So where does the problem lie? Is it in the quality of the leads? Is it in your particular offer? The answer is no to both. Is it in your sales pitch? Is it in your planning? The answer is a resounding yes!

As an entrepreneur or small business owner you probably get excited when a good deal comes by for leads and are quick to purchase them however they are only worth as much as the work you are willing to put into them.

Leads are merely another tool, without the work and without the right skills, they become a costly waste of space in your business toolbox that can actually end up costing you more than what you paid for.

The typical scenario is to get discouraged when you don't convert your leads and look for another alternative to building your business sales or even worse, buy more leads from another source. Right there they have become more worthless than before you bought them. When they don't convert they aren't worth the money spent, you don't produce sales, you don't ever want to contact that potential buyer again, and you wasted a considerable amount of time over the phone.

The first mistake most people make is buying sales leads. Buying a list of broad categories can prove to be one of the biggest wastes of time. The first amount of work needed for successful phone marketing is the research.

Always carefully research your market before spending any amount of money. Buy only leads within your specific target market, this includes MLM marketers. Unless you have a giant work force of outbound call center operators your time is best spent in only the greenest of pastures. Ask yourself these questions:

1.What types of consumer or businesses usually buy from me?

2.What types of Industries are they in?

3.What city, state, or country do the majority of my current customers reside?

4.What is the income of my consumers or the size of the businesses I currently hold as clients?

Another mistake many people make is reading from a script. When you read from a script over the phone it becomes obvious that you are reading, not talking. Your better off phone broadcasting a recorded sales pitch than wasting your breath on a scripted sales pitch.

I personally feel insulted when I hear a script being read to me. Am I not worth the originality of a real conversation? It becomes evident that all I am is a dollar sign and I no longer wish to engage in any conversation with the person who called me. I will hang up and always do in this scenario.

Instead of a script try typing in a document program quick key selling points for your offer. Make them short, one per line, and in a big font size. Print these out and have them handy for your next sales call.

Work on building your natural conversation qualities and integrating your sales pitch into your phone conversations. Don't mistake this advice for staying on the subject of the weather, you have to keep your stance and position as the salesperson, but keep it real.

Each person who answers their phone is going to be an individual regardless if it's a business or spouse at home and no one script is going to appeal to the same person over and over. This practice not only will help further target your prospect but build successful communication skills for yourself as well wherever the future may lead you.

Making phone leads work for your business will take practice and work. Try studying the advice of other successful phone marketers in blogs and forums to help build more knowledge and you might find that the title to this article is what is now worthless trash.