Prospect Qualification and Appointment Setting to Land More Meetings

Prospect Qualification and Appointment Setting to Land More Meetings

This article was published on December 21st, 2020 in Insurance Journal.

The objective of prospecting is to find quality opportunities to narrow the sales funnel, and then consistently target that focused group with marketing messages to get noticed. For insurance brokers, you have the luxury of finding third party list sources that start you off knowing key data about your prospect universe. Instead of chasing non-qualified prospects — or worse, not even knowing who your prospect universe even is — prospecting followed by properly executed appointment setting leaves no rock unturned.

Every prospect on your list is a new opportunity to qualify, disqualify, set a callback or land a sales meeting for a producer. Phone outreach is the best way to land more sales appointments and the only way to determine if, in fact, the opportunities in your local universe or target industry are sellable. Phone outreach is also one of the only ways to incite two-way communication between a buyer and a seller, which will then lead to more closed deals.

What Is Strategic Prospecting Through Appointment Setting?

Appointment setting, also known as telemarketing, is based on strategically conducting calls in order to schedule introductory sales meetings with decision-makers. For best results, the prospects are pre-qualified through a qualification process, based on specific parameters set by your agency. Typically, to get in the door with workers’ compensation or property/casualty insurance, the qualifier is either total premium, or at least, staff size. Chasing opportunities that equate to less than $1,500 in annual commission is not good use of time or marketing dollars. Instead, reserve those opportunities to close for inbound only… Read more

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The Benefits of Crafting a Well-Written Prospecting Script

The Benefits of Crafting a Well-Written Prospecting Script

The most daunting part of making a sales call is preparing for the unknown. Will I reach decision-makers?  What kind of questions will the decision–maker ask? Am I prepared with the best responses? Enter the sales script! Think a script is only useful for newbie salespeople? Think again! With the new year comes an opportunity to dust off old material and think of our messaging in a new way. Taking the time to craft a script that is timely and relevant can mean the difference between a closed deal (great intro, effective probing questions and a convincingly delivered Value Proposition) and a lost opportunity (due to a poor introduction and lack of engagement questions that lead to a summary dismissal). Consider these benefits of taking the time to craft a new prospecting script:     (more…)

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Incorporate Holiday Cheer into an Online Environment

2020 has been a crazy year. With a global pandemic costing us our normalcy and far more, people are in a collective funk. While it is getting cold outside here in the North, businesses can create a warm company culture for employees. The upcoming holidays are the perfect time to incorporate festivities and fun into your company, even in a remote setting. Although the recent news has broke from Pfizer of a promising vaccine, it seems as though many of us will remain remote till further notice, so make the most of it!  (more…)

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Your Prospect Demographics Have Changed, So Re-Qualify!

Your Prospect Demographics Have Changed, So Re-Qualify!

Your prospect list should always be a living document, but right now, more than ever, it needs a check-up. The companies that are back at work must be re-qualified before prospecting can be performed successfully; this task can be performed by either your salesman or by MarketReach. There are three prime areas that require a re-qualification in the face of changes that COVID-19 brought on, and they are (1) the decision-maker’s name and title, (2) staff size if that is relevant and (3) how to get in contact with the decision-maker if they are working remote.  Salespeople will be frustrated and, may in fact, become demotivated to prospect if their whole world is turned upside down — who they thought their prospects WERE, are NOT targets anymore. A salesperson’s job has become monumentally harder.   (more…)

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Reallocate Your Trade Show Marketing Dollars

Reallocate Your Trade Show Marketing Dollars

If you haven’t reviewed your company’s cost savings as a result of trade show cancelations, look now! Even though your total investment depends on the size of your booth and frequency of events, it’s safe to say you’ve saved thousands of dollars. If trade shows have traditionally been a positive investment for your organization, your sales pipeline might be missing some new prospects. Here are some budgeting tips for the end of 2020 now that we are knee–deep in budget season. 

Are you using this money to grow your pipeline? If so, how? 

The unfortunate cancelation of all in-person trade shows and conferences have none-the-less opened countless opportunities for other marketing tactics to be utilized. Now more than ever, marketing and sales are working hard to ramp up business development. How is your company supporting them? Is your company pursuing B2B phone outreach tactics, email marketing, direct mailers or other lead generation techniques? On the digital side, do you allocate funds to paid advertising, for example Google Ads, LinkedIn Sponsored Ads, or Facebook Ads? What accounts for your biggest marketing costs? From a ROI perspective, if you’ve tracked results, which are most successful?  (more…)

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Motivating Your Sales Team Remotely

There is no doubt that having a motivated staff plays a huge role in the success of a company, however, the work-from-home model forces managers to get more creative in how they motivate their sales team. The managers who have an in-depth understanding of their salespeople and what drives them will see positives results in terms of productivity. There are multiple ways to motivate your employees, but you must determine the best option for your specific company culture. In order to do this, consider asking yourself the following:  (more…)

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How to Make Your Employees Feel at Ease When Returning to Work

There is a light at the end of the tunnel. As states begin to move through the stages of reopening, it’s starting to look like businesses will be able to start opening their offices sooner rather than later. Regularly check the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s website as it updates state-specific and sector-specific resources. Also tune into the CDC’s and AIHA’s websites for guidelines on office reopening. 

After months of working from home, it’s expected that your employees may be a little apprehensive about returning to work, especially when the future is so uncertain. Changes in the office environment will certainly play in a role in your employees’ uneasiness. Consider these steps (all of which you can start taking right now), that will help your employees feel more comfortable as we take the first step on the long road towards normalcy.  

Let them know that you will prioritize their health and safety 

Public health and government officials are guiding these decisions. We will only get the “OK” to return to work when it is safe to do so. Still, it makes sense why your employees, especially those with compromised immune systems, may be nervous to be around others in proximity. As their employer, you can be taking steps right now to ease their concerns.   (more…)

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What B2B Sales Activity Will Look Like in 2022 and Beyond

What B2B Sales Activity Will Look Like in 2022 and Beyond

The last few years haven’t been easy for those working in the B2B sales industry due to many barriers, including working from home, the difficulty of meeting in person, and the obvious non-sales related priorities that have taken over the psyche of buyers.  At the beginning of the year, like any year, we were all optimistic about what 2021 would bring, but now we must figure out how to pick up the pieces that the pandemic has left behind.    (more…)

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How to Stay in Touch with Clients You Lost During the Pandemic

In the past few months, as businesses have closed their doors and began to work from home, and while spending on new services has become fewer and far between, most businesses have also seen a decrease in clientele. In the early months of this pandemic, B2B sales became less of a priority, and also difficult to figure out the right approach. For many, sales has been put on the backburner as other things, like transitioning to a new work environment, have been prioritized. Just because things have been tough, does not mean that they will not get better, however. It is more important than ever to stay in touch with your customers that may have put spend on hold during this time.  Here are some easy ways to stay in touch with clients that will make a big difference in the months to come:   (more…)

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What to Expect from Salespeople at This Time

What to Expect from Salespeople at This Time

The past few months have been filled with ups and downs for salespeople. Although some businesses are seeing sales numbers return “back to normal”, that is not the case for all companies. Sales numbers are usually a good indicator of success, but now that your salespeople most likely aren’t making as many sales, what should you expect from them? Perhaps you’ve furloughed some employees and have brought them back with your stimulus check (even though your usual workload has not returned). So, if they can’t perform their main role of selling, what expectations should you have for your salespeople? Here are some aspects to consider:   

(more…)

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