If you have been in telesales for any length of time, you have noticed it.
The pickup rate is not what it used to be.
Apple’s call screening is getting more aggressive. Unknown numbers are getting blocked before they ever ring. Leads that used to pick up on the second or third dial are now going straight to voicemail.
It is a real problem.
But it is also becoming a convenient excuse.
A lot of agency owners and agents are using lower pickup rates as the reason they are not dialing as hard as they used to. They assume the phone is dead, the leads are worse, or the market has changed too much to keep producing at a high level.
John Whetmore is not one of them.
He knows the pickup rate has changed. He also knows the fundamentals still work when you track the numbers, make enough calls, and use the right tactics to get through.
The Reality of a 7% Pickup Rate
When John got back on the phones this year, he was getting a pickup rate of around 7%.
That means for every 100 dials, roughly seven people answered.
By most standards, that sounds discouraging. A lot of agents would look at that number and use it as proof that calling does not work anymore.
But here is what John did with a 7% pickup rate:
He wrote around $160,000 in life insurance in three months while working about 20 hours per week.
That is the number agency owners need to sit with before they complain about pickup rates.
Because most of the time, the real problem is not the pickup rate.
The real problem is dial volume.
If you are getting 7% pickups and you are not producing, the first question should not be, “How do I get more people to answer?”
The first question should be, “How many dials am I actually making?”
That question changes the conversation.
Pickup Rate Matters, But Volume Matters More
John’s answer to agents who complain about pickup rates is consistent.
The ones doing the complaining almost never have the dial volume to back it up.
They are making a fraction of the calls top producers are making, and then wondering why they are getting a fraction of the results.
That is the part nobody wants to hear.
A low pickup rate does not automatically mean you cannot produce. It means you need enough activity for the math to work.
If you make 100 dials at a 7% pickup rate, you get seven conversations.
If you make 1,000 dials at the same pickup rate, you get 70 conversations.
Same pickup rate.
Completely different opportunity.
This is why tracking matters. If you do not know your dial count, pickup rate, presentations, and sales, you are guessing. You may feel busy, but you do not actually know whether you are doing enough activity to create the result you want.
What Top Producers Are Doing to Get Through
John is not ignoring the reality that getting through is harder than it used to be.
He knows call screening is real. He knows unknown numbers are easier to ignore. He knows more people are avoiding calls than they did a few years ago.
But instead of using that as a reason to stop dialing, he and his team have tested practical ways to improve their chances of getting through.
The goal is not to find one magic trick that solves everything.
The goal is to squeeze more opportunity out of every 100 dials.
There are three tactics that stood out from the conversation: triple dialing, FaceTime audio, and contact cards.
Tactic #1: The Triple Dial
The first tactic is the triple dial.
John calls every lead three times in a row.
Some people hate this idea. They worry it feels too aggressive. They assume it will annoy the lead. They do not like the idea of calling back immediately after someone does not answer.
But John’s data is clear.
Agents who triple dial have a meaningfully higher pickup rate than agents who do not.
The second and third call in quick succession sends a different signal. It tells the person on the other end that the call may actually matter. It breaks through the pattern of one random unknown number calling once and disappearing.
It also creates urgency.
Most people ignore a single unknown call. But when the same number calls again immediately, they are more likely to think, “Maybe this is something I should answer.”
The triple dial is not about being reckless. It is about understanding how people respond to phone calls today.
One call is easy to ignore.
Three calls are harder to dismiss.
Tactic #2: FaceTime Audio
The second tactic is FaceTime audio.
On the fourth attempt, John’s team switches from a regular phone call to a FaceTime audio call.
This matters because FaceTime audio comes through differently than a standard phone call. It can bypass some of the friction created by traditional call screening and Do Not Disturb settings.
The result is simple:
Pickup rates on FaceTime audio are significantly higher than standard calls.
That does not mean every agency should blindly copy the exact same process without thinking through their audience, compliance, and brand. But it does mean agency owners should be paying attention to the channels that actually create conversations.
The goal is to get a real conversation started.
If one channel is getting blocked and another channel gets through, that is worth testing.
Tactic #3: FaceTime Video
Some of John’s agents have taken the FaceTime strategy even further.
Instead of stopping at FaceTime audio, they go straight to FaceTime video.
A handful of them are closing multiple applications per week by going directly to video on the first FaceTime attempt.
That sounds bold, but it makes sense when you think about the psychology of the call.
Video creates an immediate face-to-face connection. It feels more personal. It is harder to ignore once answered. And once the prospect sees a real person, the conversation can feel less like a random sales call and more like a human interaction.
John joked that people may answer in their pajamas, but they answer.
And when they do, the conversion rate can be strong because the connection is immediate.
Again, this is not about forcing every agent into a tactic they are uncomfortable with. It is about recognizing that the way people answer calls has changed, so the way agents try to reach them has to adapt too.
Tactic #4: The Contact Card
The third major tactic is the contact card.
This is one of the simplest and most practical ways to improve pickup rate.
When you send a contact card from your CRM with your phone number in it, the lead’s phone can recognize your number even if they have not saved it manually.
That means when you call, your number may show up as a suggested contact instead of a random unknown number.
That one change can make a meaningful difference.
At Agent CRM, we tested sending a contact card before calling, and the pickup rate jumped from around 7% to close to 25%.
That is a major improvement.
The reason it works is simple. People are far more likely to answer when the call feels familiar. A contact card reduces the unknown-number friction and gives the lead’s phone more context about who is calling.
In a world where unknown calls are easier than ever to ignore, recognition matters.
The Texting Debate
One of the most honest moments in the conversation was when John talked about texting versus calling for new leads.
He is not anti-texting.
He uses texting for aged leads. He gets a couple of applications per week from CRM drip sequences on his older database. He understands that texting has a place in the follow-up process.
But for brand-new leads, he has not been convinced that texting first meaningfully moves the needle enough to justify the time it takes away from dialing.
His position is simple: he can make more contacts in the same amount of time by dialing than by texting.
Until someone sits next to him and proves otherwise with real numbers, he is going to keep dialing.
That is not a knock on automation or CRM follow-up sequences. It is a reminder that fundamentals still matter.
A lot of agents reach for complexity when what they actually need is more reps.
They want a more advanced sequence, a better automation, or a perfect message when the bigger issue is that they are not making enough calls.
Texting can support the sales process.
But for John, the phone is still where the fastest conversations happen.
What This Means for Your Agency
If your pickup rate is frustrating you right now, there is one honest question to ask first:
Are you making enough dials for the pickup rate to even matter?
That question may be uncomfortable, but it is necessary.
If you are making 200 dials per week and getting a 7% pickup rate, that is about 14 conversations.
If you are making 1,000 dials per week at the same pickup rate, that is about 70 conversations.
The pickup rate is the same.
The results are completely different because the activity is completely different.
That is why the order matters.
Do the volume first.
Then add the tactics.
Use triple dialing. Test FaceTime audio. Try FaceTime video if it fits your process. Send contact cards before calling. Use CRM follow-up to support the activity.
But do not use tactics as a substitute for volume.
They work best when they are layered on top of real activity.
Final Takeaway
Pickup rates are dropping, and agency owners should not ignore that.
Call screening is real. Unknown numbers are getting harder to get through. Consumers are more selective about what they answer.
But the answer is not to stop dialing.
The answer is to track your numbers, increase your activity, and use smart tactics to improve your chances of getting through.
Top producers are not winning because they found a magic shortcut.
They are winning because they still do the work, they measure the work, and they adjust based on what the numbers show.
If your pickup rate is low, do not start by complaining about the market.
Start by checking your dial volume.
Then use the right tools to make every 100 dials more effective.
That is how you keep producing when the game gets harder.
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