Recipe: Changing Whom You Have Sales Conversations With

One of the ways to have more sales conversations turn into closed sales is to have fewer sales conversations—fewer, that is, with people who aren’t qualified buyers. It’s tempting to have a sales conversation with anyone who will listen, but that just takes up time you could have spent finding better-qualified prospects. Review the suggestions in Chapter 9 for asking qualifying questions and finding higher quality leads and referrals to help with this goal.

Remember that the more people you can get to contact you, instead of you contacting them, the easier your selling task will be. Focusing more effort on professional visibility, generating referrals, and better website conversion can help just as much in closing sales as it does in filling the pipeline and having sales conversations.

Sometimes the main reason that sales conversations don’t result in closed sales is that your prospects don’t know you well enough yet. Consider spending more time building stronger relationships up front with the people you wish to have sales conversations with. Here are some ways you might do this:

Attend networking meetings, conferences, or social events that your prospects frequent.

Invite prospects to events you plan to attend.

Schedule coffee, lunch, or a date to play tennis or golf to get better acquainted.

Send your prospects articles and other information that will help them do their jobs better or achieve their personal goals.

Interact with prospects in social media networks or online communities.

Ask prospects to subscribe to your newsletter or blog.

Follow some of the suggestions in Chapter 9 to identify personal connections that already exist between you and your prospects.

Find a mutual contact to put in a good word with prospects on your behalf.

A primary reason that people hire a professional services provider is to serve as an expert resource. Look for ways to serve your prospects before selling to them. Give them tastes of your expertise and the resources at your disposal in all your marketing materials, on your website, in your social media posts, at speaking engagements, in your newsletter or blog, and any other way they come in contact with you. Often this will result in prospects becoming clients without either of you having to work at it.