Here are some prospecting tips for you if you want to convert your cold leads into warm prospects:
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Target carefully
You need to be sure that you’re spending time with the right companies, titles, geographies and so on. If the person sitting across from you is the right profile, only then you have a chance. If your target is not set rightly, all the skills in the world on your end won’t get you a new customer.
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Establish a connection
Remember, you’re approaching cold customers and have very little knowledge of their needs and problem. You need to ask probing questions to help him articulate his needs (including needs they might not know even exist). That’s why you should have a powerful lead management system. It will help you track, qualify, prioritize leads and send them to the team(s) best prepared to handle them at every stage of the sales pipeline.
In case, you have not established rapport and a connection with your prospect, it is unlikely he will be willing to open up to you. You should establish a connection and build rapport with your customers while uncovering their needs in the first meeting itself.
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The magic formula = trust + authority
Don’t keep talking about your services/products Instead provide value to customers
It will bore your prospects as they don’t even need your products or services (or they don’t know that they require your products/services).
Before approaching your cold targets, study them. You should do a quick Google search for the customer or their company. You should invest in a good lead tracking software. For example, you can use your CRM software to search for any recent action they might have performed previously by your target customer. Make sure you know exactly what your customer needs. Provide insight and offer value during the entire sales process to show him what it will be like to do business with you. If you want to grasp your customer’s attention, let them know the benefits they get by offering their time to you. Try to focus on providing value to your customers.
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Reach out to prospects through social media
When done in the right manner, social media platforms can be used as a cost-effective way to grow your brand, generate more leads for your business, and connect with your current customers. While most decision-makers do not respond to cold emails, still a majority of them don’t shy away from having a conversation on social media.
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Always agree on a next step
Before you leave your first meeting with the customer, you should always establish the next step. You should clearly define what you believe should happen next – perhaps it could be another meeting, additional information, a discussion letter outlining what was discussed, or could be a presentation. Then take agreement from the prospect that it is a good next step and set a time when the next step is going to take place.
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The key – Follow up| Follow up | Follow up
Every sales process takes its own sweet conversion time. Assuming the prospect is a good target for you, plan how you will stay top of mind with him after the meeting. Send them articles related to his industry or situation, send them direct mail pieces, stay in touch, and keep moving him along the buying process. Most of the sales rep doesn’t stay in touch and they let long-term leads fall through the cracks. Don’t let this be you.
Turning cold leads into warm prospects is a journey with a lot of uncertainties. You don’t want to start conversations that never get you anywhere. You don’t want to send emails that end up in the bin. To be successful at getting into people’s nerves, you need to find a way of creating a good rapport with the prospects by delivering value in your conversation, being relevant, and where possible, implementing a paradigm shift in a way that motivates your customers to respond back to you.
