Blue Zebra Appointment Setting Job Review

“Blue Zebra offers work from home jobs as appointments setters. Find out more about this home-based career!”

Working at Home is Possible with Blue Zebra

Someone recently asked me what I knew about Blue Zebra. I had to admit that this one was totally new to me! I was intrigued by the name of the company, and I found out that it is quite well established, having been in existence since 1989. When I logged onto the website at BlueZebraAppointmentSetting.com, it appeared that Blue Zebra offered virtual assistant jobs. Of course, things aren’t always what they seem.

After I started digging, I found out that it wasn’t quite that simple. It turns out that Blue Zebra involves cold calling. Now before I lose you completely, I want to say upfront that I read a lot of positive information about this company. A lot of employees love it and have been very successful. So don’t tune out quite yet. Basically, when you work for Blue Zebra, you are responsible to make sales calls to potential customers. The purpose is to generate leads and set up qualified appointments for Blue Zebra's clients.

What Does Blue Zebra Appointment Setting Pay?

Of course, the pay is an important consideration when choosing any kind of job, and Blue Zebra does not disappoint with a pay rate between $15 and $25 and hour. The pay rate does have a lot to do with the kind of work that is being performed. Cold calling is not an ideal job for someone who gets offended or upset if the person on the other end gets mad at the individual for calling. Since this outcome happens quite regularly, it is important that you develop a bit of a thick skin before you decide to get into the kind of job that Blue Zebra offers. If you can stick it out, you will receive payment for your work once a week through direct deposit.

Another Perk… Blue Zebra Bonuses

Another perk of Blue Zebra is that the company does not just offer a stagnant pay rate. After a month or two of working for the company, if you are doing a good job, you can expect to receive a pay raise of between 10 to 14 percent of your original pay rate. After 200 hours of work, you will then be qualified for the client renewal bonus. In fact, financial incentives abound when you work for Blue Zebra.

And lets not forget, that for some, the biggest perk is working from home. And in this day and age, working from home is what many want. According to this news articles from CNBC, 61% of people working from home are doing so because they want to, even though their office is open.

Qualifying To Work For Blue Zebra Appointment Setting

With the kind of pay rates and bonuses that Blue Zebra offers it is only reasonable to assume that they expect their workers to have some experience in the art of cold-calling. In fact, in order to get hired by Blue Zebra you should have at least two years of experience with outbound, cold calling. So if you worked as a telemarketer to get through college (Yes, many of us did!), go ahead and apply!

Will I Be A BlueZebra Employee?

Not quite. Blue Zebra hires you as an independent contractor. From a tax perspective, this means that no taxes will be taken out of your payments throughout the year. Instead, at the end of the year you will need to report your income when you file your taxes. At that time the appropriate taxes will be taken out of your income. It is very important that you file your taxes properly when you are an independent contractor or you may face heavy fines at a later date.

Blue Zebra Scheduling and Hiring

Blue Zebra wants its employees to work at least four hours a day, but no more than eight hours a day, five days a week. That means that the minimum amount of hours that you can work in a given week is 20 and the maximum is 40. As with most phone jobs you will need to work in an area where there is no background noise to interfere with the calls. It is also important to remember that Blue Zebra only hires applicants from the United States and Canada. (See my post, Online Customer Service Jobs for a great big ole list of jobs just like this one to check out. And for those of you thinking phone-work isn't your thing, you might want to see my lists, Non Phone Work at Home Jobs or No Phone Data Entry Jobs for other options.)

What Employees Have To Say

There are a number of interesting comments that come up online about Blue Zebra. Most of them state that Blue Zebra is a very professional company that pays on time. Some comments pointed out that in addition to your normal hours you must spend some unpaid time at morning meetings and doing some computer work. There were quite a few individuals who felt that their time was too valuable to be spent doing these activities if they were not going to be compensated. At the end of the day, you have to decide if the nice hourly rate is worth the extra expectations.

Another drawback employees mentioned was the need to purchase a special ACT software, which runs around $200 if it is purchased new. Some people said they were able to find the software much cheaper or Blue Zebra sold it to them for a reduced fee. If you apply to work at Blue Zebra it is a good idea to ask about the software up front.

Current Job Opportunities at Blue

Blue Zebra actively recruits new employees depending on their needs at any given time. You should keep in mind that at the time that you apply they might already have their current needs filled. Blue Zebra Appointment Setting is one of the leaders in the field, so if you are hired you can rest assured that you are working with one of the best appointment setting firms in the industry. As of the most recent information provided by the company, they are currently looking for applicants with two or more years of experience in outbound, cold calling and two to five years of working with the business-to-business marketplace.

What Blue Zebra Appointment Setting Can Offer You

Blue Zebra is pretty well known as a company that is focused on people. Blue Zebra can provide a highly motivated person with the perfect environment to challenge their potential while being well compensated financially. The Blue Zebra team is made up of professionals, and all of its employees are dedicated to providing the gold standard of quality service. The firm is rooted in the principles of integrity, honesty, and the “Golden Rule.”

What Does the Ideal Blue Zebra Employee Look Like?

If you meet the qualifications already outlined, then Blue Zebra may provide the job opportunity that you have been looking for. Along with the experience requirements, it is also very important that you be able to work independently. Since the cold calling will be taking place in your home, you need to be the kind of person who can function well without direct supervision. Successful cold calling is all about energy and enthusiasm, so a candidate must possess these qualities in abundance. A results-oriented personality is also another important aspect of working for Blue Zebra, since it will ensure that projects are completed efficiently and in a timely fashion.

Knowledge of Customer Relationship Management or Contact Management Software is a must, and while there are a number of different types of software that can be used, ACT is the preferred software. Also, night owls shouldn’t apply. The typical 8am – 5pm EST is necessary to fit into the available schedule. Depending on your experience level, there may be additional hours available throughout the workweek. A home office with access to MS Word and Excel, fax capabilities, and Internet access round out what you need to successfully work for Blue Zebra.

The Bottom Line on Blue Zebra

This one is kind of a toss-up. It’s definitely not a work at home job that will fit just anyone. However, for people who are really good at sales and have super people skills, it’s a really great opportunity. With steady hours and a nice hourly pay rate, Blue Zebra could just be the job you’ve been searching for. Check out their Career page for more information.