Fearless Sales Prospecting Ideas For a Soft Economy in Recession

Written by Scott Metcalfe

The Key to Sales Success

6 Interesting Sales Prospecting Statistics

1. In a recent survey 95% of salespeople said they can sell - they just need to get in front of more prospects.
2. Effective prospecting blends both marketing & selling.
3. Most salespeople HATE to prospect.
4. The best prospectors often close more business than the best salespeople.
5. Nearly 60% of high performing prospectors consider the phone ESSENTIAL to their prospecting success.
6. Decision makers listen to only 9 seconds of a "cold" voicemail before deciding to press delete?

Prospecting, The Key to Above Average Sales Results

The key to successfully producing above average sales results, especially in a soft economy is to consistently and effectively prospect without fear.

Fearless What is prospecting? Good question! Prospecting is the process of targeting individual potential clients and setting appointments. Prospecting is the glue that ties together your marketing efforts (actions to generate interest BEFORE your face-to-face meeting) and your selling efforts (actions you take AT your face-to-face meeting).

The Two Types of Sales Prospecting

Sales prospecting activities can be divided into two main categories

Active Prospecting: Prospecting activities where the frequency of your effort is directly proportional to the outcome or result achieved.

A “cold call” is the quintessential active prospecting activity since the moment you stop dialing the phone is the moment results cease.

Passive Prospecting: Prospecting activities where no ongoing personal effort is required to sustain results.

A website is the quintessential passive activity since it continues to generate leads and interest without your ongoing effort.

It should be noted that even the best passive prospecting activities inevitably require some “active” prospecting to ultimately set the appointment. The value of passive prospecting is that when successful the prospect is pre-qualified, having indicated that he wants to speak with you.

The Right Prospecting Mix

So what prospecting activities make sense for you and your business? The short answer is “it depends”. The right prospecting mix depends upon the type of business you’re in, how much time and money you have to invest and ultimately the results that you achieve. In general you will want to target no more than 6-8 different prospecting activities, some active, some passive, at any given moment. Track the results of each activity for at least 3 months and then make changes to the frequency or swap out activities completely until you find your optimal mix.

Scott Metcalfe -
	Scott Metcalfe, President of Empire Consulting. Scott began his professional selling career in 1988 going from salesmen, to Vice President of Sales and Marketing, to entrepreneur and business owner. Along the way Scott has received numerous selling and marketing awards and conducted business in the United States, Canada and Europe. Lately, Scott's energy has been focused on developing and perfecting cost effective lead generation strategies for small to medium sized businesses. Visit www.marketingprofits40.com Read More >>
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