.  But while you can technically run a phonathon program without phone monitoring, I’m going to try to convince you why you shouldn’t.

 

Being able to listen to both sides of the conversation is invaluable for a phonathon manager.  Verbal clues that the prospect will give callers cannot be heard by the person coaching unless they have access to hear how and what the prospect is saying.  And while the caller may indeed be able to fill you in on some details after the call is over, they’ll never be able to re-create precisely what happened.  They may even leave out the negative details on purpose.  That leaves the supervisor or manager who is coaching to make assumptions or simply guess how the caller could have performed better.  It’s unfair to the caller not to give him or her all the assistance they need to be a great fundraiser, and it’s unfair to the manager who works hard to raise every donor and dollar possible.