Posted on: October 14, 2021
Reading Time: 7 minutes
Category: B2B Sales
Every year the folks behind Pipedrive, the sales CRM platform, run a survey to try and assess exactly what the State of Sales is – and what this will mean for us all in the year ahead.
Something is very wrong in the State of Sales when we struggle with an activity that is consuming a large amount of our time.
Indeed, the ability to consistently generate quality leads is essential for any successful organisation’s new business development.
In this overview, we are going to suggest some reasons why so many salespeople struggle with lead generation and prospecting – and then we’ll take a look at what could be done differently in 2022.
Along the way we’ll be touching on outsourcing, outbound, automation, sales CRM platforms, the rise of social and the importance of developing your own personal brand.
Are you ready to see how 2022 can be the year that prospecting starts really working for you, rather than forcing you to really work at it?
Then, let’s go.
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The single biggest fix that can be made is probably with your customer relationship management (CRM) platform.
It is far from an exaggeration to say that this pretty much determines whether you can ever create an efficient, organised and effective lead generation strategy.
If yours is not working for you, it’s time to invest in one that is.
Ask around, check online reviews, approach some vendors and be clear on the outputs you require.
As a minimum your CRM should:
And those three things alone will turbo-charge the results you post from prospecting.
If your inhouse prospecting is not working, then perhaps it’s time to consider outsourcing to either supplement or replace your efforts.
Prospecting has been an uphill struggle for many for far too long. So, why not clear everybody’s desks a little and let them focus on what they are great at – leaving prospecting to those who love it.
(Modesty prevents us from throwing our hat in the ring, so we’ll just let our results speak for themselves!)
Do not believe the hype.
Cold calling may be dead but carefully targeted cold emails are still producing lead rates and volumes that place other prospecting channels to shame.
If you are 100% relying on inbound you are missing a big trick – and a big bonus too, which is the ability to build predictability and control into your lead flow.
The State of Sales report discovered that more than a third (37%) of sales professionals don’t use any technology or automation tools when prospecting, whether they are sourcing or qualifying their leads.
What this means, in effect, is that this third will always struggle to succeed at prospecting, because so many of the critical steps could be handled for them, such as:
But, it’s important to realise that automation isn’t just about platforms and tools – it’s also about having the people to put in place the best and most effective processes and procedures.
Here are three steps that use both people and tools to hone your prospecting.
Time can also be saved by reviewing your current processes and jettisoning practices that add little value to your sales efforts.
Whatever processes are left should be reviewed for automation potential. For example, by triggering a follow-up email immediately after a sign-up or enquiry.
B2B prospects are keenly aware of your company’s brand credibility and authority. Increasingly, they will also be influenced by your own presence on platforms like LinkedIn.
Your personal brand is an effective selling tool – here are some ways you can build your own brand.
A great way to keep on top of the latest industry trends, while also joining conversations and making contacts, is to join an online community.
Make sure you write about emerging themes or new developments in your own posts beyond the group or reference interesting posts you see.
It’s already happened: millennials are increasingly filling leadership roles. This means that your prospecting activity should make sure it is hitting the channels that this generation is most at home with.
And social is the biggie here.
Social selling should become an important part of your mix – but not just on LinkedIn but on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and even hosted live streams on Twitch too.
Social is certainly where millennials are, but it also offers you the opportunity to:
With over half of our sales professionals still struggling to connect (quite literally) with lead generation, we have thrown a few lifelines out for those who are not waving but drowning.
Grab a hold – and if you want to talk about pulling yourself on board the good ship SoPro we’re always happy to natter.
Here come the ropes:
And here’s to keeping that pipeline awash with quality leads over the coming year!
Discover how Sopro helps hundreds of businesses sell more. We do the hard work, so you can do your best work.
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