20 Things We’ve Learned in Sales Prospecting Over 20 Years

It’s hard to sum up 20 years of industry experience in one article, but we are going to try. We are so excited to celebrate 20 years of providing B2B Appointment Setting & Lead Generation services, as well as Integrated Marketing solutions! Over the years, we’ve gained extensive sales knowledge that helps us provide continued value to our clients. After brainstorming as a team, here’s a summary of what we learned, particularly as it relates to the prospecting bucket of the sales process: 

1. Maintain a Clean CRM.

Without a well-designed and well-utilized CRM, there is no way to organize a productive day. If you don’t know who your prospects are, how do you expect to nurture them and build brand recognition with them? If you don’t have a CRM, work on getting one, and use Excel for the time being.

2. Take Great Notes on All Prospect Conversations. 

You may have a great memory, but why would you crowd your brain up with information from hundreds of conversations or rely on it, for that matter? Reflect on the interaction and enter all relevant information they relayed to you. Before your next call or email, revisit your notes to be precise and show you were listening.

3. Quality Prospect Lists Yield Better Results. 

While purchasing a third-party list might be appealing cost-wise and a time-saver, the data will be outdated and require hours of thorough qualification work to update. Be prepared to Invest in a quality list – the growth of your business relies on it. Whether your team organically builds it in-house, purchase a list or have it vetted by a skilled call team like MarketReach, better data yields better results. 

4. Concisely State the Purpose of Your Call Upfront.

If the gatekeeper understands why you’re calling, they may be able to help! Randomly firing questions to may not result in the best start to a conversation. State the reason for your call and one advantage to the company, and then ask fact-finding questions.

5. Ask Qualifying Questions and Build Rapport Before Getting to the Decision-Maker (DM).

Gather as much qualifying information and anecdotal details as possible from the gatekeeper. This will make for a ‘warmer’ and productive conversation with the DM. Warm calling is always more productive than cold calling. Do your due diligence to show you researched your prospect – even if that research was as simple as asking the receptionist two questions! 

6. Take a Couple Extra Minutes in Preparation Before Your More Difficult Calls.

Perhaps the gatekeeper has blocked several attempts to reach decision maker, or you’ve received summary dismissals from someone other than the decision maker. Maybe you’re consistently getting sent to voicemail, etc. Combat this by researching the company website, LinkedIn or Google search to find any piece of useful information; such as an alternate phone number, an alternate contact or email address, the company in the news, or an article published from your contact. How can you make the cold-call warmer to get different results.

7. Listening to the Prospect is the Key to Success.

Make the prospect feel like they are the only person you’ve called that day. Listen closely to the prospect and let them do most of the talking. Use their answers to your questions to tailor your approach and cater the call to what they need. Natural conversation and active listening leads to more pain–points being discovered, which will result in more quality sales opportunities.

8. The Purpose of an Introductory Call is Not to Make a Sale in That Moment.

The purpose is to build rapport and trust, as well as identify client needs in order to offer solutions. Try to identify pain–points from the prospect by asking questions and engaging in meaningful conversation. Then, decide how your company can provide value.

9. If You Don’t Ask for the Appointment, or the Sale, You Won’t Get It.

Prospects can’t read your mind and will rarely jump in your lap with “I’m ready to buy”, so be clear about your intentions. Be direct about what you’re proposing.

10. Be Prepared, But Don’t Sound Like You’re Reading from a Script.

It is important to know your material and plan your conversation in advance of making the call. However, don’t come off as robotic by reading right off your notes. Practice the general flow of your conversation, so that it sounds more natural. Know the concept of your rebuttals!

11. Be Positive, Friendly, and Mirror Your Prospect.

Be enthusiastic and approachable on your calls. Adjust your tone to mirror the prospect. Use vocal variety to be interesting to talk with and to show your own interest in what you’re selling. Bring your own personal touch to every single prospect engagement you have.  How can you expect to break through the noise if you sound and act like every other salesperson in your field? 

12. Be the Authentic You. Sell Them Like You’d Sell to Your Mother. 

As most sales professionals would agree, people buy from those they like and trust. In order to be trusted, be transparent and come from a place of integrity. Have the prospect’s best interest at heart.

13. Each Call is an Opportunity to Gather More Information.

Never waste an outbound call. There is always something productive that can be done, use each call to gather some useful piece of information. This could be something as simple as confirmation on the prospect’s staff size or detailed sales information, such as a prospect pain–point that could lead to a closed sale.  Even a small detail like the prospect is going on vacation next week can make a difference in your conversation. Add it to your notes and set yourself up for a warmer call on your follow–up!

14. Continue to Train Salespeople with Updated Material.

No roleplay, script, presentation or template is perfect. There is always room for improvement, and judging by the changes experienced last year, edits should be made continuously.

15. Don’t Give Up Too Quickly.

Rarely is a prospect reached on the first dial... or the third! Some may require more touchpoints or conversations than others to convert to an appointment. Try to read the prospect’s responses. “Not interested” might just mean the prospect is short on time or in a rush. Not Interested, is often “not interested for now” – not ever! Know when to move on, but also consider the circumstances that may warrant a quick “not interested” response.

16. Be Dogged in Your Follow-Up.

Do you have a short list of callbacks that aren’t getting any love? Nurture that list with both email marketing and perfectly timed follow–up calls that let the prospect know you want to earn their business. If the prospect told you “not now, call me in 2 months”, then be on top of it in 2 months. The most successful salespeople have a methodical and effective follow-up system.

17. Integrate your Marketing with Several Different Techniques. 

Marketing requires a budget, not a “hope and pray this one thing works” approach. That budget should be made up of several techniques to nurture prospects, build brand awareness, and actively pursue your best prospects by phone. Consider all the marketing techniques available to you and draw up a 6–month plan twice a year, then go after it. Give it due time to produce results and measure the success. 

18. Expect the Prospect to Object At Least Once. 

Almost every sale ever made requires the ability to handle one objection or more. Make a list of the most common objections in your field and prepare scripted rebuttals. Rehearse your rebuttals, so that you come across as knowledgeable and confident. Continue to add to the list of objections as new ones arise and enhance your rebuttals with new tips.

19. Be Innovative and Adaptive.

As we all learned in 2020, change can happen with a flip of a switch. Our old normal was turned on its face as we morphed into a “new normal”. Be agile and willing to change your sales strategy to improve your company’s longevity.

20. Align Sales and Marketing Strategies.

Just like Yin and Yang complete each other, Sales and Marketing do. Where one gives, the other takes. Marketing gathers quality leads and Sales converts those opportunities. It’s important to align both department’s strategies and resources to yield the best results.

Needless to say, we’ve learned a lot in sales over 20 years in the B2B world. We are honored to celebrate 20 years, and look forward to 20 more! If your company needs extra assistance with quality Sales Prospecting and Appointment Setting, the seasoned MarketReach team can help. We also supplement your sales pipeline with monthly newsletters, LinkedIn Connection & Awareness programs, and sales collateral! Close deals, faster, with MarketReach. Give us a call at 609-448-6364.