An appointment setter is a sales representative who is responsible for scheduling sales meetings and appointments between salespeople and potential customers. Their main role is to get prospects to agree to a face-to-face meeting with a sales rep. Appointment setters are a key part of the sales process and help drive new business opportunities.
What are the main responsibilities of an appointment setter?
The core responsibilities of an appointment setter include:
- Contacting prospects via phone, email, social media, etc. to introduce them to the company and products/services
- Qualifying leads by asking questions to determine if they are a good fit for a sales call
- Explaining the value proposition of meeting with a sales rep and overcoming objections
- Scheduling appointments for sales reps based on prospect availability and needs
- Recording prospect information and appointment details in CRM system
- Conducting pre-call research on prospects to customize pitches
- Generating new sales leads through outbound calls and emails
- Managing sales calendars and reminder calls/emails for scheduled appointments
- Providing regular status updates on number of appointments scheduled
What skills does a good appointment setter need?
To be an effective appointment setter, the following skills are very important:
- Communication skills – Excellent phone, email, and interpersonal skills to connect with prospects and persuade them to meet
- Listening skills – Active listening to understand prospect needs and challenges
- Sales aptitude – Ability to sell the value of an appointment and overcome objections
- Tech savviness – Proficiency with sales CRM platforms and productivity software
- Multitasking – Juggling multiple prospect communications and appointments at once
- Persistence – Tenacity to make numerous call attempts to reach prospects and change “no” responses into “yes”
- Attention to detail – Solid note-taking and organization skills to capture prospect data
- Time management – Managing assigned call time blocks efficiently
What qualifications are required to be an appointment setter?
Here are some typical requirements and qualifications for an appointment setting role:
- High school diploma or GED
- 1+ years experience in sales, recruiting, or business development
- Proven ability to meet call/email quotas
- Experience with CRM platforms like Salesforce or HubSpot
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
- Comfortable making 100+ calls per day
- Ability to learn products, services, and pitches quickly
- Prior telesales, lead generation or appointment setting experience
- Bachelor’s degree preferred but not required
What types of companies hire appointment setters?
Appointment setters are hired across many different industries, including:
- Technology – Software, SaaS, IT services
- Financial services – Banking, insurance, accounting, wealth management
- Healthcare – Medical devices, pharmaceuticals, hospitals
- Sales – B2B product sales like industrial equipment, electronics, etc.
- Professional services – Consulting, marketing agencies, HR firms
- Real estate – Realtors, property managers, developers
- Home services – Plumbers, electricians, HVAC companies
Essentially any B2B company that relies on sales reps to generate new business will employ appointment setters to help fill their pipelines. Appointment setters work in call centers, sales development teams, and marketing departments typically.
What is the work environment like?
Here are some details on the typical work environment for an appointment setter:
- Mostly office-based – Appointment setters work from an office in the company or an outsourced call center
- Hours – Standard business hours like 9-5, though may need to accommodate prospect availability
- Full-time – Most appointment setting roles are full-time positions
- High call volume – Expect to make 100+ calls and emails daily
- Fast-paced – Quickly move between calls, juggling multiple prospect communications
- Metrics-focused – Daily/weekly targets for number of appointments set
- Team environment – Collaborating with other appointment setters and sales reps
The role requires spending several hours a day on the phone, so an office with sales dialing software and a headset is standard. It can be a high-pressure job needing persistence through many prospect rejections before setting appointments.
What is the target demographic for appointment setters?
Appointment setters typically target the following demographic segments:
- Title – Decision-makers like owners, partners, directors, vice presidents, C-suite
- Company size – Mid-market and enterprise level companies
- Industry – Relevant to product/service offering
- Geography – Usually focused regionally or nationally
The goal is to get prospects who are qualified to make purchase decisions for their company based on need and budget. Appointment setters spend their days calling and emailing titles like CEO, CFO, CTO, Director of Operations, VP of Sales, etc.
They target leads from companies in industries that align with what the sales reps sell. And they reach out to prospects within set geographic territories based on sales rep focus areas.
How are appointment setters compensated?
There are two main compensation models for appointment setters:
1. Base salary plus commission
Most appointment setters earn a base hourly wage or salary plus commission based on the number of qualified appointments booked. For example:
- $15/hour base pay
- 10% commission on all completed appointments
- $100 per appointment after booking 10+ appointments for the week
2. 100% commission (less common)
Some appointment setting roles are commission-only, paying a set fee for each scheduled appointment with no base salary. For example:
- $25 per qualified appointment scheduled
- $40 per closed sale appointment
According to Glassdoor, the average base pay for appointment setters is $33,000 per year, with commission potential adding $5,000-$20,000+ to total compensation. More experienced setters at high-performing companies can earn $75,000 or more.
What is the earning potential as an appointment setter?
The earning potential depends on your base salary, commission structure, and individual performance. Here are some examples of potential total compensation:
- Entry-level: $30,000-$45,000
- Experienced: $50,000-$75,000+
- Top performers: $75,000-$100,000+
According to data from PayScale, the average appointment setter pay is around $42,000 annually. However, top performers at successful companies can earn over six figures in total compensation. The more appointments you can book, the higher your commission checks will be.
What is the job outlook for appointment setters?
The job outlook for appointment setters is very strong. According to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data, demand for telemarketers and telesales reps is projected to grow 4% from 2020-2030, keeping pace with the national average job growth rate.
As more businesses rely on personalized outreach to generate leads and sales, the need for appointment setters should remain steady or grow. Hiring trends show companies adding dedicated sales development representatives and outbound call center roles.
The continued adoption of inside sales models supports demand. Appointment setters will be needed to make the initial connections with prospects before passing them to sales reps.
While software like auto-dialers and email sequencing helps improve productivity, companies still benefit from the high-touch approach of manual calling and emailing by skilled appointment setters.
With a relatively low barrier to entry and high earning potential from commission-based pay, appointment setting should continue to be an attractive sales role.
What are some tips for being a successful appointment setter?
Here are some top tips for excelling as an appointment setter:
- Set daily goals for calls made, emails sent, and appointments booked
- Research prospects thoroughly before calling
- Personalize outreach and customize pitches
- Highlight unique value propositions of meeting
- Use CRM to track all prospect interactions and stay organized
- Vary contact methods – call, email, LinkedIn, etc.
- Learn common objections and practice rebuttals
- Ask smart questions to qualify prospects
- Provide options for meeting dates/times
- Follow up consistently but not excessively
The most successful appointment setters master persuasion skills, leverage sales technology to enhance productivity, demonstrate grit and determination through constant follow up, and deliver consistent pipeline results.
What are examples of appointment setter job postings?
Here are excerpts from real appointment setter job listings to provide examples of responsibilities, qualifications, and skills employers are looking for:
Software Company
We are looking for a motivated Appointment Setter to schedule sales meetings for our Account Executives. Responsibilities include cold calling into prospects, qualifying leads, managing calendars, and working closely with Sales to achieve monthly targets. The ideal candidate has a hunter mentality, excellent communication skills, and experience in a fast-paced sales development role.
Staffing Agency
Our growing staffing firm seeks an experienced Appointment Setter to join our sales team. In this role, you will cold call staffing contacts to generate interest, qualify prospects, overcome objections, and schedule appointments for our Account Managers. To excel in this role you need persistence, stellar phone skills, CRM experience, and a passion for contributing to sales goal achievement.
Marketing Agency
We have an immediate opening for an outbound Appointment Setter to help grow our client accounts. This individual will take the lead on calling and emailing marketing prospects to secure meetings for the sales team. If you have the ability to hit call quotas, persuasively communicate value propositions, and transform cold leads into scheduled appointments, then we want to meet you!
Conclusion
An appointment setter plays the critical sales role of engaging prospects to schedule sales meetings. They bridge the gap between lead generation and closed deals.
To be an effective and valuable appointment setter requires phenomenal communication abilities, comfort calling dozens of prospects daily, tenacity through rejection, organized tracking of data in CRM, and a competitive drive to keep the sales pipeline full.
It can be a rewarding career for motivated individuals who enjoy connecting with people, have resilience through hearing “no”, and want to enable sales teams to achieve their revenue goals. Successful appointment setters can earn $75,000+ in total compensation.
With steady demand for outbound sales development reps forecasted and business reliance on personalized outreach only growing, it offers strong job outlook. If you possess the patience and persistence required to be an appointment setting machine, it is an exciting sales role to consider.