Table of Contents

• Prospecting - the Final Touches

  • Where?

  • How?

  • Digital?

  • Who Sent You?

• NEW: Jobs for (The) Pros

Happy Wednesday, Sales Pros!

Prospecting - the Final Touches

On Monday we discussed why you should be Prospecting at all in case you aren’t, more if you are, and why you should be doing it more systematically in case you are going about it in a scattershot way.

Today we’ll run through the remaining considerations when it comes to the most important bit: You don’t have to enjoy Prospecting - you just have to do it. However, in my personal opinion, if you’re going to go to the trouble of doing it, you might as well do it right - and reap the results.

So, in order:

Where?

Have you met your best customers? Divide this into “In Real Life” and digital. As I’ve mentioned before: The better your CRM data is, the easier it is to figure these things out. Oh, and it case it wasn’t obvious: Your ideal prospects are likely to frequent the same or similar places as your best customers.

How?

In the digital realm it is typically obvious, if however you do have any IRL information from above I would not underestimate the power of meeting face-to-face or a phone call. My most important recommendation here is to always respect their time and make it clear from the outset that you want to learn about their pain points and see whether you have a solution for them. If not, you’ll part as friends. You may be positively surprised at how painless this process is.

Sure, people can always say no and a good number will. You just skip ahead to the next one.

The more you can turn this into an informed dialogue, the better your results will be. Taking notes helps - oh, and notes go into the CRM. Always.

Digital:

Your messages/emails need to be personalised and relevant to the role of the recipient. Find out which subjects lines work best. Keep track of responses and pick your send times accordingly.

Who sent you:

Referrals are worth their weight in gold. And like many of the best things in life they are free, but will typically only be given when asked for.

The best time to ask a new customer for a referral is right after the Sale, for your best customers, well - ask them as soon as you can.

The best time to ask a prospect - one you’ve determined you don’t have a solution for - is when you’ve had a good conversation and are about to give them their time back. “Turns out our solution is not for your problem, but can you think of someone elsewhere who would benefit from it?” Buyers trust their peers, their network. If you come recommended, your closing rate is estimated to increase by half at least.

In short:

• Do it. Any reasonable effort is better than none.

• Do it better. Apply a system and track your results.

• Growth occurs when it feels uncomfortable.

Let me know what you think in the comments, check out our brand new Jobs for (The) Pros section and don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled for the piece on difficult customers and prospects - and how to deal with them on Friday.

Thanks for your time, Sales Pros, now go find your own new best customers!

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