{"id":93,"date":"2015-07-29T22:10:39","date_gmt":"2015-07-29T22:10:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.candelalearning.com\/salesx17xmaster\/?post_type=chapter&p=93"},"modified":"2015-07-29T22:10:39","modified_gmt":"2015-07-29T22:10:39","slug":"go-fish-resources-to-help-you-find-your-prospects","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/cerritos-sales-1\/chapter\/go-fish-resources-to-help-you-find-your-prospects\/","title":{"raw":"Go Fish: Resources to Help You Find Your Prospects","rendered":"Go Fish: Resources to Help You Find Your Prospects"},"content":{"raw":"
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<\/h2>\r\n
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Learning Objective<\/h3>\r\n
    \r\n\t
  1. Identify resources to use when prospecting.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\nIn the last section, you read that prospecting can be compared to setting up the plans and laying the foundation for a building project. You could also say that prospecting is a little like going to class or making your bed\u2014you\u2019ve got to do it, and you know that it won\u2019t be long before you\u2019re doing it again (assuming you make your bed regularly!). Because prospecting is one of those jobs that\u2019s never truly finished, it\u2019s helpful to draw on a number of sources and be creative about the places where you find your leads.\r\n
    \r\n

    Where to Find Prospects<\/h2>\r\nKnowing your ideal customer and where he or she is likely to go for information will allow you to choose the best prospecting sources for your business. It helps to be<\/em> your customer. Imagine yourself in your prospect\u2019s shoes and think about where you would go for information. For instance, if you are a photographer who specializes in professional yearbook and graduation pictures, you might want to set up a Facebook account so you can let students in local schools know about your services.[footnote]Adam Stone, \u201cDennis Kelly Photography Took a Shot with Facebook,\u201d Philadelphia Business Journal<\/em>, June 5\u201311, 2009, 10\u201311.[\/footnote]<\/span> Meanwhile, if you\u2019re in B2B sales and your ideal prospects are car dealerships in northern California, you might build up your professional network by joining the local branch of the National Auto Dealers Association or by joining some community organizations in your city.\r\n\r\nProspecting takes knowledge and creativity, so start your prospecting and qualifying with the top ten power prospecting list below. No matter what business you\u2019re in, think of this section as your GPS for finding the leads that will fuel your business growth.\r\n
    \r\n

    Top Ten Power Prospecting List<\/h3>\r\n
      \r\n\t
    1. Existing customers<\/li>\r\n\t
    2. Referrals<\/li>\r\n\t
    3. Networking and social networking<\/li>\r\n\t
    4. Business directories in print<\/li>\r\n\t
    5. Online databases and directories<\/li>\r\n\t
    6. Newspapers, trade publications, and business journals<\/li>\r\n\t
    7. Trade shows and events<\/li>\r\n\t
    8. Advertising and direct mail<\/li>\r\n\t
    9. Cold calling<\/li>\r\n\t
    10. Being a subject matter expert<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n<\/div>\r\n
      \r\n

      Power Prospecting Source #1: Existing Customers<\/h2>\r\nIt costs five times more to attract a new customer than to keep an existing customer.[footnote]Jeff Bressler, \u201cHow Much to Spend to Acquire New Customers?\u201d CEO World Magazine<\/em>, May 13, 2009, http:\/\/ceoworld.biz\/ceo\/2009\/05\/13\/hto-much-to-spend-to-acquire-new-customers<\/a> (accessed June 10, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span> So it stands to reason that your best new customers are your existing customers. Salespeople who make an effort to deliver excellent customer service during and<\/em> after a sale know the secret that some of their best prospects are the customers they already have. To keep and develop your existing customers, love them, service them, be partners with them, live and breathe in their world, understand them, and anticipate their needs, and you will succeed in sales.\r\n\r\nOne of the keys to retaining your best customers is to keep in touch with your customers\u2019 needs and update your solutions as their needs change. Say you work for a marketing company that offers a variety of services to businesses. One of your customers, a record company, is using your printing services, but they\u2019re turning to another organization for their public relations needs. If you\u2019re aware of this, your existing customer is now a prospect for additional sales. You might tell the record company, \u201cYou know, your current PR people are setting up events and concerts to increase your publicity, and that seems to be working only moderately well. If we were running your PR, we would integrate your events with a variety of other media. For instance, we think a blog would be a hugely effective tool.\u2026\u201d If the company is already a loyal customer and you let them know that you are aware of their needs and can offer a better solution, then you may very well make a new sale.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
      \r\n

      Power Prospecting Source #2: Referrals<\/h2>\r\nThere\u2019s nothing more powerful than getting information about a product or service from a friend or people you trust before you buy. Think about the last time you bought a printer. You probably checked out the customer reviews on Amazon, asked your friends, checked out some blogs, and maybe even got some insights on Twitter (in 140 characters or less). Before you bought the Hewlett-Packard (HP) OfficeJet 6310, you knew exactly what to expect from people who have bought and used the product, and you learned that if you buy it at Office Depot, you get free shipping and two free ink cartridges. Although you never shopped at Office Depot before, you were sold before you even clicked \u201cbuy now\u201d on the Office Depot\u2019s Web site. Imagine that you didn\u2019t even come in contact with HP or Office Depot. You made your purchase based solely on the information from others. The power of the referral cannot be underestimated.\r\n\r\nReferrals and word-of-mouth advertising have always been one of the most effective\u2014and cost-efficient\u2014ways to get new customers. It used to be that the circle of referrals was limited to people who used your product or service in a given geographic area. The Internet has amplified that network, especially with user-generated content such as communities, blogs, customer ratings and reviews, and social networking sites. So as a salesperson, you have to think creatively about all of resources you have to generate referrals.\r\n\r\nSeth Godin, best-selling author and entrepreneur, talks about \u201cflipping the funnel.\u201d He challenges salespeople to think about turning the sales funnel on its side, thinking of it as a megaphone, and then handing the megaphone to those who already love you. He suggests that when many of your customers enter into the conversation on Web sites such as Digg, Flickr, and Delicious, the power of your message gets even stronger, and new referrals find you.[footnote]Seth Godin, \u201cHow to Flip the Sales Funnel,\u201d video, Selling Power<\/em>, http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=McmEyr0oWew<\/a> (accessed June 9, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span>\r\n
      <\/div>\r\nWant to see how it works? When Naked Pizza, a small takeout and delivery operation in New Orleans, decided they wanted to compete with the city\u2019s chain pizza places, they turned to their existing customer base for sales prospects by putting their Twitter address on every pizza box that went out the door. As Jeff, Randy, and Brock, the company\u2019s founders put it, \u201cEven your most core customers must be continually and softly nudged.\u201d[footnote]Jeff Leach, Randy Crochet, and Brock Fillinger, \u201cHow One Small Business Uses Twitter to Build Its Brand,\u201d Advertising Age<\/em>, May 29, 2009, http:\/\/adage.com<\/a> (accessed June 9, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span> The prospecting effort has been a huge success with their existing customers posting tweets that have introduced the brand to new customers. The Twitter-enabled follow-ups allowed Naked Pizza to continue the conversation and ensure that a greater number of first-time buyers become repeat customers\u2014and that they<\/em> spread the word to more new customers. Talk about a megaphone!\r\n\r\nWhether you sell pizza or insurance, if your existing customers are happy, they\u2019re usually happy to refer you to their friends, online or offline. Consider Flycaster & Company, a Florida-based branding and advertising agency for businesses. For a number of years now, almost 100 percent of the firm\u2019s new customers have been referred to them by friends and colleagues. According to John Spence, one of the company\u2019s managers, referrals are the \u201cbest possible\u201d source of prospects for any B2B business.[footnote]John Spence, \u201cSeven Steps to Successful B2B Marketing,\u201d John Spence Blog, comment posted October 31, 2007, http:\/\/johnspence.com\/blog\/?p=52<\/a> (accessed June 9, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span>\r\n\r\nSo let your customers speak for you. Their voices will be heard by people you could never reach.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
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      Power Prospecting Source #3: Networking and Social Networking<\/h2>\r\nNetworking works.\r\n\r\nThe art of networking, developing mutually beneficial relationships, can be a valuable prospecting tool, not only for retaining old prospects, but also for connecting with new ones. The larger and more diverse your network becomes, the bigger your pool of potential prospects. Your networking connections often become sources of referrals for your business, just as you will become a referral source for theirs.\r\n\r\nIf you\u2019re a member of the American Chemical Society and you work for a chemical supply company, you might use your membership to get acquainted with chemists who work at a variety of labs. You could offer them your card and let them know that you provide supply discounts for fellow Chemical Society members. Now these prospects will be more likely to buy their chemical supplies from you than from a company or individual with whom they have no personal connection. If one of your customers needs a chemist with a particular specialty, you, in turn, will be able to refer him to someone in your network. Joining a professional trade association is one simple way to network with others in your field, or with prospects in your target industry.\r\n\r\nIf your business is location specific, joining community organizations can also be a valuable tool for connecting with local business leaders and prospects. Consider service organizations (like the Rotary Club), fraternity organizations, and other affinity groups that will allow you to build relationships with members of the community.\r\n\r\nWhat about social networking? You\u2019re probably well acquainted with online social networking sites like Facebook or MySpace, but you may be less familiar with the ways people leverage these tools in a professional capacity. According to professional networking expert Clara Shih, online social networks can be an effective means of prospecting for sales with organizations. After all, the decision makers at any organization are individuals<\/em> with whom you can build relationships (remember, you learned in Chapter 3 \"The Power of Building Relationships: Putting Adaptive Selling to Work\" that even though it\u2019s called business-to-business, buying decisions are made person-to-person, so relationships matter).[footnote]Clara Shih, The Facebook Era<\/em> (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2009), 2.[\/footnote]<\/span> By connecting socially with key individuals, not only can you open lines of communications with potential customers, but you can also build your knowledge of your prospect base.\r\n\r\nProfessional networking sites like LinkedIn are increasingly important as well. (In fact, the Selling U<\/em> section of this chapter includes information about how you can use professional social networking sites to help you network to find a job.) And there are many industry-specific networking sites you can join, like Sermo for doctors or INmobile.org for people in the wireless industry.[footnote]Jessica E. Vascellaro, \u201cSocial Networking Goes Professional,\u201d Wall Street Journal<\/em>, August 28, 2007, http:\/\/online.wsj.com\/article\/SB118825239984310205.html<\/a> (accessed June 9, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span> Your profile on professional networking sites becomes a tool for selling yourself as a brand. These sites allow you to list your education, professional experience, and testimonials from satisfied customers, and as you add contacts, you become connected to their contacts, allowing your network to grow.[footnote]Clara Shih, The Facebook Era<\/em> (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2009), 2.[\/footnote]<\/span>\r\n
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      Link<\/h3>\r\nThis article includes examples of how some major companies are using Twitter to drive sales.\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.sellingpower.com\/content\/newsletter\/issue.php?pc=1007<\/a>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n
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      Power Prospecting Source #4: Business Directories in Print<\/h2>\r\n
      \r\n\r\nFigure 7.5<\/span>\r\n\r\n\"image\"<\/a>\r\n\r\nAmerican City Business Journals publish the Book of Lists<\/em> in cities across the country. The book includes lists of local companies by category including fastest-growing privately held companies, women-owned companies, nonprofit organizations, and more. The book is also available online at http:\/\/www.bizjournals.com<\/a>.\r\n
      \r\n\r\nSource: Philadelphia Business Journal<\/em>, used with permission.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\nForget Google for a minute. It might surprise you to know that your local library can actually be a potential goldmine for finding prospects in B2B sales. If you spend even twenty minutes with a knowledgeable librarian, he can point you to business lists, journals, and business directories that will help you generate a pool of leads to contact. Your ideal customer profile is an important guiding tool here.\r\n\r\nIf you want customer information that\u2019s location specific<\/strong>, check out your local chamber of commerce listing. It\u2019s one of the best sources for finding local businesses. If the listing is not at the local library, chances are the librarian will have the contact information for the chamber office.\r\n\r\nYou can also review business lists and directories published by local newspapers and regional business journals. Local newspapers and their Web sites often provide listings of local businesses along with key information about the company. Also, the Book of Lists<\/em> is published locally by the American City Business Journals in several cities\u2014for example, the Philadelphia Business Journal<\/em> publishes the Book of Lists<\/em> for the Philadelphia, South Jersey, and Delaware area. It is a book that includes lists of companies organized by groupings. For instance, the fastest-growing companies, minority-owned businesses, and lists of companies by industry such as video production companies, health care companies, public relations agencies, law firms, and more are included with the contact information, profiles, and key facts for specific businesses in your state or city. You can generally find these books at your local library, and they\u2019re an excellent source for digging up prospects that most closely match your ideal profile. Business lists are also published by other business journals such as Crain\u2019s<\/em> in some key cities or are available online (also see Power Prospecting Source #6: Trade Journals and Business Journals below).\r\n\r\nIf you want to search businesses by industry<\/strong>, ask a reference librarian to help you look up the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)<\/span><\/span> code and the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)<\/span><\/span> code that most closely matches your ideal prospect\u2019s business\u2014or access the indexes online, and bring the codes with you to the library. NAICS and SIC codes are numbering systems that classify businesses by their particular industry, so they can be valuable search criteria to mine general business directories (e.g., Ward\u2019s Business Directory of U.S. Private and Public Companies<\/em>) for specific kinds of companies. For example, you could use the SIC code 6371 to find all businesses that deal with pension, health, and welfare funds.[footnote]Occupational Health and Safety Administration, \u201cSIC Search,\u201d United States Department of Labor, http:\/\/www.osha.gov\/pls\/imis\/sic_manual.display?id=56&tab=group<\/a> (accessed June 9, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span> You can also search through industry-specific<\/em> directories like the Standard Directory of Advertisers<\/em>, and you can check out professional trade associations<\/span><\/span> related to your prospect profile. These organizations, whose members all operate in a particular industry, are especially good places to look if your ideal prospect is a smaller business because smaller businesses and individuals are the most likely to join. Ask your librarian if she can access a copy of Gale\u2019s Encyclopedia of Associations<\/em>, which lists more than 160,000 trade organizations. Finding a relevant association should be no problem, as you can find a professional organization for virtually any industry you can think of. Even the pecan shellers of America have a professional association![footnote]David Whitford, \u201cBuilt by Association,\u201d Inc.<\/em>, July 1994, http:\/\/www.inc.com\/magazine\/19940701\/3005.html<\/a> (accessed June 10, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span>\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
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      Power Prospecting Source #5: Online Databases and Directories<\/h2>\r\nGoing to the library can be hugely helpful because it gives you access to people who are pros at finding information. Also, the added<\/em> perk is that your library will probably give you free access to several online business directories and databases.[footnote]Boston Public Library, \u201cDirectories on the Internet,\u201d http:\/\/www.bpl.org\/research\/kbb\/websites\/dirs.htm<\/a> (accessed February 15, 2010).[\/footnote]<\/span> Of course you can search these directories from the comfort of your own home or office, but if you want the deluxe package\u2014the most up-to-date directories that cover industries of all types nationwide\u2014you\u2019ll have to pay a price. Online business directories, such as those listed in the table below, are searchable by industry and will give you access to company contact info, number of employees, financial standing, industry rankings, names of executives, and other company profile information. Most of these directories allow you to search businesses by SIC or NAICS codes.\r\n\r\nSo how do you know which business directory to use? For one thing, it helps to know whether your ideal prospect would be a private company or a public company or whether it could be either. Is your ideal prospect a large organization that attracts top executives? In this case, you\u2019ll mostly be searching for public companies<\/span><\/span>\u2014companies that sell stocks and bonds to the general public. Public companies are required to file financial information and other company reports with the U.S. government, so these organizations are easier to find in general business directories, and their directory listings usually provide more detailed company information.[footnote]Center for Business Research, \u201cPublic vs. Private Companies,\u201d Long Island University, http:\/\/www2.liu.edu\/cwis\/cwp\/library\/cbr\/publicvprivate.htm<\/a> (accessed June 10, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span> However, not all large companies are publicly owned. State Farm Insurance and Cargill Foods, for example, are both private companies.[footnote]\u201cAbout Hoovers Handbook of Private Companies 2009,\u201d Hoovers, http:\/\/images.hoovers.com\/images\/i\/books\/lookinside.pv2009.pdf<\/a> (accessed June 10, 2009).[\/footnote]<\/span> If you\u2019re only interested in smaller, local businesses, you will be dealing with private companies<\/span><\/span>, or companies that aren\u2019t owned by the public. In this case, some directories and databases will be more helpful to you than others.\r\n\r\nAnother thing to consider is whether you want the option to refine your search to include a number of criteria closely matching your ideal prospect profile. Several online databases allow you to input multiple search terms like location, company size, and minimum and maximum sales volumes.\r\n
      \r\n\r\nTable 7.1<\/span> Online Databases and Directories for Prospecting\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
      Database or Directory<\/th>\r\nGood source for private companies<\/th>\r\nGood source for public companies<\/th>\r\nDescription<\/th>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/thead>\r\n
      \n\ninfoUSA<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/home.infousa.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
      \n\nDialog<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.dialog.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • Allows researchers to perform advanced searches based on a number of criteria, such as company financial information, industry trends, and market research.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Option for subscription to automatic news alerts that will keep you up-to-date on your target industries and prospects.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nBizjournals<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.bizjournals.com\/bizjournals\/sales_ marketing\/prospecting<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • Offers several directories that are searchable by industry.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Allows you to subscribe to company-specific and industry-specific e-mail alerts.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Option to create a customized prospect list by specific search criteria.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Provides access to local Books of Lists for location-specific company profiles.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nHoovers<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.hoovers.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • For B2B<\/strong>: Contains directories that are searchable by industry, region, and other characteristics; also provides detailed information about companies including address, phone number, key decision makers, financial data, business strategy, competitive information, and more.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • For B2C<\/strong>: Provides phone and e-mail contact lists for consumers by criteria like income, geography, and\/or interest.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nStandard & Poor\u2019s<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.netadvantage. standardandpoors.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • Directory that is searchable by a number of criteria, including NAICS code.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Has data on more than 85,000 private companies.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Includes biographies of corporate executives and directors.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nD&B Million Dollar Database<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.dnbmdd.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • Searchable by several criteria, including NAICS and SIC codes.<\/li>\r\n\t
      • Option to create a customized prospect list by specific search criteria.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nD&B Prospector<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.dnb.com\/us\/dbproducts\/sales_marketing\/find.html<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • Option to search using over thirty-five search criteria to create an ideal prospect profile as a search tool.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nMergent Online<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.mergentonline.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n
        \r\n\t
      • Directory that includes domestic and international annual reports from 1996 to the present.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n
      \n\nDirectory of Corporate Affiliations<\/strong>\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.corporate affiliations.com<\/a><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\u2714<\/strong><\/td>\r\n\r\n