How do you draw up a sales prospecting plan?

Answers from Frédéric Canevet, product marketing and webmarketing expert, author of the excellent blog Conseils Marketing. Thanks to Frédéric for sharing his expertise on sales prospecting with us. Here are his views and best practices for prospecting and, above all, establishing a sales prospecting plan.

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The evolution of commercial prospecting

Sales will evolve more in the next 5 years than they have in the previous 20.

Why do you say this?
Simply because, after production and accounting, sales and marketing are now undergoing their own "industrial revolution". In the early 2000s, in many companies, the basic equipment of a sales rep consisted of a car, a telephone, an order book and a desktop PC.

Nowadays, the best salespeople never leave their smartphones, they have a mobile CRM and they know how to exploit the new tools at their disposal, they know how to use the new communication tools... This wave is now sweeping through companies, so I'd like to offer you some food for thought, to help you surf this wave and avoid getting hit on the head.

#SalesProspecting: sales will evolve more in the next 5 years than in the last 20 by @conseilsmkg - via @appvizer_FR
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CRM is no longer an option, it's a companion!

CRM used to have a reputation as a "gas factory", a tool made for managers... But that's all changed! Modern CRMs are better and better designed for salespeople, and increasingly for use primarily on Smartphones. Added to this is the fact that corporate organization now requires a CRM:

• The multiplicity of communication channels and exchanges means that sales reps can't forget anything, thanks to the CRM's ability to keep track of emails, calls and so on.
• The multiplication of prospects via lead generation tools (white papers, Adwords...) means that you have to choose your priority targets, and automate other business, so CRM becomes indispensable for managing your priorities.
• The salesperson no longer works alone in his or her corner, but works with marketers who provide him or her with "leads" for which he or she is accountable, or with a telemarketer who qualifies prospects on his or her behalf... It's by sharing information that time is saved.
• The financial world's stranglehold on companies requires reliable reporting, so that portfolio trends can be predicted and corrective action taken without being backed into a corner.

Preparing your sales force for the new prospecting tools

The salesperson has not yet become a "specialized worker" churning out quotes, but the pressure to produce is on, and it's about to become a reality. Your action plan is first to analyze your current sales organization to optimize key elements.

Here are a few key questions:

• Do you have reliable figures (current business portfolio, forecasts, etc.)?
• Are all prospects in a centralized database, and are they all being recontacted?
• Do you have prospect "reactivation" actions?
• What are the most time-consuming tasks for sales staff?
• Do you have "competitor files" to help you fight off the competition?
• Do you have an idea of the conversion of opportunities between the different phases (information form, solution presentation...) and how to improve it?

Then define your priorities and the tools at your disposal. You can use appvizer to search for "solutions" to these problems, because in addition to CRMs, the salesperson's arsenal has diversified.

Social Selling and psychology: the new weapons of sales 2.0

While the sales profession is becoming increasingly digitalized, paradoxically the human element has never been so crucial in sales.

Competition has never been tougher, and offers are often very similar to one another... in this case, the best way to convince is to differentiate yourself through services (pre-sales support, listening, personalized demonstration...) and relationships. The first step is therefore to put the human touch back into your exchanges, like putting your photo in the email signature, showing images of your company, telling the story of the company and its vision... The second step is to use the Professional Social Networks, Facebook & Linkedin, to find your first prospects.

In fact, social networks can help you target prospects (e.g. marketing managers, buyers...), but also maintain a connection with them on a personal level: on the one hand through regular content publication, and on the other through "events" (e.g. extracting your Linkedin contacts and sending them your greetings by email twice a year).

Your action plan:

• Do your sales people know how to differentiate your products from the competition? Do they know how to defend the brand and the price?
• Do they really make the most of Linkedin, with a strategy of targeted additions, contacts, content distribution and, above all, use of their contact base?
• What image do your sales reps give your customers (look, speech...)?
• How can you improve your prospects' experience of the sales cycle (e.g. by offering a goodie at the first meeting)? If you only had one customer to win over, what would you do to convince him or her?
• Do you have a reflex to keep in touch with your key customers (e.g. news...)?

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Conclusion: SaaS, salespeople's best friend

We're in the midst of a Sales Revolution, and the next few years are going to be exciting for sales managers and sales teams. However, if you don't want to "suffer" this digital transformation, it's essential to be ahead of the game, to anticipate and take advantage of this movement, and not be left behind.

Be curious, dare to question "good old habits", and try out new solutions!