Hello Reader,
We are nearly there. 5 done and just 3 to go.
If you are new, the recap of the first 5 weeks of the Ultimate Sales Plan are HERE.
If we want to achieve results and success we need a plan.
But plans and planning on their own won’t get us what we want…
- which is deals confirmed.
- which is new customers signing up
- which is PO’s being provided
- which is invoices being sent
- which is money hitting the bank
All of these feelings are ones which make us smile.
The feeling when a prospect says yes and becomes a customer.
I always liken that to a Peacock spreading their wings!
I had that feeling this week when 2 people said yes to me on a deal. What business have you brought in this week? I would love to hear what successes you have achieved.
But here is the crux.
We can’t get the ‘Peacock Feeling’ without taking action, or without speaking to prospects.
Without implementing the plans that we create, nothing will happen.
Week 6 is all about engaging and finding new prospects.
There are 2 ways to take action.
Generating inbound leads or reaching out to generate outbound leads.
Inbound
They come to you. They either reach out from your social media, website, general marketing or you create some marketing campaigns to bring people in.
As you now know the exact target customer you are focusing on, you can use a Lead Magnet (watch the video below) to bring new leads to you. This is Inbound prospecting.
Here are 2 good examples of Lead Magnets which drive leads for me each week.
Example 1 – A guide
I created a resource called ‘52 of the Best Sales Questions to ask’ and this link sits on my website. I share content on social media and link people back to this form. Because they want the list of questions, they provide me with their name and email address and I can then market to them. You may in fact have joined this email as a result of downloading this guide. If so then hello again 👋
Example 2 – A Scorecard
Another example of an Inbound Lead magnet is a scorecard. I have created a simple scorecard on whether the Sales Plan you have is likely to succeed or not. Feel free to try the link for yourself and see if what you have will work or not!
The point is, people are intrigued to know the answer to something and complete the scorecard and provide email details and contact information. This allows me to then market and engage with them.
Good inbound leads come from sharing ideas and insights that your target audience finds valuable. You always want to ensure that what you share creates a sense of curiosity within the other person and is relevant.
For example, a good example of a guide would be ‘A guide for Manufacturing CEOs with over 100 staff to solving Staff Productivity problems’.
This is very targeted (at CEOs who have factories that employ 100 plus people) and it also solves a problem that many of them have. If I was a CEO in this role and I had this problem (which is likely) I would be intrigued to download the guide.
The key here is that we need the good content that we covered in week 4 to share with those who engage with us.
Outbound Prospecting
If you have done the work needed from week 3 then you will have a data list of contacts to engage with. This is where we start the outbound prospecting process.
But this bit is the scary bit.
It’s the time when rubber hits the road. When you have to start making contact with people that you don’t know.
Herein lies the secret though.
When we start to engage in a polite, friendly and value-added way with a specific group of people who have a specific problem, things do start to happen.
The screen below shows a message from a customer of mine who has implemented the outbound process I have suggested for them and which has already generated 3 prospects for them.
What we did here was simple.
- We knew who we were targeting
- We understand the role they have and the key issues they are juggling with
- We talk about impacts and outcomes and not features
- We don’t ask for time but we look to add value and share a resource which will help build trust.
The message used above could be (and will be used) in different media.
- It could have been sent as an email.
- It could have been sent as a video message
- It could have been used on an initial call
The success of outbound prospecting boils down to these 3 elements.
- Who are you engaging with? Get clarity on your sources of data and split this into blocks of 50 people to make it more manageable
- What are you doing? What is the frequency of how often you communicate and in which method. There should be a set time period (between 1-12 months depending on the length of your sales cycle) where you communicate at different time points.
- I would have a 90-180 timeframe to do this. I.e. on day 2 we send this message. On day 9 we make this call. On day 11 we share this social message. The image below of my 120 prospecting challenge (which is part of my full Sales Plan program) shows how we help you do this.
- How are you doing this? What is the message you are using. This is where the magic happens or where the methods I use (when compared to others) work. I recommend you having a library of different messages and phrases to use and then you can start to engage with prospects to encourage them to respond to you.
A few things to remember when you do start this engagement.
- Start with the right mindset. Be 100% committed to achieving a goal which means something to you. You’re going to have tough days. Think about how you’re going to respond to those moments.
- Always remember your vision and purpose. It will get you through those times and remind you of why you’re doing this.
- Commit to the process. Be disciplined with your time and focus when you’re implementing the prospecting schedule.
- Be patient – prospecting is like waiting for a bus. You feel like you’re waiting forever for the bus and then all of a sudden 3 come at the same time.
- Believe in yourself and the process – this schedule if implemented correctly works! Have faith in your business, have faith in yourself and have faith in the process.
There is lots more I could and can share about outbound prospecting but this is supposed to be a 5 minute Saturday morning read and not war and peace.
All I will say though is that if you follow the process, you will get the results.
And you can’t find new prospects without implementing and taking action with inbound and outbound campaigns.
When done well, the leads will flow in.
When done badly, you will waste, time, money and emotion. I don’t want this for you.
Which is why I have put together an Ultimate Sales Plan Course. It’s currently in Beta testing with a number of people but if what I have shared over the past few weeks has intrigued you then why not register to get first access to the course when it’s released? You can do that HERE.
It will cover everything I have shared in the past 6 weeks, but in greater, focused detail and it will give you EVERYTHING you need to achieve success with a sales plan.
Stay tuned for week 7 to find out!
Until then, keep smiling and stay focused on becoming a fly on the wall of the brain of your buyer.
James
