When starting to work with inbound call tracking and analytics for your online advertising for the first time, it’s easy only to mind the number of incoming calls and the source/medium that’s linked to them. It is most probably the main reason why most of us do call tracking as we know it adds new data that we can plug into our RTB-platforms and/or Analytics tools, and better optimise our online advertising campaigns.

But the question is – are all inbound calls worth the same regardless of the duration of the calls? If the same person calls you twice in the same day, would you really like to evaluate both of these calls the same way? We bet you won’t…

Adding call tracking and analytics to your online advertising isn’t just about adding a tool for measuring the performance of different online advertising channels where you spend your time, money and efforts. It’s also about adding depth to these calls, a new dimension where call duration is the new currency and finally qualify them!

For instance, we know for a fact that almost no business can be made if the call duration of a call is below 10 seconds. But a call that lasts longer than 1 minute does most definitely have a certain value, and if it would have been 5 minutes, the value would probably be higher. We also know that if the same person calls you twice the same day, it’s probably because he or she has more questions to ask before making a final buying decision.

Is there a best practice for qualification of inbound calls?

We believe that every business is unique and depending on which industry you’re in and what your business model looks like, the qualification of your inbound calls will undoubtedly differ from business to business. However, there are a few basic best practices that you can always apply.

Here’s a short list of the basic ‘must-haves’ when creating a model for qualification of your inbound calls:

1. Define minimum call duration; What is the minimum call duration for a call to add any value to your business and be counted as a qualified call? For instance, try to define the minimum time it would take to schedule a meeting, close a sale or respond to an on-demand request and then define the call’s value regarding estimated revenue (€/£).
2. Have 2-3 qualification levels; At Freespee, we don’t believe that giving all qualified calls the same value is the best way to go. Longer calls tend to have a higher value than short calls as the more time you spend speaking to the customer allows you to make a better business proposition. It will naturally differ from one business to another, but it is a very often case. Try to define 2-3 qualification levels including the one for minimum call duration, one mid-level and then one for high-quality calls. Remember to assign a value (€/£) to these levels as well to put a face on the numbers!
3. Always mind the length of your sales cycle; As mentioned earlier in this post, you don’t want to count two calls from the same person in a single day as two qualified calls. A person calling several times is probably looking for additional information regarding their questions and is therefore already in your sales cycle. Define how long your sales cycle is, apply it for your call tracking and analytics, and you will see the exact number of qualified calls you actually have each month and how you have spent your online advertising budget.

How do I apply this using Freespee?

Freespee provides a feature called ‘Pricing model’ which is customisable and in which you can specify the conditions you want to set for your inbound call qualifications.
A pricing model is something you add to a campaign, and it applies to all of the numbers in it.

Freespee allows you to set specific conditions to a pricing model that you create. The pre-set conditions are following: weekdays when the requirements should apply, qualification levels based on call duration, value (€/£) per qualification level and finally condition for when a caller is counted as unique, depending on the length of your sales cycle.

If there are any other conditions you have in mind or think would be of value to your business, please let us know. We are always looking for ways to make Freespee better!

Happy Freespeeing!

Read more: When is a call counted as Converted?