CONCLUSION

The Future of Predictable Prospecting

Prognostications of a dramatically different future of selling are a dime a dozen. Many so-called experts contend that companies should retool to become 100 percent inbound. They argue that by combining content creation and marketing automation, salespeople can just sit back and wait for high quality leads to land on their laps. Other pundits say that salespeople need not use the phone or e-mail for prospecting; rather, they can rely on social selling via platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook to get the job done.

We feel certain that those two futures are not our future. Sales is, always has been, and always will be about hustle. Yes, for brief periods of time, a B2B product or service may be so compelling that a great living can be made from inbound leads alone. However, savvy competitors ensure that nirvana will not last long. By the same token, a social-selling-only world is a pipe dream. Prospects use social media to build and maintain relationships, and they will abandon platforms that get too sales-y.

Current trends suggest a medium-term future that makes selling a little easier. The changes we anticipate include the following:

Data-driven tools that make it easier to develop and evolve Ideal Account Profiles (IAPs) and Ideal Prospect Personas (IPPs)

Far more accurate databases that can be used for identifying leads matching an IAP and IPP

Intra- and possibly inter-company knowledge bases of which practices are working and which are not working such as touch type and frequency, and e-mail language

Account-based selling tools that make personalization more painless

We want to leave you with the thought we started with: open-mindedness. Always be testing. It is the surest way to winning a sale.

Happy Predictable Prospecting!