Sales Prospecting Perspectives

When starting a new project, one of the first items often discussed is the list of prospects that our BDRs will be calling through.  Many times a client will say "we have a great list of marketing leads (i.e. - from a tradeshow/webinar/seminar) that our sales reps haven't had a chance to call through".   Often times we will start calling through this "warm" list only to discover that it is riddled with outdated leads, job seekers, consultants, and "Mickey Mouse" at 555-5555.  While there are undoubtedly qualified and interested prospects in these lists, it often doesn't yield the high lead rate that a client expects. 

Clients that are engaged in our process from the start of a project typically have the highest success rates.  We can create scripts and messaging, put together weekly reports, and provide visibility into our day to day operations, but if a client doesn't provide their own feedback on the leads we are generating and on the work that we are doing, then there is no way for us to refine and improve on what we are delivering.  I always encourage my clients to listen in on calls with their BDR or to role play with them so that they are comfortable and confident with the message that we are taking out to the marketplace.

When I am training a new Business Development Rep I talk to them about the fact that generating leads is a numbers game, to a degree, but that our real focus is on the quality of the opportunities that we pass, not the quantity. Although you need to look at certain statistics like daily activity, connect rates and lead rates,  I also focus on another important aspect of the job - that it's not just about making phone calls, it's about making smart phone calls.  We talk about mapping an account, prospecting effectively and making sure you get at least one piece of qualification information on each call.  These strategies help us to qualify leads more thoroughly and only pass over prospects that truly have a need and the ability to purchase.  Sure, we could make 200 calls a day and push prospects to agree to a meeting with our client's sales team, but this approach yields a higher prospect "no-show" percentage and typically takes a longer time to make it to forecast.

This leads me to another common reason why a lead doesn't get adequately followed up on...

*The organization has not come up with a universal definition of what a "qualified" lead is*

Last week I started talking about the common reasons why sales reps don't follow-up on the leads that marketing and inside sales provides.  Today I will look at the importance of soliciting feedback in a structured way and how to hold your sales reps accountable for following up on the leads that you are delivering to them.

The age old complaint from marketing professionals and inside sales managers is inevitably that the organization's sales reps don't adequately follow-up on the leads that marketing has invested much time and money in developing.There are typically a few reasons for this: