By Carol Coultas,Business Writer

AUBURN – An Auburn telemarketing company is broadening its chances for success by narrowing its focus.

Formerly AdvanceTel, Great Falls Marketing is developing a niche clientele that it hopes will guarantee future prosperity.

“It’s an entirely new company, but a similar line of business,” said Will Adams, CEO. “There’s new ownership and new management.”

There’s also a new direction. The company is handling the telemarketing needs of two large clients in the nutri-ceudical field. The clients sell diet and nutrition supplements and other health-oriented product lines.

The focus on one type of client allows Great Falls staff to develop expertise and efficiency in handling incoming calls, said Adams.

It also allows the company to screen the clients carefully. Adams said part of the reason AdvanceTel fell on hard times was its acceptance of some clients with questionable financial stability. When those clients folded, they left AdvanceTel with unpaid bills.

In July, Adams, who was part of the previous group of owners, and two new investment partners purchased the company. It had shrunk to just about 35 sales agents from 170 when it was founded in 1998. Now there are 60 sales agents working at its Mill Street call center and Adams said the new owners plan to add another 45 by the end of January.

“We’re very cautious (about hiring),” said Adams. “We’ll extend employment opportunities when we feel the business is sustained.”

They are looking to add another 25 agents between now and the end of the year, then an additional 20 or so by the end of January.

Another nutri-ceudical client is in the wings, which is prompting Great Falls to ramp up its staff, said Adams.

The telemarketing industry has become highly competitive and profit margins have shrunk he said, especially with more and more companies opting to outsource that work overseas. To get a competitive edge, Great Falls Marketing takes the time to know its clients’ products well and train its staff accordingly.

It also carries a cultural edge over its foreign competitors.

“When products are advertised by a U.S. company to U.S. consumers and the calls go to someone in the Philippines, there can be a pretty big disconnect there,” he said.

Likewise for calls directed to mega call centers.

“Or you put a call to a U.S. (call center) with 2,000 agents that handle 50 different clients, and the focus just isn’t there,” said Adams.

He said the company is recruiting sales agents now. Beginning pay is about $6 per hour, but with a commission, “no one makes less than $10 per hour.” Adams said the average wage is in the mid-teens and the best of the agents “make north of $20 per hour.”

The company has already contacted many of the former agents who were laid off from AdvanceTel. The staff, as well as the company’s existing technical infrastructure, helped draw the interest from the new investors.

“This base of agents is pretty well recognized as one of the best sales groups, and it has proven sales success,” said Adams.