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Attract as many motivated prospects as you can handle

Written by: Mark Gwilliam

Article Overview: Hitting the right prospect-rich vein in business is like being given a get-out-of-jail-free card in Monopoly or a toll-free pass at the expressway. In other words, it’s a fast, free ride to a successful business outcome. Just like a vein of gold, one prospect will lead to another until you’re swamped with orders, customers and profits. The question is: how exactly do you find such prospects?

Attract as many motivated prospects as you can handle

Prospecting involves casting your net far and wide to determine where the more promising opportunities lie. Think of it as a market reconnaissance mission. Far from being a hit-or-miss exercise where you cannot easily anticipate how well things will go, the art of prospecting is actually a very precise way of determining the most efficient use of your marketing dollars. Here are some tips in prospecting:

Look before you Leap
Prospecting involves time and money. To avoid wasting both, you need to do some research beforehand. Read local trade magazines and newspapers. Pinpoint the organisations, areas, churches, groups, and networks to which your target market belongs.

Make sure that your target customers truly belong to these groups before you finalise your prospecting plans. Furthermore, contact your friends and acquaintances to see if they can introduce you directly to your prospects.

Systematise
The goal of prospecting is to gather as much useful information using the least amount of resources possible. Thus, you need a definite prospecting plan outlining your prospecting dates, locations, activities, and goals. This will let you cover the widest area possible and the greatest number of prospects without spending more than the necessary amount of time and money.

Careful planning, moreover, will let you prioritise highly productive business activities.

Generate Impact!
Of course, prospecting won’t be very effective if you can’t create a favourable impression on your prospects. To ensure that you are remembered or referred, briefly explain what you do and offer in the most interesting way.

For example, if you’re in the construction business, you can provide energy-saving construction advice to people who are planning to build their own homes. Save your sales slides in your handheld device, so you can do an impromptu presentation whenever an opportunity arises.

Lastly, don’t forget to distribute professional-looking business cards containing pertinent information – the services your offer, your contact numbers and a website they can check for more information.

Remember one more thing. Be creative! Create opportunities where apparently none exists. Turn PTA meetings, wedding receptions, grand openings, and other similar activities into prospecting opportunities. As an alternative, you can let a professional “mine” your market for you; you can also purchase a leads list from a reputable list company.

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Article Tags: acquaintances, amount of time, business activities, business cards, churches, construction advice, construction business, efficient use, energy saving, favourable impression, handheld device, productive business, promising opportunities, prospects, reconnaissance mission, slides, target customers, target market, time and money, trade magazines



Related Forum Posts
Re: Quoting for Jobs - [quote:1q9gtydl]If you've done your homework, you shouldnt have to do much follow up - unless something significantly changed at the prospects location. [/quote:1q9gtydl] Good thinking - but some people need a steer in the right direction, a little nudge to get them motivated! [quote:1q9gtydl]Some of that depends on how bad I want the job and how bad I need the money[/quote:1q9gtydl] Very true, going to be a bit more smarter and try and get more positive lead (if there is such a thing!) Thanks guys
Top sales skills - Qualifying Fast to Avoid Wasting Sales Time Do you chase after your prospects until they tell you yes or no? Do you ever tell your prospects "No", as in "No, I am not going to sell to you"? There are many things in selling that you do not and will not be able to control. The one thing that you do have control over is your time and how you choose to use it. Motivating Prospects Qualifying goes beyond budget, authority, and need. You want to sell to prospects who *want* to buy from you. Finding prospects that need our products usually is not difficult. Finding those who really want our products though can be very hard if we wait for them to come to us. Selling to People Outside Your Comfort Zone Most salespeople who are "people persons", already think that they are good at this. Let me ask you a question. When you last lost a sale, how was your rapport with the key person who decided against you?
General Guidelines to sale - Without knowing more about your market, company, products, etc. all I can do is provide a general answer. Determine who is your ideal prospects, craft an offer or two that you believe, based on information you have about your market, company, prospects, etc., these ideal prospects will respond favorably to and then deliver the message. Methods of message delivery might include telephone calls, in-person visits, mail/email, advertising, etc. Does that help?
What is "Good Advertising"? - Hi dominick Thank you for your tips, they are very useful. However I have a question for you, what do you define good advertising as and how do you work out the best ways of advertising? I am keen to perform your formula, but where is the best place to capture my prospects attention do you believe? It would depend on my type of business obviously, but do you have any thoughts on where to find your best prospects for as little advertising waste as possible?
Re: Email Marketing Benefits - Robert, Many lists consist of more prospects than customers. Customer lists are the best, but they are created because prospects successfully transform into customers.


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