How to Score Better Prospects by Optimizing Data Mining

BY Kathy Crosett
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Is your manager leaning on you to do more prospecting? To bring those leads down the sales funnel and close the deal in record time? Your manager is probably also telling you to use the latest tools to work as efficiently as the department rain maker. How exactly should you go about becoming the rain maker?

You’ll find one solution is the better use of technology. In his article on the 6 Skills Every B2B Sales Rep Needs, Justin Lee emphasizes using technology and data mining to optimize your outcomes. These days, the information you need is at your fingertips. You just need to use it.

Smart Prospecting

You can start being smarter about prospecting by shifting to an account-​based selling approach. Not every prospect will be lucrative or even result in a small deal. Take the time up front to sort out a prospect’s situation. Keeping the servant leader aspect in mind, focus on the prospects you can truly help. Doing so will help you build long-​term valuable relationships.

To narrow down your prospect list, combine information from your personal interactions with key decision makers with data you find on your own. This means compiling information about their business, what they’ve purchased recently, who they might be merging with, and which product or service lines they’re planning to launch. Store this information in your CRM so you can quickly and easily access it.

Smarter Discovery

And don’t forget social media. Lee reports that “78% of salespeople who use social selling outperform their peers.” What exactly does this mean?

As you interact with prospects at your key account locations, track their activities on social media. You should know about their new job responsibilities and any LinkedIn posts they’ve authored. Look for announcements made on social media about changes in the organization.

As Lee says, “Anticipating your prospects’ next move provides real strategic value (and can prevent boardroom blunders). This knowledge will, in turn, allow you to demonstrate (not list) how a product is uniquely valuable to them."


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