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Discover the best times to use a preview dialer or power dialer and your sales team can be an unstoppable force.

So many dialers, so many choices, and what the heck is the difference? Is that what’s going through your mind right now? Does a preview dialer, a power dialer, or even a predictive dialer really change how you work and how successful your team is? 

The quick answer is yes. It makes a huge difference in how you work, how your team works, and how your call recipients perceive you. There’s more to it than a quick answer, though. 

How you use these options, or even if you use them, can significantly impact your bottom line. There’s one thing we have to get out of the way before we dive in, though. 


Make more calls in less time with all of your client details right at your fingertips. Find out more with a free discovery call. Get in touch today!


preview dialer

Preview, power, and predictive: What you should know and why one of them won’t help you

It’s easy to conflate similar tools when we’re talking about dialing software. However, though they may seem similar, there are some big differences in how these three dialers function. 

First, all three are autodialers. That just means they dial automatically, whether that’s through either a completely automated process or a “click-to-call” feature. So it’s not enough to refer to an autodialer unless the type of dialer is already an established fact. 

Here’s where the differences come in. 

Preview dialer: This dialer puts the agent in charge of when to make a call using the click-to-call option. The preview feature brings up information about the customer or prospect for the agent to review before a call. With a preview dialer, an agent makes one call at a time, though the software speeds up the process through autodialing, voicemail drop for unanswered calls, and, of course, the pop-up of customer information.

Power dialer: A power dialer is similar to a preview dialer in that it only makes one call at a time. The most significant difference is that power dialing eliminates the click-to-call function and automatically dials the next number on the list as soon as the previous call ends. 

Predictive dialer: A predictive dialer offers a quite different approach to autodialing. This dialing software “predicts” how often callers pick up the line and automatically dials based on that. For example, if the average is that one out of every five calls gets answered, a predictive dialer will dial five numbers at once and connect any live calls to the first available agent. In theory, this is an efficient approach to sales calls, as it effectively eliminates agents from waiting for a call to get answered. However, there are multiple downsides to this. If more calls are answered than the software predicts, no agents are available to talk. Furthermore, that leaves zero downtime between calls, leaving agents with no choice but to go from call to call to call without pause. And while this might be “efficient,” it doesn’t account for the fact that people can’t function as effectively at that kind of pace. 

Preview dialer vs. power dialer: How to get the most out of your options

Now that you know our opinion on predictive dialing, let’s explore our other, more preferable options. 

To begin, with dialing software like Call Logic, you don’t have to choose. You can easily switch back and forth between the preview dialer and power dialer functions. When should you use the different options? 

Here are some of the situations where a preview dialer is preferable. 

  • For more complex calls, the agent needs time to review a client’s or prospect’s history before connecting with them. 
  • When a sales script needs to be personalized to a prospect. 
  • In situations where you want a customized, personal experience for the prospect or customer.
  • When you or your agents need to take a lot of notes or file reports after a call. 

When might a power dialer be more appropriate?

  • When your script is similar for every call, as in the case of a nonprofit fundraising drive, for example.
  • When you want to increase your call volume.
  • Follow-up calls or surveys where the information doesn’t need to be personalized.

Of course, there are a few considerations to weigh for either approach. Preview dialing generally results in fewer calls than power dialing, although it does give you a better opportunity to prep for the next call. Alternatively, power dialing doesn’t always provide the same level of customer service that preview dialing allows for. 

However, it’s vital to keep things in context. Fewer calls is not necessarily a “bad” thing. Nor do you always need that high level of hands-on customer service for routine calls. 

And again, with software like Call Logic, you can have the advantages of a preview dialer and a power dialer all in one easy-to-use solution. 


Call Logic’s auto-dialer and call management software offers dozens of helpful tools to increase your success and simplify your daily tasks. Call for your free consultation today to learn more!


 

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