Prospecting The Most Important Part of Selling
Prospecting The Most Important Part of Selling
Know Your Marketplace
The first step in prospecting is to identify your target market. Know the key hot buttons that stimulate action in your prospects. Establish a profile of your customers and determine why they buy. Do your homework and acquire in-depth knowledge of your target market.
Be Brief and to the Point
Keep prospecting calls brief and to the point. More in-depth conversations will take place in later stages of the sales process. Know how much your time is worth. Time is more important than money because how you use your time determines how much money you make.
Run the Numbers
The key to prospecting is persistence, because in many ways, prospecting is a numbers game. The more calls you make, the closer you are to a sale. Determine your conversion rates and use those to motivate you toward the next sale. Track prospecting numbers such as dials, decision-maker contacts, appointments and other activities. Each call brings you closer to a sale. You should be able to predict how many sales you will make for each 100 prospecting calls.
The Impact of Fear
The biggest obstacle to prospecting is fear. Fear is a normal feeling, but should not be a barrier to your success. Take a look at these numbers:
80% of sales come after five or more calls to the same customer.
48% of all sales people make only one call per customer.
25% quit after the second call.
10% of all salespeople keep calling until they have a sale or a definite no. These salespeople are the most successful and some of the highest paid people in the world. They strive for excellence, not perfection, and quality not quantity.
Fear, or call reluctance, can be overcome through personal development, awareness of your fears and by changing your outlook. Try saying your fears out loud to people and see how irrelevant they can be. Fears are usually based on deep emotional issues and not often reality. Fear can also lead to desperation. You should not want the sale so badly that you scare customers away. Prospects do not want to do business with sales people operating out of fear.
The First Impression
A first impression is usually made during prospecting. Although a first impression does not always make or break the sale, it is very important. Do not make up your mind about the prospect based on your first impression. However, make sure the customer’s first impression of you is positive. You never know where the next big account will come from. Be clear about the impression you want to leave with people and ask those close to you what kind of impressions they think you leave with people.
Get Organized and Use Time Properly
Time management and organization are key to prospecting. One of the best ways to organize your prospecting time is to buy contact management software. The productivity increase brought on by software over paper is phenomenal.
Set daily, weekly and monthly prospecting goals and stick to your schedule of calls and callbacks. There is no quick fix solution -- only hard work, persistence and a commitment. Work your prospecting in blocks of two to three hours to avoid burnout. Take breaks to perform other sales functions. Find productive calling periods in your market. After three rounds of phone tag, explore other options such as fax or e-mail. Always leave a message and let the prospect know you will be calling back. Constant, organized follow-up is critical. Include asking for referrals as part of your follow-up process.
Rejection
Dealing with rejection is part of prospecting. Be ready for it. Rejection is not about you. It is usually about the idea, product or service you are selling. Some prospects will not be interested; others will. See rejection as part of the process and be ready to move on. You now have more information and you are one step closer to a sale. "No" is far better than "Maybe," uncertainty or delaying tactics. Rejection gives you a solution and the best way to handle rejection is to make another prospecting call.
Prepare a Prospecting Script
It is essential to have a clear purpose or reason for calling in mind. A brief prospecting script can keep you focused and consistent. Improve the script over time to increase your conversion ratios. Practice and role-play scripts before you make a sales call. Avoid weak openers and have confidence that your message is important and will add value to the customer. Have a script prepared for voice-mail, screeners and decision-makers.
You increase your own wealth by bringing value to others. You cannot bring value to others unless you make contacts. Contacts are made through prospecting. If you do nothing else but prospect, you can achieve moderate success in sales.
Prospecting is like planting seeds and tending them with loving care until the harvest. You don’t know which seeds will be the best or bear the most fruit, so you tend them all the same. Patience, persistence and proper technique lead to a great harvest.
Tom Wood-Young, MBA is a sales trainer and marketing consultant in Colorado Springs helping companies increase revenues
Prospecting The Most Important Part of Selling - To learn more about this author, visit Thomas Young's Website.
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Selling is defined as a transaction that adds value to the buyer by meeting his or her needs and results in mutual benefit for both the seller and buyer. Prospecting is the focused, persistent and systematic method of developing sales leads and beginning relationships that lead to sales.
Know Your Marketplace
The first step in prospecting is to identify your target market. Know the key hot buttons that stimulate action in your prospects. Establish a profile of your customers and determine why they buy. Do your homework and acquire in-depth knowledge of your target market.
Be Brief and to the Point
Keep prospecting calls brief and to the point. More in-depth conversations will take place in later stages of the sales process. Know how much your time is worth. Time is more important than money because how you use your time determines how much money you make.
Run the Numbers
The key to prospecting is persistence, because in many ways, prospecting is a numbers game. The more calls you make, the closer you are to a sale. Determine your conversion rates and use those to motivate you toward the next sale. Track prospecting numbers such as dials, decision-maker contacts, appointments and other activities. Each call brings you closer to a sale. You should be able to predict how many sales you will make for each 100 prospecting calls.
The Impact of Fear
The biggest obstacle to prospecting is fear. Fear is a normal feeling, but should not be a barrier to your success. Take a look at these numbers:
80% of sales come after five or more calls to the same customer.
48% of all sales people make only one call per customer.
25% quit after the second call.
10% of all salespeople keep calling until they have a sale or a definite no. These salespeople are the most successful and some of the highest paid people in the world. They strive for excellence, not perfection, and quality not quantity.
Fear, or call reluctance, can be overcome through personal development, awareness of your fears and by changing your outlook. Try saying your fears out loud to people and see how irrelevant they can be. Fears are usually based on deep emotional issues and not often reality. Fear can also lead to desperation. You should not want the sale so badly that you scare customers away. Prospects do not want to do business with sales people operating out of fear.
The First Impression
A first impression is usually made during prospecting. Although a first impression does not always make or break the sale, it is very important. Do not make up your mind about the prospect based on your first impression. However, make sure the customer’s first impression of you is positive. You never know where the next big account will come from. Be clear about the impression you want to leave with people and ask those close to you what kind of impressions they think you leave with people.
Get Organized and Use Time Properly
Time management and organization are key to prospecting. One of the best ways to organize your prospecting time is to buy contact management software. The productivity increase brought on by software over paper is phenomenal.
Set daily, weekly and monthly prospecting goals and stick to your schedule of calls and callbacks. There is no quick fix solution -- only hard work, persistence and a commitment. Work your prospecting in blocks of two to three hours to avoid burnout. Take breaks to perform other sales functions. Find productive calling periods in your market. After three rounds of phone tag, explore other options such as fax or e-mail. Always leave a message and let the prospect know you will be calling back. Constant, organized follow-up is critical. Include asking for referrals as part of your follow-up process.
Rejection
Dealing with rejection is part of prospecting. Be ready for it. Rejection is not about you. It is usually about the idea, product or service you are selling. Some prospects will not be interested; others will. See rejection as part of the process and be ready to move on. You now have more information and you are one step closer to a sale. "No" is far better than "Maybe," uncertainty or delaying tactics. Rejection gives you a solution and the best way to handle rejection is to make another prospecting call.
Prepare a Prospecting Script
It is essential to have a clear purpose or reason for calling in mind. A brief prospecting script can keep you focused and consistent. Improve the script over time to increase your conversion ratios. Practice and role-play scripts before you make a sales call. Avoid weak openers and have confidence that your message is important and will add value to the customer. Have a script prepared for voice-mail, screeners and decision-makers.
You increase your own wealth by bringing value to others. You cannot bring value to others unless you make contacts. Contacts are made through prospecting. If you do nothing else but prospect, you can achieve moderate success in sales.
Prospecting is like planting seeds and tending them with loving care until the harvest. You don’t know which seeds will be the best or bear the most fruit, so you tend them all the same. Patience, persistence and proper technique lead to a great harvest.
Tom Wood-Young, MBA is a sales trainer and marketing consultant in Colorado Springs helping companies increase revenues
Prospecting The Most Important Part of Selling - To learn more about this author, visit Thomas Young's Website.
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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George LudwigGeorge Ludwig is a recognized authority on sales strategy and peak performance psychology. An international speaker, trainer, and corporate consultant, he helps clients like Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Laboratories, Northwestern Mutual, CIGNA, and numerous others improve sales force effectiveness and performance. Though it's George's strategies and processes that help corporations increase productivity and performance, it's his tremendous energy and dynamism that spark the transformation. Again and again, clients remark on his amazing ability to unleash human capacity and inspire men and women to break out of their comfort zones. The result is a whole new type of salesperson. His customized presentations teach achievers to make stunning advances in their lives. From helping salespeople realize cherished dreams to helping corporations exponentially accelerate revenue streams, George Ludwig leaves audiences and individuals empowered, emboldened, and clamoring for more. George is the best-selling author of Power Selling: Seven Strategies for Cracking the Sales Code and Wise Moves: 60 Quick Tips to Improve Your Position in Life & Business. - Visit George Ludwig's Website |
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John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
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Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
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Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) In five years, Canadian-born entrepreneur Jay Kubassek went from selling mufflers at a Midas franchise to revolutionizing Internet marketing with the 2004 launch of CarbonCopyPRO, a online marketing education company, now worth over $20 million with customers in over 160 countries.
As an independent film producer, his upstart film fund Aliquot Films is currently producing a films with Spike Lee and Abel Fererra (starring Ethan Hawke and Dennis Hopper.)
Jay's entrepreneurial spirit is irrepressible. He’s the owner of five companies, a professional speaker and trainer, international real estate developer/investor, extreme sport enthusiast and emerging philanthropist. Jay resides in NYC with his wife Jamie, son Milo and dog Cooper. Visit Jay's official website: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
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