Most of the companies and salespeople we work with must do outbound lead generation and relationship building, and many do not have the luxury of filling their sales pipeline with inbound leads. Like most things, if you have a plan and stick to it, outbound selling will be more effective. If you are a sales leader or a salesperson in need of an outbound sales strategy, here are our 7 steps to improve your success:
- Know and Focus on Your Target: If you are familiar with the 80/20 Rule, you know that the majority of your revenue comes from about 20% of your clients. Spend time defining their profile and determining how to find and reach more of them. You may have several profiles; for example, we work with both banks and insurance firms. In my outbound sales efforts, however, I must focus and put on one of my profile hats. If I am looking to increase my outbound lead generation with banks, I need to think about where bank CEOs spend time, what they read, their biggest problems, and what my message to them will be. LinkedIn, Google, associations, and competitors are all great resources to help you refine your prospect approach. This is not a one-time event; you should always be gathering industry information about your target.
- Do Your Research: Think about all the irrelevant emails you receive and dedicate yourself to not being one of those senders. There is a place for mass emails, but here, I’m speaking of one-to-one outbound lead generation. Once you've determined that a particular company is worthy of outreach, find out everything you can about them. If you have a resource like HubSpot, you can see other connections within the company. If you utilize ZoomInfo, you can pull down contact information and even org charts to help customize your outbound sales efforts.
- Customize Your Outreach: We are not big proponents of systematic emails – you will have a greater chance of being noticed if you customize your email or call with something you know is on your prospect’s mind. I do outbound calling for bank and insurance associations, and every single time, before I reach out, I visit their websites to see what’s new and what events they are working on. It takes time, but it makes my message more relevant. If you are working within an industry, you can use information you’ve learned from one company for another. I religiously read our industry newsletters and competitors’ marketing messages to my target as it helps me be smarter and more relevant with my outbound sales outreach.
- Don’t Expect a Response: We all know that our increasingly virtual world has increased the likelihood of being ignored. Yesterday I sent out 11 custom email outreaches and heard back from 1. Today, I will follow up with all 11 and send out 11 more. In a couple of weeks, I will reach out again, further refining my message. Some prospects never respond, which may mean they are not a prospect, or at least not right now. Your outbound sales strategy must include being resilient and persistent. Let’s face it – you have to prove your way in the door, find a connection, and give a compelling reason for that person to engage with you. Don’t expect a response, but be thrilled if you get one, and…
- Respond Quickly and Efficiently: This might go without saying, but your level of enthusiasm and timeliness in responding is critical. Don’t overwhelm the prospect with everything you have. Answer their questions and offer one additional helpful suggestion – what has worked for others is always a good idea. This is a conversation, not a sales pitch, so focus on how to help. If helping your prospect solve a problem is always your goal, your outbound sales strategy will be effective.
- Be Excellent with the Details: Try to minimize the back-and-forth communication by anticipating what the prospect will need. Make it as easy as possible for them once they are engaged. Be the resource that makes them think, "Wow, that was a great experience, and I got what I needed." Deliver what you promise, and remember the adage: don’t overpromise and underdeliver. Give them more than they asked for.
- Don’t Forget to Thank Them, Follow Up, and Build the Relationship: This may seem obvious, but think of your outbound lead generation strategy as a pipeline to others. Thank them, ask for feedback, and see if you can help in any other way. If you feel confident they were pleased, ask for a testimonial, a Google review, or an introduction to another company. If a salesperson truly understands your business, provides an excellent solution, and is easy and efficient to work with, wouldn’t you want to help them grow their business?
