icon
Select
icon
Customize
icon
Download

Want a stronger resume? Use our extensive library of professional resume examples as practical starting guides. You’ll also find ready-made content with our helpful Resume Builder – simple click, customize, and download.

Find out what is the best resume for you in our Ultimate Resume Format Guide.

icon

Appointment Setter Duties and Responsibilities

No two appointment setters are exactly alike, as specific skills vary from employer to employer. After analyzing job postings, we identified several core duties and responsibilities common to this position:

Answer Inbound Calls Appointment setters answer inbound calls from the company’s prospective and current clients or customers. They answer any questions the client might have and set up appointments for the client to speak directly to a salesperson.

Place Outbound Calls Appointment setters receive lists of potential clients from the sales team, and they are responsible for cold calling these prospects. They use these calls to determine the overall interest of prospective clients and eliminate clients who aren’t interested.

Email Clients Appointment setters may also use email to contact clients, both current and prospective, to answer any questions, schedule meetings with a salesperson, or reschedule meetings as needed.

Keep Accurate Records When appointment setters contact prospective clients and talk to them about products or services, they keep accurate records of each conversation. They also indicate in these records whether the person is interested or not.

Provide General Administrative Support When they aren’t calling customers, appointment setters provide general administrative support to the sales team. They make copies, organize documents, and rearrange schedules as needed.

icon

Appointment Setter Skills and Qualifications

Appointment setters are excellent communicators, and they are comfortable speaking with clients and customers all day long. Employers look to employ appointment setters with previous customer service experience, but candidates typically don’t need any formal education to get a job. However, employers also search for candidates who demonstrate the following skills and qualifications:

  • Sales Skills – Since appointment setters are often the first point of contact between a client and a company, they have basic knowledge of sales principles. They also know how to garner interest in the product or service that the company is selling
  • Customer Service Experience – Appointment setters have previous customer service experience, preferably in a call center environment. However, any kind of retail customer service is usually helpful for this position
  • Data Entry Skills – Successful appointment setters are skilled data entry employees who can type at fast speeds with high accuracy
  • Interpersonal Communication Skills – These professionals talk to clients all day through both phone calls and emails. As such, they are excellent with interpersonal communication skills in both verbal and written forms
  • Organization Skills – They also need to work with the schedules of multiple salespeople. As such, they are highly organized employees and always know what’s going on with each salesperson
icon

Appointment Setter Education and Training

There are no minimum education requirements to become an appointment setter, however, most employers tend to hire candidates with at least a high school diploma or GED. For the most part, appointment setters receive on-the-job training to learn about the product or service the company sells. They may also receive training on how to use the phones and lead management software.

icon

Appointment Setter Salary and Outlook

The median annual salary for appointment setters, which the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) categorizes as “Administrative Professionals,” is $37,230. Appointment setters in the 10th percentile make less than $22,930 per year, while the highest earners make more than $62,230 per year. Appointment setters can also typically take part in their employer’s benefits packages, which often include vacation and sick time, along with healthcare insurance options. Some appointment setters may also earn bonuses based on their performance meeting quotas or setting up appointments with clients that convert to buying. The overall industry employment for appointment setters is projected to decline 5 percent through 2026, according to the BLS. Technological advancements continue to automate many of the duties that appointment setters currently perform. This decline can also be explained by the fact that many sales teams are taking on increasingly more involved roles initiating contact with prospective clients.

icon

Helpful Resources

Read through some of the following resources to learn more about becoming a successful appointment setter:

The Customer Rules: The 39 Essential Rules for Delivering Sensational Service – This book, written by a former Disney Executive Vice President, outlines 39 individual rules that every customer service employee should follow when interacting directly with customers. These rules include things like being a copycat, asking yourself what your mom would do, and treating every customer like a regular. This is a valuable resource if you’re still learning just what it takes to become a successful appointment setter who consistently works with prospective and current clients.

The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation – This book takes a closer look at sales and how you can become a better salesperson. It posits that most employees in sales think that the secret to sales success lies in building relationship, and that is where those employees go wrong. The book uses a large study to explain that this method is unsuccessful and that sales employees should take control of the sale and challenge customers with innovative ways to solve their needs. Highly-rated and reviewed, this book by Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson is a good choice for anyone on a sales team to read.