3 Ways to Boost Sales Prospecting Success
Companies that call their prospects with the most targeted, relevant messages win more deals. Those that don’t do the research, or take too much time searching for information will miss out on opportunities. Here are 3 ways to boost results:
1. Get the “Golden Nugget” Before the Call
30 seconds. That’s the most time a caller has to hook the prospect into a more in-depth conversation. Getting the golden nugget to make the hook is critical. The ideal nugget is a quote from the prospect you are trying to reach, but those are not always easy to find. If you find one, and it’s relevant, you’re in good shape. If not, then by combining networking with a smarter way to do research, you can still hit the bullseye.
2. Network – Not Just for Who they know, but for What they know
Using the best research sources can give you some good ideas about what matters to your prospect. Add to that insight by calling other people in the company – perhaps peers or even people that work for the prospect.
- Call other people in the organization not to sell to them, but to understand what motivates your prospect, to get the right hook for that critical call
- Use these calls in conjunction with your company research to truly understand needs at the corporate level as well as what is important to your prospect.
3. A Smarter and Faster Way to do the Research
Everyone knows how important it is do research before calling, but doing research is time consuming, so we often don’t do enough.
If you don’t have access to a business information service, bookmarking your favorite financial research sites can be helpful to quickly gain access to SEC filings and company reports.
Business information services can be a big time-saver (and cost-saver). A good service can offer searchable company profiles, financial metrics, executive biographies, analyst reports, and relevant news – and even pull data directly into a CRM system with the click of a button. Having more comprehensive research resources speeds up the calling process, allowing companies to reach more prospects with targeted and relevant messages.
Tags: Sales Prospecting
January 12th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
The right tools to help with this can boost productivity for reps, which can result in the same type of revenue increase as adding more reps, but without the additional cost.
In this current economic environment, strategic investments in tools can also help in terms of “super-qualifying” to ensure time is not wasted chasing prospects that are on the verge of bankruptcy.
January 15th, 2009 at 2:12 pm
Often times the “Golden Nugget” can be found in annual reports or analyst reports/call transcripts. Find a research tool that offers both if possible. The call transcripts allow a company the opportunity to address any concerns perceived from the investment community.
January 15th, 2009 at 4:37 pm
Don’t underestimate the power of Web 2.0. Using linked-in and Monster to determine what products a company has can be very useful. For example: If you sell a product that can be integrated into something like Salesforce.com, go to LinkedIn and look for those individuals with Salesforce.com admin experience with keyword searching. Finding these people will no only tell you that they have Salesforce.com but may be your link to the decision maker as well.
July 16th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
Be a friend to the gate keeper or the executive assistant. These people know what’s going on, all you have to do is ask for their help.