Prospecting - Building Pipeline - 97

Prospecting - building your well before you need a drink. We have recently passed the mid-point of the year for most sales organizations. How does your pipeline look for the remainder of this year?  What about next year? Q2 has wrapped up, we are moving into what many see as the most financially active period of their sales year.  This week on the Catalyst Sale Podcast we discuss the importance of prospecting and building pipeline.  We discuss a couple of best practices, tools, and tactics.  We also discuss how you may want to approach hunting within the base using methods similar to new customer acquisition. Questions Addressed Where do you start with prospecting? What are some best practices in building pipeline? How do you identify the appropriate vocabulary for a given vertical? What about prospecting within your existing client base? Key Takeaways Pipeline saves lives Start first by defining your "Ideal customer" Size of organization Market/Vertical Link to Territory Planning that Works Identify where the people who will use the product, purchase the product, or influence those who may purchase, hang out. Hunting requires that you go where the customer is. Best Practices Stay engaged with the community that you serve Read analyst reports & research relevant to the given market What are some common problems that your ideal customer profile experience? Use the vocabulary that the community uses Tools Google LinkedIn/Sales Navigator Questions Deliver value to the audiences and communities with whom you engage.  Share experience, be genuine about your interest in solving problems within their market. Ask questions with a genuine intention to learn. Think about growing business within your account base as hunting within the base. Use the same process, when hunting within the base.  Identify ways to expand your network within your account base. Ask these questions Who else cares about the problems we solve? How are they addressing those problems today? Who is experiencing those problems? Act as an extension of your client/customer's team Take a humble approach, be genuinely interested in solving problems. When you do the right things, good things tend to follow. Focus on the customer Prospecting is hard, but you have to keep doing it, put in the reps, do the work. Set aside specific time to focus on prospecting. Show Links Catalyst Sale Twitter LinkedIn [email protected] Territory Planning that Works Catalyst Sale Workshops & Training Thank you Thank you for rating and reviewing the podcast via iTunes, Google Play, or your favorite podcast platform.  Ratings & reviews help others discover the podcast - thank you for helping us get our message out to the community. Please send listener questions and feedback to [email protected] or contact us directly on twitter, facebook or LinkedIn. Catalyst Sale Service Offerings Growth Acceleration - Plateau Breakthrough Product Market Fit ---------------------- Subscribe to the Catalyst Sale Podcast Subscribe via iTunes Subscribe via Google Play Catalyst Sale In every business, in every opportunity, there is someone who can help you navigate the internal challenges and close the deal.  There is a Catalyst.  We integrate process (Catalyst Sale Process), technology and people, with the purpose of accelerating revenue. Our thoughtful approach minimizes false starts that are common in emerging markets and high-growth environments. We continue to evolve our practice based on customer needs and emerging technology. We care about a thinking process that enables results versus a process that tells people what to do.  Sales is a Thinking Process.