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Weekly Business Development Tip
PROSPECTING RELUCTANCE
Prospecting for new business is one of the most important and challenging activities a salesperson or business owner can be engaged in. It is the lifeline of your business. When it comes to future new business, it is the one thing that will keep your business flourishing and it is the one thing that you can clearly control.
So, why don’t we do more of it?
- It’s disappointing – during the process you can be rejected, dejected, embarrassed, insulted and become frustrated and anxious. You may be relying on your referral sources to keep your sales funnel full. Unfortunately, referral sources do dry up at times.
- You may not have a prospecting system. Successful prospecting requires a system – you simply cannot take a shotgun approach to the world. You need to become a hunter. You need to be very specific as to who you want to do business with and who can take advantage of the products and services that you offer. Can you clearly describe your ideal client profile by their industry, geography, revenue, # of employees in the company? Successful prospecting requires a system to track your daily activities as well as results. Do you have these systems in place? Who holds you accountable for results?
- You may not know where to look for your prospects – are they going to be at the local chamber of Commerce event, the tradeshow, at the golf tournament or the weekly networking meeting? They may not be at any of these places. There’s a good possibility that you may be looking for your ideal client in all of the wrong places. The real decision maker, the “Big Dog,” your ideal client may very well be in their office overseeing the day-to-day operation of their businesses and you may have to contact them directly on their home turf
- You may feel uncomfortable executing a prospecting plan – there may be reluctance to pull the trigger for fear of rejection, embarrassment, or not knowing what to say. Have you been working on your outbound message? Is it clear? Will any 8th grader understand what you do, if you tell them?
- Some people are just plain lazy – Although they call themselves sales people, they are really order takers. They are reactive versus proactive. Some people are unwilling to get out of their comfort zones. There is a big difference between working “on the business” as opposed to “in the business.” The more you work on your business, the more successful, you will be. The harder you work, the luckier you get.
- Many people see proactive prospecting as a waste of time. They don’t do a good job of qualifying their prospects. They are trying to bag the elephant and are pursuing only one or two large opportunities at any given time. They miss all of the indicators along the way that will help them determine if the large client they are pursuing is even worth the effort. In the end, they have invested a lot of time and money only to be told, “I’m not interested, I’ll think it over or I have to bring your program to the committee and I’ll call you next week.”
To minimize any discomfort you are experiencing with your prospecting efforts, do a better job of qualifying your prospects. The basics to be considered are:
- Do they have a need for what you are offering or are you simply trying to sell something?
- Have you identified the prospect's problems, frustrations and concerns?
- How important is it for the prospect to fix the problems being discussed?
- Do they have any money?
- Can they make a decision? Do they have the authority to make a decision? Who else is involved in making a decision in your favor?
- Do they like you? Do you like them? Do they trust you?
Do you know where your next client is coming from? Is your sales funnel full? Are you in the hunt every day? Prospecting reluctance will eventually lead you to sales frustration.
P.S. Your e-mail address will never be shared. If, for any reason, you don't want to receive my weekly sales and business development tips, just let me know and the emails will vanish from your life immediately.
Good selling!!
Ken
Ken Levine
Impact Business Solutions, Inc.
508-845-8849
SELL MORE BY SELLING LESS
www.impactbussolutions.com
Call toll free: 877-845-8849
