Many people have heard the term “prospecting” but possibly not when it has to do with sales. Prospecting in the old days meant a person looking for gold in the rivers. Nowadays it means going looking for new customers.
Prospecting has been defined as the process of contacting and identifying potential customers as a way to get new business. This is a successful way to get new customers to come to your business. It has been used for years as a way to get new business.
Click funnels are one way to do prospecting and can bring you new leads. By going to https://www.clickfunnels.com/blog/lead-generation-vs-prospecting/ you can learn more about click funnels, prospecting, and lead generation. There is a difference between the three of these things and this can give you more information.
This article will help you to learn the difference between lead generation and prospecting. It will give you more information about prospecting, as well. You can also get more information by doing some research on your own.
What is Sales Prospecting?
Sales prospecting is the process of finding and interacting with prospects who are qualified leads. This helps to set the sales process in motion so that you are able to get more sales. Prospecting can look like cold calls, cold emails, and messages to qualified leads that can be found on sites such as LinkedIn.
There are several steps to begin sales prospecting that include research, qualification, and outreach. These steps will help you work through getting the prospects and turn them into sales. They can help you to find people who really want to do business with you.
The first step is to research and find everything out about these potential customers. You want to know if they will be a good fit for you and the product that you are selling. You also want to know how you can create a personal message for them so that it stands out. You can search for information on social media, especially on LinkedIn accounts.
The next step is the qualifications of the consumer. Finding out information about the customer and seeing if they are worth going after. If they are worth pursuing, find out how you can prioritize them. This is done by defining their qualities through lead scoring.
Another step that you will need to take is to outreach. This means that you will create a personalized sales pitch for the prospect. You will contact them using what you believe is their preferred channel which can be email, phone, or social media. You do not have to make a hard sell; you can just send them a link to a helpful article or other resources.
Difference Between Prospects and Leads
There is a slight distinction between the two words, but it is an important distinction. Basically, all prospects are leads, but not all leads are prospects. A basic definition for a lead is anyone who could or could not be a good fit for your business. A prospect is anyone who has already been qualified as a good fit for your business and might end up making a purchase.
A lead is someone who has made their interest in your business known. They may have interacted with your website in some way such as looking at your products. This is the way that they have become potential customers. These leads come in the early processes of the sales cycle: https://mailshake.com/blog/sales-cycle-stages/.
A prospect is someone who has been qualified as a lead worth going after. They may have signed up for free emails or a free trial. They could also be executives at businesses that have been marketing your services.
Both leads and prospects are important for your business, even though they are prioritized differently. You have the same goal ultimately because you want them both to become paying customers. You are looking for new customers and leads and prospects can both lead to this.
Difference Between Prospecting and Lead Generation
Most businesses use a combination of prospecting and lead generation. Although they do both, they are different in how they are done. They are usually done by two different departments in your business.
The marketing department usually handles lead generation. They have the job of creating web content and experiences that can attract leads. This can include blog posts, videos, webinars, advertisements, and gated content.
A business-to-business or B2B marketing team might decide to make an eBook or white paper for the executives in the industry. Learn more about B2B here. To get to the content, they must fill out the contact form with all personal information. This can include name, title, company, and email. Your company will use a lead-scoring model to see if it is worth pursuing.
This process is usually done through automation, using a CRM, or customer relationship management, to score and capture leads. A lead will be given a numerical value based on many different variables. This value will determine how likely they will be to convert their interest into sales.
Prospecting is usually the responsibility of the sales department. It is done more as a manual process. The salesperson will usually reach out to the prospect by phone, email, or social media directly.
When Does Prospecting Take Place in the Sales Process?
Both prospecting and lead generation take place at the beginning of the sales process. A company cannot do much without discovering, qualifying, and contacting the leads so that they can start their journey. Your business will want them to become lifelong customers.
The next steps in the process are presenting, quotation, closing, and setting status to won/lost. Presenting is when the sales representative contacts the prospect and gives their sales pitch. Quotation is when the sales rep discusses the sales price with the prospect. Closing is the process of closing the sale and won/lost is when they have successfully closed the sale or not.
Conclusion
Sales prospecting is the process of getting new customers for your business. It is similar to lead generation, but the two are different, as well. Prospecting happens when leads are qualified and will more likely lead to sales.
