I’ve always been one of those salespeople who prefers to pick low hanging fruit wherever, and whenever, possible. Why climb tall trees if you can avoid it? Then, after all that, you get to the top only to find … no fruit!
I started my B2B sales career knocking on doors. 30 cold calls per day and just about every day. It was pretty brutal. We knew nothing of telemarketing in those days and I pity the poor soul who may have to dial hundreds of calls per day. I think that I would rather slit my own throat.
These are classic cases of focusing on one KPI. Make enough calls and, eventually, you will find some fruit. Ratios of calls to closed business were always, imho, abysmal. I would much rather concentrate my efforts on those deals that have the highest likelihood of success. My kinda’ deals.
In fact, when I had decided to just do sales after spending just about my entire career in sales management, after canvassing the area for potential opportunities, I tore that list up!
Instead I became adept at identifying trigger events that would typically create opportunities, sometimes urgent, for my services. A new business, for example, is probably going to want and need a new sign.
I also became very good at identifying power partners who are non-competing individuals who would be calling on the same target market that I was trying to reach. As examples, commercial realtors, office furnishings, voice and data, and moving services. All of these folks focus on … new business.
Nowadays, my product is Nimble CRM training and implementation services. While I can identify my ideal client profile, solopreneurs and small sales teams, that is still a very wide target to hit. I need to narrow that down and I can do that using some of the same techniques that I used in the electric signage industry.
I choose to chase vertical markets that I know very well as well as to create those power partner relationships that will connect me with those folks who may be in need of my services. Knowing an industry puts me in a position where I can speak their language and I am familiar with their challenges. Advantage Craig.
Partnering with other consultants leverages the power of referrals and who doesn’t like a great referral! It becomes even more important that I be able to refer my partners as well as having them refer to me. It’s always a two way street. In fact, you will see some of my partners below!
Please be sure to check out these top 100 sales blogs on Feedspot. I am honored to be one of them!
Are you thinking about a CRM? If you would like to explore whether or not Nimble CRM might be right for you, please book a free 30-minute Zoom consultation with me by going to my calendar. To learn more about our Nimble training and implementation services, please visit our Nimble CRM training services page.
In addition to Nimble CRM, I also offer sales training and training on LinkedIn as well as getting started with AI (Artificial Intelligence). I can even assist with hiring new salespeople with initial interviews and training.
I would also be happy to connect you to a marketing professional who I know and trust or to an automated yet personalized and human-to-human LinkedIn prospecting system. Please reach out to me at craig@adaptive-business.com for an introduction!
Craig M. Jamieson
Latest posts by Craig M. Jamieson (see all)
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