Four easy to answer questions that helps determine whether it is worth doing research prior to calling.
I had a client the other day ask me how much research should be done prior to calling for that Initial Appointment. (Note that I’m not talking about the research one should do prior to going on the appointment itself.) He said they had been having a ‘spirited’ discussion within the sales force about it after the CEO got a call from an executive at a company who had been cold called by one of their sales people without any understanding of that CEO’s situation. Here are my rules of thumb.
My basic rule of thumb is one of economics and return on investment of the time spent doing the research. Ask yourself the following four simple questions.
- How big is my universe of targets?
- What is the average size of my sale?
- How customizable is my solution?
- At what level am I calling into?
Let’s discuss them one at a time.
- The smaller my number of targets to choose from, the less I can afford to miss an opportunity. If I’m a target account rep with only twenty targets, or a major account rep trying to expand my foothold in one of my accounts, I should do more upfront research.
- The larger the average size of our sale sale, the more it is worth investing time in the research.
- The more customizable our solution, the more we should research our target so that the reason for our call is very specific and on point.
- The higher we call into an organization, the more valuable their time and the less likely they will be to grant us an appointment unless we can talk to a specific challenge they are having currently and how we’ve successfully addressed that pain for somebody else.
If you’d like more information on Best Practices for appointment setting, or why no team of sales professionals has ever failed to at least double the number of Initial Appointments they were setting after going through one of our programs, give us a call or drop us a line. We love talking about the challenges of appointment making!
Caponi Performance Group and Contact Science jointly market the telephone prospecting and cold calling solution called Coldcalling101™. It is the only comprehensive solution to solving the biggest barrier to success in most selling organizations—the inability to secure enough Initial Appointments to begin the selling process. We accomplish that through simultaneously addressing both the efficiency and effectiveness of the process. We can be reached at 817 224-9900 or at bcaponi@caponipg.com. You can also find answers to many of your challenges in our books: Contrary to Popular Belief, Cold Calling DOES Work! Volume I: Effectiveness, The Art of Appointment Making and Volume II: Efficiency, the Science of Appointment Making.
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