B2B lead generation

11 Effective Sales Prospecting Methods & Techniques

Sales Prospecting is an ongoing process, not a one-off event. Today, there are more ways than ever to make a contact with the target audience and move them to the next stages in the sales funnel. Before we dig into effective sales prospecting methods & techniques, let us first understand what Sales Prospecting is!

Sales prospecting in simple terms is looking through the list of leads to identify which ones can be turned into a profitable customer or in other words it is the first step in the sales process, which consists of identifying potential customers i.e., prospects. The goal of prospecting is to develop a database of likely customers and then systematically communicate with them in the hopes of converting them from potential customers to customers.

Prospecting is one of the most time-consuming and challenging tasks that salespeople face. In fact, more than 40% of sales reps named prospecting as the most challenging stage of the sale process, the report says. But without a sales pipeline full of good quality leads, no new sales are going to happen, the more prospects one generates, the more chances to close a sale one has. Let us now dig into a few effective methods & techniques of prospecting that one can adopt in their sales process, evaluate a method that works, stick with it, and see a steady stream of leads.

Sales Prospecting Methods:

  1. Going Inbound– Inbound marketing and prospecting has significantly improved the marketing outcomes over the recent years for many companies. Investment in Inbound with a well-constructed marketing plan, solid content support and offers, help in good sales funnel construction and the sales team can drastically benefit from Inbound enquiries.
  2. Social Media Outreach– With the emergence of social media, marketers now have unprecedented access to their target audience. Over 50% of revenue generated is influenced by social media according to LinkedIn research. Thus, having a robust online presence on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Quora, etc helps build brand image and attract the target audience.
  3. Outbound Marketing & Outreach– This primarily involves building a list of potential prospects, who could benefit from the product or services and reaching out to those prospects through cold outreach via cold calling and cold emailing. Cold calling and cold emails are still the two highest-rated methods of conducting prospecting and keeping the pipeline filled out. In fact, over 40% think phones (calling) to be their number one toolkit to build a pipeline. This approach isn’t so subtle and is pretty straightforward, suitable for a business that doesn’t have the luxury of focusing on inbound prospecting.
  4. Using ReferralsAccording to reports, Top sales performers’ bread and butter is ‘Referrals’. Successful salespersons don’t shy away from asking for referrals as it is a winner for everyone, it brings in more follow-on sales with little groundwork.
  5. Networking– Participating in events such as tradeshows, promotional events, conferences, keynote events, and so on, be it in-person and virtual, networking opportunities abound and give a chance to get in front of a variety of decision-makers, influencers to showcase the company’s product or services in a warm atmosphere.

Now that we’ve explored some of the popular channels/methods for sales prospecting, Let us take a look at a few of the sales prospecting techniques which improve sales processes and outcomes.

  1. Create an ideal prospect profile– While prospecting it is critical to know, who is the ideal customer and whom to go behind. Every person in the sales team needs to be aware of the ideal customer profile as this helps in identify the good fits, qualifying the leads which result in higher conversion and sales growth.
  2. Make Warm Calls– The first or initial contact with new prospects need not be completely cold. One can engage the prospects beforehand by getting introduced by a shared connection, ‘commenting’ or ‘liking’ the content that prospect is sharing on their social media profile or pages. This helps in establishing a connection without looking ‘Salesy’.
  3. Establish as a Thought Leader– By establishing oneself as an ‘industry thought leader’ or ‘subject matter expert’ increases credibility and trust in new prospects and customers. Sharing the knowledge by publishing high-quality content, talking in trade shows or podcasts, writing blogs or articles in publications, addressing real pain points with a solution, etc., helps in reaching a greater audience and prospects seeking you for help.
  4. Using an Effective Sales Call Script– When the emphasis is on cold calling for prospecting, using an effective call script is crucial especially when the team is new or less experienced. Using a script ensures conversation with the prospect doesn’t go off-track, helps in using the right language, and has an easier time responding to objections, as well as reduce any awkward pauses.
  5. Never stop prospecting – Prospecting is like going to the gym, it only works if one does it on a regular basis and uses the appropriate method. Usually, prospecting takes a back seat with the hectic schedule of salespersons and it is very important to include prospecting in the day-to-day schedule which in long run lowers the risk of not having enough pipeline throughout the year.
  6. Using Marketing Automation Tools – Leveraging on marketing automation tools for prospecting is the seller’s answer to a new buyer’s journey. Automation tool that links Content distribution, CRM, and Social platforms are critical to getting the right message at the right time to right people. Marketing automation tools help in decisions to be driven by useful data, timelines to be monitored automatically, and help to keep possible revenue from slipping through the cracks.

Sales prospecting is ever-evolving- Sending personalized emails and relevant content to prospects, using videos for marketing and sales outreach, approaching prospects to educate and provide solutions than selling, running monthly Webinars, etc can be implemented today to attract prospects and boost sales.

We at VAST Tec, provide exceptional sales prospecting services with multi-channel outreach, lead qualification services, TOFU & MOFU lead engagement, Webinar and Virtual Event Marketing, Pre-sales Engagement services, and so on, that complement our client’s sales prospecting strategy. Sales prospecting doesn’t always have to be stressful for both the sales team and prospects. To make it easier, one can adapt and experiment with the different prospecting methods and techniques mentioned above.

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