I’m not a great golfer. I agree with my friend, the late Jim Vedda, “golf should only be 14 holes because no one should have to concentrate that long”. But all it takes is one good hole, maybe even just one good shot, and you feel positive about the day, have something to brag about and look forward to your next round. Prospecting is the same. It may take twenty dials to get one conversation and 10 conversations to get one qualified opportunity, but that one hit makes all the difference.
- Imagine the possibilities!
- That one prospect can make your quota for the month!
- And you still have two more hours in the day!
Prospecting keeps us humble, keeps us engaged with “them that pays our wages,” forces us to evolve and refine our message, and in the end, puts momentum on our side.
My favorite prospecting story goes back to my first job. Back then cold calling didn’t involve the phone or a computer, you walked in the door of a business and asked to speak with someone who didn’t know you. One late summer Friday afternoon I was driving my brand new Toyota Starlet, manual transmission and no air conditioning, back to the office after a hot day/week in the territory. As I picked up speed at the top of a long hill, (necktie down, radio up, windows down) I saw, at the bottom of the hill, an oil company; not Exxon or Chevron, something like Joe’s Heating Oil. I had been passing this company on the way “out” for weeks and always thought I should stop. And, being truthful with myself, I was cutting out a little early today. I gritted my teeth with the intention of driving right by but some misguided sense of right and wrong made me swerve into the parking lot at the last minute.
I cinched up my tie, straightened my windblown hair, grabbed my pitch-book and headed toward the door. When I walked in I found a single room with three or four desks. The office staff had gone for the day and a grimy, middle aged guy sat leaned back with his feet up on one of the desks. He looked at me with a half smile and said “What are you sellin’?” I immediately relaxed and smiled. Hey, TGIF! I showed him my selection of office equipment and left him with a one week trial of one of my least expensive products. I felt great when I got back to the office and throughout the weekend and I started the next week with a world-beater attitude. Within three months he had bought one of everything I sold. That was a great, uplifting call that almost didn’t happen.
Now don’t get me wrong, I love inbound marketing, product based selling, click-to-buy and demand gen campaigns as much as the next guy, but people buy from people, and many times, sales don’t start until you speak with someone. So don’t pick up the phone because it’s your job, or because your boss told you to, pick it up because prospecting makes you feel good.
And for you managers who don’t have to prospect a territory anymore, guess what? Your most important job is recruiting. Recruiting is networking. Networking is prospecting. And “Prospecting is Good for the Soul”! Tweet
Image by Vince Vassallo via http://vincevassallo.blogspot.ca/
Please comment. It would be great to have a conversation about selling and to hear a funny story or two. I will moderate but the good news (for all of us) is I have a day job in the real world. So if I don’t reply instantly, feel free to talk amongst yourselves until I get back ;-).