Modern Prospecting Techniques That Create More Sales Opportunities [Live AMA]
The sales graveyard is littered with reps who failed to adapt their prospecting approach. If you‘re still treating buyers like it‘s 1999, don‘t be surprised when your pipeline dries up faster than the Sahara.
Consider these stats:
- The average cold call close rate is less than 2%. (Source)
- 78% of decision makers have taken an appointment or attended an event that came from a cold email or cold call. (Source)
- 50% of buyers want reps to address their business needs in the first outreach. (Source)
- 55% of top sales reps leverage social networks as part of their sales strategy. (Source)
The writing is on the wall: To win in today‘s selling environment, you need to modernize your prospecting game. Buyers expect personalized, insight-driven outreach across multiple channels. One-size-fits-all pitches just don‘t cut it anymore.
But what exactly does modern prospecting entail? Which techniques actually move the needle? How can you fill your pipeline with more qualified opportunities?
We‘ve got you covered. Join our live AMA on May 10 at 1pm with two of the most in-the-know sales leaders out there: Sales Hacker CEO Max Altschuler and HubSpot CRO Mark Roberge. They‘ll share the cutting-edge prospecting strategies and tools that are generating real results in 2021.
In the meantime, level up with this guide to the modern prospecting techniques every rep must master.
Upgrade to Ultra-Personalized, Multi-Touch Outreach
Let‘s be real. If your idea of prospecting is blasting out templated emails or cold calling strangers, you might as well be shouting into the void.
Today‘s buyers are inundated with generic sales messages. The average office worker receives 121 emails per day. (Source) Meanwhile, we‘re exposed to 6,000-10,000 ads daily across channels. (Source)
To cut through the noise, you need to engage prospects with hyper-relevant, carefully timed outreach across multiple touchpoints. This is where having a robust tech stack comes into play.
Turbocharge Your Prospecting with Tech
The right sales tools can help you deliver the right message to the right prospect at the right time – all while gathering valuable intel to tailor your approach. Here are a few essential categories:
| Category | Description | Top Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Sales Engagement | Streamline and scale personalized outreach across channels | SalesLoft, Outreach |
| Conversational Sales | Engage prospects in real-time on your website | Drift, Intercom |
| LinkedIn Selling | Build targeted prospect lists and gather sales intelligence | Sales Navigator |
| Video Prospecting | Create and share custom videos to stand out in the inbox | Vidyard, BombBomb |
| Intent Data | Surface accounts that are actively researching your solution | 6sense, Bombora |
The key is to use these tools to execute highly targeted, multi-touch campaigns. For example:
- Day 1: Personalized email referencing their recent funding round
- Day 3: LinkedIn connection request with note about their hiring plans
- Day 5: Customized landing page with content tailored to their industry
- Day 7: "Selfie" style video sharing a customer case study similar to their use case
- Day 10: Phone call acknowledging other priorities and offering to help
See how that‘s more effective than five generic emails in a row? By layering in multiple personalized touchpoints, you build familiarity and credibility with the prospect over time.
Unleash the Power of Social Selling
Repeat after me: LinkedIn is your best friend. The professional network has evolved far beyond a digital resume repository. It‘s now a goldmine for uncovering decision-makers and engaging them in a way that feels natural, not forced.
Consider these stats:
- 75% of B2B buyers use social media to make purchasing decisions. (Source)
- 62% of B2B buyers respond to salespeople who connect with relevant insights and opportunities. (Source)
- 92% of B2B buyers engage with sellers who are known industry thought leaders. (Source)
To excel at social selling, do more than just connect with prospects. Provide value at every turn:
- Share content that educates them on industry trends and best practices
- Comment on their posts with relevant insights or anecdotes
- Join LinkedIn groups where your buyer persona is active and contribute to discussions
- Direct message them with a personalized note and content that speaks to their goals
- Set up social listening alerts for buying signals like job changes or company expansions
Remember, social selling is a marathon, not a sprint. Focus on building genuine relationships over time vs. going in for the hard sell right off the bat.
Prioritize Pipeline Quality, Not Just Quantity
Many reps make the mistake of equating prospecting activity with prospecting success. But more calls and emails doesn‘t always equal more revenue. In fact, HubSpot found that increasing the number of quality deals is 4x more valuable to the bottom line than increasing the number of deals overall. (Source)
Modern prospecting is about being laser-focused on your ideal customer profile (ICP). You want to spend the majority of your time engaging prospects that closely resemble your best customers.
How do you define your ICP? Look for common characteristics among your most successful clients:
- Firmographics: Industry, company size, location
- Business model: B2B vs. B2C, product vs. services
- Technology: CRM, marketing automation, competitor solutions
- Triggers: Funding, leadership changes, industry events
- Intent: Research behavior, content downloads, trial signups
Once you have a tight ICP, you can implement account-based strategies to penetrate those high-value targets. Collaborate with marketing to surround decision-makers at each account with hyper-relevant content and interactions.
Here‘s an example account-based cadence:
| Touchpoint | Description |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | Personalized email to each stakeholder referencing company initiative |
| Day 3 | LinkedIn InMail to decision-maker sharing relevant case study |
| Day 5 | Targeted ads displaying across stakeholders‘ feeds |
| Day 7 | Champion-building call with influencer to secure internal sell |
| Day 10 | Handwritten note to executive sponsor with custom ROI analysis |
| Day 14 | Invitation to exclusive virtual event for target account cohort |
The beauty of an account-based approach is that your prospecting, marketing, and selling efforts are completely aligned around the same set of high-priority accounts. That means a seamless buying experience for the customer and more closed-won deals for you.
Integrate Prospecting into the Full Revenue Cycle
Savvy sales orgs recognize that prospecting isn‘t a standalone activity. To predictably grow revenue, your prospecting process must tightly align with the rest of your sales and marketing motions.
Think of your revenue cycle as a three-stage playbook:
- Top of Funnel: Marketing builds brand awareness and surfaces hand-raisers through inbound campaigns.
- Middle of Funnel: SDRs convert marketing qualified leads into sales qualified leads and book meetings for AEs.
- Bottom of Funnel: AEs run deep discovery, demo the product, and get verbal commitment to close.
Prospecting plays a key role in advancing buyers through each of these stages – not just in initially filling the pipeline. Reps must continuously nurture prospects with relevant information until they‘re ready to buy.
To keep deals moving, create a standardized prospecting cadence for each funnel stage. Define the optimal number and type of touches (calls, emails, social, etc.) and time between each attempt. Test different messaging for each persona and buying scenario.
Most importantly, arm reps with content to enable the buyer at every step. Develop talk tracks, email templates, social posts, blog articles, case studies, webinars, and more – all laser-focused on your ICP‘s needs and objectives.
To measure success, establish key performance indicators (KPIs) for each prospecting activity:
| Metric | Formula | Benchmark |
|---|---|---|
| Lead-to-Opportunity Rate | (Opportunities / Leads) * 100 | 13% (Source) |
| Opportunity Win Rate | (Won Opps / Total Opps) * 100 | 28% (Source) |
| Average Deal Size | Total Bookings / Number of Deals | Varies by industry |
| Sales Cycle Length | Total Days to Close / Number of Deals | 84 Days (Source) |
| Customer Acquisition Cost | (Total Sales & Marketing Costs) / New Customers Added | Varies by company |
Regularly review these metrics to pinpoint what‘s working and what‘s not. Have open, honest conversations about performance with your revenue leadership. Be willing to pivot your prospecting approach if you‘re not hitting your goals.
How Top Sales Teams are Crushing It with Modern Prospecting
Need some real-world inspiration? Check out how these companies are putting modern prospecting into practice:
-
Gong: This revenue intelligence platform uses video across the entire sales cycle to stand out. Their popular "Gong Labs" series has reps sharing tips and insights to build credibility with prospects.
-
Sendoso: Sendoso helps companies send hyper-personalized gifts to buyers. Their own reps use the platform to deliver custom sends as part of their prospecting flow.
-
Snowflake: The cloud data leader has mastered the alignment between sales and marketing. Reps leverage intent data to prioritize in-market accounts, while marketing serves up tailor-made content to enable the sale.
Want to dive deeper with these companies and other modern selling trailblazers? Save your seat for our live AMA on May 10 at 1pm EST. Sales Hacker CEO Max Altschuler and HubSpot CRO Mark Roberge will spill their secrets on the most effective prospecting techniques and technologies in the new sales era.
Get Out There and Start Prospecting Like a Pro
Upgrading your prospecting game may feel overwhelming. But you don‘t have to overhaul everything overnight. Start small with these quick wins:
- Define your ICP and tier your target account list.
- Optimize your LinkedIn profile for social selling.
- Script 2-3 personalized email templates for each persona.
- Record a custom intro video for your top prospect.
- Partner with marketing on a 1:1 account campaign.
- Shadow your most successful rep‘s prospecting calls.
- Join a sales bootcamp to uplevel your skills.
The key is to not stay stagnant. Commit to trying at least one new prospecting technique each week. Track your activity and measure what moves the needle. Regularly revisit your approach to ensure it maps to modern buyer preferences and behaviors.
Conclusion: Adapt Your Prospecting or Get Left Behind
Let‘s not sugarcoat it. Prospecting today is harder than ever. Buyers are busy, bombarded, and hyper-aware of sales tactics. They expect tailored, value-added interactions at every touchpoint. Old-school spray-and-pray doesn‘t stand a chance.
You can either adapt your approach or watch your pipeline evaporate. Reps who leverage the latest tools, techniques, and training will run laps around those clinging to dated practices. The choice is yours.
Ready to catapult your prospecting into the modern age? Join our live AMA on May 10 at 1pm EST. Come armed with your burning questions on everything from social selling to sales automation. It‘s time to turn prospecting from your biggest hurdle into your greatest strength.
See you there!
