Tips for agents’ Job No. 1: Prospecting (Part Two)

Here’s the rest of my Top 10 Things to Consider When Prospecting (Read the first five here):

6. Name recognition.  Is your company well known in the market where you are prospecting?  Does it have a good reputation? Do you represent a group of companies that includes household or obscure names?As you look at effective prospecting you have to be thoughtful of your company’s place in the mind of the prospect.  Lead with the strongest message possible.

7. How much time can you commit?  All forms of prospecting require effort — this means they require time.  We all have to eat while we hunt, which means you have to find clients while you are closing clients.  If you have a limited pipeline, you should block out specific days to devote to prospecting and the other days to full sales presentations.  If you have a steady stream of opportunity you have to devote time, as it is available, so your well doesn’t run dry!

8. How much money can you commit? If you have no money, then you have to engage prospecting methods on the left side of the “Y” axis (upper left quadrant of the graphic).  As you begin to have money to invest in your marketing efforts, you have to decide how much.  If you knew you could spend $500 on a direct mail campaign and close $2,500 in commissions, would you do it?  Are you doing it?  Invest in your business!

Image courtesy of Brandon Clay

 9. How effective have you been with prospecting?  Are you prospecting by giving it your all, or are you doing it with half-hearted effort? Are you pushing with tenacity and grit? Either way, if you are not measuring, monitoring and managing you could be spending precious time, effort and money on the wrong approach. Review where your last 90 days of sales came from and use that as a jumping off point for broader prospecting effort.

10. You need a plan. The real challenge I see with sales people is a lack of strategy and the corresponding tactics.  Each prospecting method requires a different approach so you would need to be agile in your execution.  More than likely, two to three prospecting methods fit your business model and, once perfected, you simply repeat, repeat and repeat!

Next week, I’ll take a step-by-step look at the strategies of each major prospecting method. Begin to review your current efforts and begin to devise an approach that can take your business to the next level. It is critical that you stay positive and motivated about your possibilities. You could be one simple change away from a higher level of success through the Power of Prospecting!