Smart strategies for compensating telemarketing service providers

End users within Aberdeen's research audience consider the following definitions for compensation models in the B2B teleservices industry:

• Retainer-based is a fixed dollar payment per month or quarter, often enhanced by performance-based variable compensation to the vendor and/or vendor's individual staff members.
  
• Pay-per-appointment is an agreement to pay a fixed fee per accepted live meeting or conference call arranged, generally presented in programs of 20, 50 or other quantities of meetings. Time lines are usually open-ended.
  
• FTE-based (full-time equivalent) is a full or partial "rental" of outsourced vendor staff members who are dedicated to the customer's program; compensation is arranged as a fixed rate per resource, sometimes with multiple echelons of talent available.
  
• Pay-per-lead requires a clear definition of "sales lead." Vendors charge a fixed or graduated fee for units delivered and/or accepted.
  
• Pay-per-record costs are associated with the quantity of names or company targets touched, often stratified by the number of "sweeps," call attempts or reaches.
  
• Hourly fee is similar to FTE-based, but with more flexibility regarding the identity of the caller, as well as with the activities undertaken by callers and program managers. This approach is highly popular with companies that wish to directly compare external fees with estimated costs of inside sales teams.

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