Sales reps have a lot to do daily. And one of the most important tasks on their to-do list is B2B prospecting. đŻ
Letâs break this subject down.
B2B prospecting is about finding potential buyers (prospects). In outbound sales, you identify, reach out to, and (hopefully) convert these people into customers.
Sales teams use a variety of different outreach strategies, including:
Itâs all part of lead generation, so in-depth research is vital.
Here are some of the best methods. đ
There are various methods your sales team can use for successful B2B prospecting.
As a rep, youâve got to do some trial and error to find out what works for you.
On the flip side, youâve also got to be able to see what your potential customers respond best to. So you can tailor your outreach and create a value-based buying experience.
Here are some common methods:
Ready to take your B2B prospecting process to the next level? Use these 11 tips to start seeing success right now. đ¤
Knowing your ideal customer profile (ICP) is crucial. An ICP is a detailed description of an organization you believe will benefit most from your solution.
Itâs up to your reps to make the target prospect within your ICP aware of your existence.
To find targets that match your ICP, youâve gotta:
A list of targets will serve as a guideline for sales reps on pinpointing leads. It will also help teams close more details and attract more leads in the future.
Not sure how to find targets that match your ICP? đ¤
Look at elements like:
Setting goals is key for measuring success. A daily game plan will help you know which B2B prospecting methods to focus on.
You could look at:
Morgan J Ingram, Creative Advisor at Cognism explains why you need to prospect daily in the clip below. đŹ
Itâs important to make your goals SMART. They must be Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Realistic, and Time-Bound. If this isnât the case, the goals wonât be as impactful, and hitting them wonât mean as much.
An ICP is just a guideline, and some people still wonât be interested. Even if your solution is perfect for them.
Youâve still got to qualify out unsuitable prospects.
Pre-qualifying questions like the ones below can help:
The more time a rep spends pre-qualifying a B2B prospect, the more sure AEs are that this individual is worth investing time in. The sooner a rep can answer these questions, the better (for everyone).
Itâs called cold outreach, but it doesnât mean your approach should be frosty. âď¸
No matter what tactic or strategy your sales reps use, always make it personal! Send specific, relevant, and personalized messaging to strengthen that emotional connection.
Thereâs no room for the âpray and sprayâ approach anymore. đ
(Graphic of an example of bad LinkedIn outreach)
Instead, speak to prospective customers like youâre talking to a friend. Personalized pitches take longer to create and need research. Still, the results from it are well worth the time invested.
Youâve got to try to build relationships with as many stakeholders as possible.
Donât put all your eggs in one basket. đŁ
Itâs always smart to reach out to more than one decision-maker at a time. This way, you can multi-thread your way into a specific company. This is especially important when selling in a recession or financial hardship.
In tougher climates, the involvement of more stakeholders is inevitable. So sales reps should just embrace it! The more stakeholders you involve, the better the chances of moving the deal through the pipeline.
In a perfect world, reps would always get an answer after the first email or phone call.
Sadly, this isnât a reality. Objections are reasons the prospect gives for not wanting to continue the conversation.
It could be they genuinely think theyâve already got a great solution, or maybe theyâre just trying to fob you offâŚ
But as a rep, youâve got to learn how to handle these objections like a pro. Itâs possible to turn these around and still close the deal with the right response.
Remember, thereâs a fine line between being professional and too pushy. You donât want to alienate the prospect, just open their eyes to whatâs available.
Youâve thought about it. Now itâs time to act.
A personal brand on social media helps build credibility.
Before building out your content, make sure you:
Next, you can look at which posts you write first. See the list below for some inspiration!
Sales tools can help with a lot of the heavy lifting.
An all-in-one B2B prospecting tool like Kaspr gives you instant access to contact info which is accurate. Youâll also be able to auto-enrich leads and build outreach workflows.
Sign up for Kaspr here (itâs free! - no card required)
Many prospecting tools offer an email and phone number finder, making it easier to contact the right people.
Having a feature like this makes B2B prospecting faster and hassle-free.
Thereâs always a lot of debate on LinkedIn about whether âcold calling is deadâ. Weâll give you a clue; itâs not. đŻ
Phone calls are the only channel through which SDRs get immediate feedback. And we know that teams focusing on the phone are getting the best results. Cognism has said that 65% of the rep sourced sales pipeline is done over the phone.
Unfortunately, the phone is often overlooked. Sales professionals shy away from calling due to a lack of confidence in favor of email outreach and direct messages.
Other channels can be important, but the phone is the only one youâll get an answer on. It might be an objection, a hard ânoâ or ânot right nowâ, but youâll know the next steps.
đĄ Tip: First calls often get the highest connection rate, so here are some cold calling openers to get off on the right foot!
Besides your target buyer persona, many people get involved in the sales process. Weâve spoken about multi-threading, but have you ever considered talking to your users first? Well, thatâs exactly what bottom-up selling is.
In bottom-up selling, you talk to users before you contact the decision-maker. If you use this B2B prospecting technique, youâll be well-prepared to converse with the people who make the final decisions.
Rachel Goldstone, Director of Sales Development at Cognism, explains the steps to do bottom-up selling below:
Your first step for any new account like this is to identify the key stakeholders. These are the people you need to speak to for the best path to making a sale.
Rachel says, âWe identify eight relevant people. This gives our SDRs a good balance of committing enough time to the account without going overboard.â
Identify the people within the account who will use your product daily. This helps make your outreach stand out as value-based when you speak with a decision-maker. For example, you can find common ground between users youâve spoken with.
Rachelâs top tip is to start on the phone. Youâve used a data provider (like Kaspr) to get their number. Now, ask for 30 seconds of their time and deliver your pitch. Make sure it centers around the problems you found they face while digging.
Your call aims to deliver a relevant pitch, explore initial interest, and set up a more in-depth session at a convenient time.
If you want to spice up your prospecting activities, try dabbling in snail mail. đ
Direct mail is a technique better reserved for your top prospects (because it can get expensive). But, by sending a gift, you can make your outreach efforts super personalized.
Chris Russell, Senior SDR at Allego, wasnât getting through to a prospect on the phone. So, Chris got creative and sent the prospect a box of gummy bears with his face on it. Chris has seen from a previous post that the prospect had done on their profile that they liked the Haribo sweets.
This direct mail move got the right attention, as Chris was able to book a meeting based on it!
B2B prospecting doesnât have to be a grueling task, especially with these 11 strategies.
And when prospectors have a tool like Kaspr, the skyâs the limit! You can also sign up for free. đ
Join the 100K+ active Kaspr users:
â
GDPR and CCPA aligned.
â
500M+ email addresses and phone numbers.
â
All-in-one prospecting tool.
â
Fully self-service.
â
Customizable plans.