As we continue to grow our software reseller channel the topic of properly prospecting business relationships has been front and center. This blog post covers an objective that may seem trivial and obvious for some, but is far too often overlooked in many business.
- Know who your business prospects are
Know Who Your Business Prospects Are
The topic of knowing the ins and outs of your potential business partners is a topic I’ve wanted to address in length over the past few blogs, but just haven’t had the chance. One thing I really want to stress is that knowing various details like what the company’s size and revenue are, who is the decision maker in that company, and what specific challenges that company is having that you want to solve, among others, is invaluable when attempting to convert prospects into valuable opportunities for your organization. When it comes time for your next partner discovery call, from my experience I strongly suggest dedicating time before the discussion to thoroughly research your prospect’s business and their customers. To achieve successful information gathering, there are several resources you can use but I will highlight the three that I find most successful:
- Master LinkedIn search
Whether you’re hunting down information about the specific company or you’re bolstering your knowledge about a general prospect archetype, social media can be a huge asset. In particular, LinkedIn offers an array of insights that B2B sales professionals can leverage. If you’re looking for contacts at a particular company, start by looking at employee profiles. In more general cases, use filtering to help you hone in on people who fit the mold at target companies – for example, Chief Marketing Officers at companies with fewer than 100 people or IT Executives at Fortune 500 businesses.
By reading the profiles of your target prospect or people that fit that profile, try to formulate some theories around the questions above as well as:
- The language and tone that they use;
- Keywords that resonate in their company;
- Big themes or focus in their career and business life;
- Key performance indicators (KPIs) that really matter;
- The brands, thought leaders, celebrities, and publications that they follow and trust;
These insights can give you fuel for conversations, introductory emails, content selection, and much more.
- Analyze their company website
Company websites provide a wealth of information about prospects; all you have to do is know where to search. The company website, as well as blog posts, social media updates, brochures and other public information are all great sources for gaining a deeper understanding of your prospect’s business. These online mediums are the company’s direct way of projecting and communicating their image to a wider audience, and gives their business more legitimacy and credibility. It’s important to read between the lines and try to determine what’s the image that the company is trying to portray? What goals and focus does their message signal as important? Some elements that I tend to look for, which can help a sales professional dig deeper and target more effectively include:
- What does the executive team look like? What do their backgrounds, stated interests, and strategic focus tell you about the company’s direction?
- Consider their “About Us” page. What does it tell you about positioning and important keywords?
- Are they regularly communicating through blogs or social status updates? If so, look at what they’re saying in the content they’re sharing. For example, content can signal when companies are focused on hiring, promoting specific product lines, increasing internal productivity, and much more.
3. Read their press release statements
When getting to know a prospect, I always look for recent press releases. What media articles have been written recently that indicates the type of business they are currently engaging in? In addition, take a look at the last several weeks; the last three to six months, even reach back as far as the past two to five years. Are there any other case studies that have been written about their work with vendors that you can learn from? By going through these releases, it provides updates and insights into how the business has been doing both in the past and in the present.
It shouldn’t come as a surprise, but being able to speak to your business prospect on their level and in simple to understand terms will allow for the conversation to go much smoother. Nothing impresses a potential partner more than if you’re able to speak to them as if you understand their pains and can in-turn offer a solution, however small it may be, that will relieve them of some of these daily pains and stresses. Put yourself in their shoes, they are likely bombarded with emails, phone calls and voices mails on a daily basis … they just don’t have the time for another boring pitch about your company’s value proposition. What sets successful sales professionals apart from the rest is their ability to go deeper than a value prop. Spend time researching and qualifying your prospect BEFORE deciding to reach out with a genuine offer that can deliver real, tangible value to both your AND their business. Win, win.
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