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Casual Articles - What Makes A Qualified Prospect Qualified
As a service provider, the most important type of “boundary” you can set as a business owner involves those policies and procedures that govern how you interact with your clients. The more precise you can be about the services you provide, your fee structure, and what you expect from your clients, the smoother your work relationships will be. And the most effective way to make sure that each party involved understands these policies -- and that there is no confusion -- is to have each client read and sign a written contract.WHY HAVE A CONTRACTSome entrepreneurs will enter into working relationships without the benefit of a contract. Certainly, as an business owner, you are welcome to do whatever you wish. However, I would caution you against this practice for a couple of reasons. First, you are setting your customers up for confusion about your business policies down the road. Having each client sign a contract before beginning work allows you to make sure they understand how you work, your pricing structure, and any other pertinent information up front. A contract also gives you a measure of protection if a client fails to uphold his or her end of the bargain -- sometimes the mere mention of a contract is enough to keep your clients in line. Finally, a contract adds a measure of professionalism to your business. People tend to take a businessperson more seriously when he or she pulls out a well-written
Who is favoring the other company's solution and why?
What is it Mrs. Prospect likes or dislikes about their current supplier?
If Mr. Prospect had a wish list and could have or change anything he wanted with their current or a potential supplier, what would be on the list?
Locations
Are decisions centralized (one location makes the decision for all locations) or decentralized (each location decides for themselves)?
How many locations, subsidiaries, partners, alliances and/or joint ventures are there and do we do business with any of them?
Is it possible to sell your solution on an enterprise wide basis rather than a departmental or business unit basis?
Do any other locations have an existing relationship with your company, partners or affiliates?
Confidence
Does Mr. Prospect trust you?
Have you established credibility?
Does Mrs. Prospect know the company you represent?
Does Mr. Prospect believe you sincerely have their best interests at heart?
Does Mrs. Prospect have confidence in your company's ability to provide them with and support your solution that works?
Resources
Does Mr. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to conduct an evaluation?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to prepare a cost justification?
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget available or access to discretionary funds?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the right physical environment for your solution?
What are the bare minimum requirements for your product or service to work?
Next Steps
After summarizing your conversation, follow up with a next step question such as:
"What's next?" or "What's the next step?"
"Where do we go from here?"
"If we had a solution that would help you do a better job than your current solution what is the process you go through to look at new solutions?"
"What do we need to
Many people are out there looking for a job. A local job search can often be difficult. But did you know you can do a local job search right from your own home? You can even do a local job search without even having to get up from your chair. How do you do a local job search? What's the best way to do a local job search? Let's go over some of the methods.The first way people usually do a local job search is from a newspaper. This is not always the best way to do a local job search, but it is commonly used. The first way to do this local job search is to get your local newspaper. You can either have it delivered to your home or purchase it a grocery store or gas station. You then open your newspaper to the classified section and start your local job search. The jobs are sectioned off by their designated fields such as: legal, medical, labor, drivers, sales, etc. Before you start this local job search, you may want to have a resume already made.The most popular form of a local job search is to go online and do a local job search. There are several websites that offer a local job search. I find the easiest website to use for a local job search to be careerbuilders.com. At this website you begin your local job search by first creating a resume. You can either copy and paste a resume you have already created or you can use the websites free resume builder. You can save up to 5. Next you begin the l
Am I using a consistent sales system or process to successfully obtain the information needed? Here are 17 areas with questions you may want to ask yourself so you can create a qualified prospect profile also known as an Account Sales Profile(tm).
Basic Demographics
Ask yourself "Which type of organization do I make the most money when I make a sale?" Is it a company with 10 employees or 100 employees? Does the company have over $10 million in gross sales or over $100 million in gross sales?
Are most of my customers in the Retail Industry or the Financial Industry? What types of organizations will provide the highest payoff in return for your limited amount of selling time?
In summary, what are the demographics of your most profitable accounts in terms of...
> Industry Verticals (such as Software, Printing, Frozen Foods, etc.)
> Total Gross Sales
> Total Number of Employees
> Products, Services or Solutions
Business Practices
How does the account currently conduct business?
Where is Mr. Prospect now?
How did the Mrs. Prospect conduct business in the past?
What is the Mr. Prospect's future strategic direction?
Where does Mrs. Prospect want to be?
How does the Mr. Prospect plan to get there?
Needs, Problems, Challenges, Critical Business Issues, Pains or Drivers
Is there a perceived or unperceived need for your solution?
What are the needs, challenges or problems Mrs. Prospect facing?
What is keeping them up at night?
What is required to solve the problem and does your solution fit the bill?
Is Mr. Prospect actively searching for a solution, which you can provide?
Does Mrs. Prospect have any current or future business initiatives?
Has Mr. Prospect expressed an interest in what you have to offer?
Does Mrs. Prospect have a compelling business issue that needs to be solved?
Is Mr. Prospect using outdated products and services, which may need to be replaced?
Is there a need for a specific product or service but Mrs. Prospect can't afford the time or money or man hours to build their own solution?
Is Mr. Prospect using some type of solution and not yet seeing business results?
Is Mrs. Prospect starting to look at competitors?
Has a specific person been assigned to find a solution to a specific need?
Does your Mr. Prospect have a serious intention to buy or are they just being time wasters or tire kickers or a just send me something?
Time-frames
What are the time-frames for...
The RFI or RFP or RFQ (Request for Information, Proposal or Quote)
Evaluation period
Decision date
Roll-out of a pilot solution
Implementation of an enterprise wide solution
Budget
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget already set aside?
Can Mrs. Prospect get it from someone else's budget or next year's budget?
At what level are further sign-offs required? ($10,000, $50,000? 100,000?)
What amount is budgeted for a solution?
Is there a deadline where Mr. Prospect will lose the budget or funding (usually in schools or government organizations)?
Good Fit
Does your solution make good business sense?
Can we establish an ongoing relationship?
Have you calculated the ROI (Return on Investment)?
What is the Net Payback Period or how fast will the solution pay for itself?
Have you created a cost justification (Cost over time versus Savings over Time)?
What would make them smile?
Is Mr. Prospect's business growing or is in or headed for trouble?
Has the account bought into the vision or proposed solution?
Can our solution help Mrs. Prospect produce tangible or measurable results to calculate a ROI?
Is there a fit with the current products and services in use or will additional products and services be required?
Is the Mr. Prospect willing take specific action(s) towards a solution?
Evaluation Criteria
What is the evaluation criterion, if any? Will they fax it to you?
Do you have a criterion you can provide them with?
The final decision is based on what factors?
Is there an agreement on what is important or what is of value?
Have evaluation criteria been defined?
Business Impact
What is the cost of inaction or taking the wrong action?
What are the consequences or penalties if the account does not take action by a certain date?
What is the cost of losing a customer?
What is the cost of acquiring a customer?
How much would an addition to the head count cost?
What is the cost of shopping cart abandonment in their web store?
What is the cost of additional training and the time spent away from the job while learning?
Have you calculated the cost of the business impact?
What does Mrs. Prospect personally stand to gain or lose if a solution is or is not implemented?
Processes
What are the exact evaluation, budgeting and decision-making processes?
Who does the negotiating?
What is negotiable and what is non-negotiable?
Who signs the final Agreement?
What are the payment terms (Net 15, Net 30, etc.)?
Is a purchase order required?
People
Who will be involved or influence the final decision?
This can be one or different individuals.
Is there an individual (or individuals) that understands the value of your product or service, but has not found a good fit yet?
Have all the key stakeholders been identified and contacted?
Are you speaking with the correct contact, which, assuming you have the right solution, has the authority to buy?
Do you know how much authority Mr. Prospect has before further approvals are required?
Who are the decision-makers, evaluators, influencers, and end users of your potential solution?
Final Decision Maker(s) signs the check.
Motivation: What is the effect on our bottom line?
Evaluator(s) screens out and says no.
Motivation: What is the best solution that meets our needs?
Guide(s) want to help guide you through the process.
Motivation: I like your solution. How can I help you get your solution as the one chosen?
End User(s) are concerned about the effect on them and their job.
Motivation: Will it make my job easier or harder?
Initiator(s) want to look good.
Motivation: How can I show that I did a good job of gathering information?
Purchasing/Legal/Contracts are responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions.
Motivation: How can we get the most favorable terms and conditions for our company (i.e. additional discounts, extra technical support or consulting services, lower pricing, more training or extra sets of documentation, better payment terms, guarantees, etc.)?
Organizational Chart
What is the formal and informal organizational structure?
Who reports to whom?
Who influences whom?
Who are the counterparts, back-ups, peers and subordinates?
Who are the assistants?
Do you have all names and titles spelled correctly?
Do you have the correct street address (room, floor, suite, mail code, etc.),
e-mail addresses, fax numbers and extensions?
What are the responsibilities of each of your contacts?
Products and services
What types of products and services are currently in use?
Does the prospect have the necessary people, time, money and equipment in place or available to implement your solution?
Could the correct environment to support your solution be put in place?
Competition
What other companies are also being considered and why?
Who is favoring the other company's solution and why?
What is it Mrs. Prospect likes or dislikes about their current supplier?
If Mr. Prospect had a wish list and could have or change anything he wanted with their current or a potential supplier, what would be on the list?
Locations
Are decisions centralized (one location makes the decision for all locations) or decentralized (each location decides for themselves)?
How many locations, subsidiaries, partners, alliances and/or joint ventures are there and do we do business with any of them?
Is it possible to sell your solution on an enterprise wide basis rather than a departmental or business unit basis?
Do any other locations have an existing relationship with your company, partners or affiliates?
Confidence
Does Mr. Prospect trust you?
Have you established credibility?
Does Mrs. Prospect know the company you represent?
Does Mr. Prospect believe you sincerely have their best interests at heart?
Does Mrs. Prospect have confidence in your company's ability to provide them with and support your solution that works?
Resources
Does Mr. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to conduct an evaluation?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to prepare a cost justification?
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget available or access to discretionary funds?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the right physical environment for your solution?
What are the bare minimum requirements for your product or service to work?
Next Steps
After summarizing your conversation, follow up with a next step question such as:
"What's next?" or "What's the next step?"
"Where do we go from here?"
"If we had a solution that would help you do a better job than your current solution what is the process you go through to look at new solutions?"
"What do we need to
When consumers interested in becoming an Internet affiliate marketer begin researching the world of opportunity it can provide, the first thing that may come to mind is running a web site that links to places like eBay or Amazon, and that their profits will rely on other consumers purchasing a book or CD, or being involved in online auctions. Another misconception with Internet affiliate marketing is that you sell a product once and your moneymaking opportunity with that one customer ends with that single sale.While money can be made through those methods, there is another side of affiliate marketing called residual affiliate marketing, where you can earn continual money from the same customers on a recurring basis. Simply by linking to a site that requires a membership fee, such as personals sites and gym memberships, you’ll earn a commission when the customer signs up as well as each time they pay their membership fee.Web sites that require memberships have differing membership billing options; some require monthly membership fees, some require annual membership fees, etc. This means you could potentially receive residual commissions from one customer for years to come if they stay a member. Of course, if they cancel their membership after only one month, you will receive only one month’s commission, which is why it is of utmost importance to link to quality membership web sites, should you decide to promote m
Has Mr. Prospect expressed an interest in what you have to offer?
Does Mrs. Prospect have a compelling business issue that needs to be solved?
Is Mr. Prospect using outdated products and services, which may need to be replaced?
Is there a need for a specific product or service but Mrs. Prospect can't afford the time or money or man hours to build their own solution?
Is Mr. Prospect using some type of solution and not yet seeing business results?
Is Mrs. Prospect starting to look at competitors?
Has a specific person been assigned to find a solution to a specific need?
Does your Mr. Prospect have a serious intention to buy or are they just being time wasters or tire kickers or a just send me something?
Time-frames
What are the time-frames for...
The RFI or RFP or RFQ (Request for Information, Proposal or Quote)
Evaluation period
Decision date
Roll-out of a pilot solution
Implementation of an enterprise wide solution
Budget
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget already set aside?
Can Mrs. Prospect get it from someone else's budget or next year's budget?
At what level are further sign-offs required? ($10,000, $50,000? 100,000?)
What amount is budgeted for a solution?
Is there a deadline where Mr. Prospect will lose the budget or funding (usually in schools or government organizations)?
Good Fit
Does your solution make good business sense?
Can we establish an ongoing relationship?
Have you calculated the ROI (Return on Investment)?
What is the Net Payback Period or how fast will the solution pay for itself?
Have you created a cost justification (Cost over time versus Savings over Time)?
What would make them smile?
Is Mr. Prospect's business growing or is in or headed for trouble?
Has the account bought into the vision or proposed solution?
Can our solution help Mrs. Prospect produce tangible or measurable results to calculate a ROI?
Is there a fit with the current products and services in use or will additional products and services be required?
Is the Mr. Prospect willing take specific action(s) towards a solution?
Evaluation Criteria
What is the evaluation criterion, if any? Will they fax it to you?
Do you have a criterion you can provide them with?
The final decision is based on what factors?
Is there an agreement on what is important or what is of value?
Have evaluation criteria been defined?
Business Impact
What is the cost of inaction or taking the wrong action?
What are the consequences or penalties if the account does not take action by a certain date?
What is the cost of losing a customer?
What is the cost of acquiring a customer?
How much would an addition to the head count cost?
What is the cost of shopping cart abandonment in their web store?
What is the cost of additional training and the time spent away from the job while learning?
Have you calculated the cost of the business impact?
What does Mrs. Prospect personally stand to gain or lose if a solution is or is not implemented?
Processes
What are the exact evaluation, budgeting and decision-making processes?
Who does the negotiating?
What is negotiable and what is non-negotiable?
Who signs the final Agreement?
What are the payment terms (Net 15, Net 30, etc.)?
Is a purchase order required?
People
Who will be involved or influence the final decision?
This can be one or different individuals.
Is there an individual (or individuals) that understands the value of your product or service, but has not found a good fit yet?
Have all the key stakeholders been identified and contacted?
Are you speaking with the correct contact, which, assuming you have the right solution, has the authority to buy?
Do you know how much authority Mr. Prospect has before further approvals are required?
Who are the decision-makers, evaluators, influencers, and end users of your potential solution?
Final Decision Maker(s) signs the check.
Motivation: What is the effect on our bottom line?
Evaluator(s) screens out and says no.
Motivation: What is the best solution that meets our needs?
Guide(s) want to help guide you through the process.
Motivation: I like your solution. How can I help you get your solution as the one chosen?
End User(s) are concerned about the effect on them and their job.
Motivation: Will it make my job easier or harder?
Initiator(s) want to look good.
Motivation: How can I show that I did a good job of gathering information?
Purchasing/Legal/Contracts are responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions.
Motivation: How can we get the most favorable terms and conditions for our company (i.e. additional discounts, extra technical support or consulting services, lower pricing, more training or extra sets of documentation, better payment terms, guarantees, etc.)?
Organizational Chart
What is the formal and informal organizational structure?
Who reports to whom?
Who influences whom?
Who are the counterparts, back-ups, peers and subordinates?
Who are the assistants?
Do you have all names and titles spelled correctly?
Do you have the correct street address (room, floor, suite, mail code, etc.),
e-mail addresses, fax numbers and extensions?
What are the responsibilities of each of your contacts?
Products and services
What types of products and services are currently in use?
Does the prospect have the necessary people, time, money and equipment in place or available to implement your solution?
Could the correct environment to support your solution be put in place?
Competition
What other companies are also being considered and why?
Who is favoring the other company's solution and why?
What is it Mrs. Prospect likes or dislikes about their current supplier?
If Mr. Prospect had a wish list and could have or change anything he wanted with their current or a potential supplier, what would be on the list?
Locations
Are decisions centralized (one location makes the decision for all locations) or decentralized (each location decides for themselves)?
How many locations, subsidiaries, partners, alliances and/or joint ventures are there and do we do business with any of them?
Is it possible to sell your solution on an enterprise wide basis rather than a departmental or business unit basis?
Do any other locations have an existing relationship with your company, partners or affiliates?
Confidence
Does Mr. Prospect trust you?
Have you established credibility?
Does Mrs. Prospect know the company you represent?
Does Mr. Prospect believe you sincerely have their best interests at heart?
Does Mrs. Prospect have confidence in your company's ability to provide them with and support your solution that works?
Resources
Does Mr. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to conduct an evaluation?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to prepare a cost justification?
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget available or access to discretionary funds?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the right physical environment for your solution?
What are the bare minimum requirements for your product or service to work?
Next Steps
After summarizing your conversation, follow up with a next step question such as:
"What's next?" or "What's the next step?"
"Where do we go from here?"
"If we had a solution that would help you do a better job than your current solution what is the process you go through to look at new solutions?"
"What do we need to
When outside audiences important to your operation do not understand what you are all about or, worse, harbor misconceptions, inaccuracies, untruths and false assumptions about you, you are likely to suffer negative, key audience behaviors that can prevent you from achieving your operating objectives.As a business, non-profit or association manager, you simply cannot avoid such consequences when you allow external target audiences to hold negative perceptions about you which lead inevitably to those hurtful behaviors.If this describes your operation, why not do something about it now?Spend some time with the public relations people assigned to your department, division or subsidiary. Review together the fundamental premise of public relations which contains the answer to the challenges outlined above.It goes this way: people act on their own perception of the facts before them, which leads to predictable behaviors about which something can be done. When we create, change or reinforce that opinion by reaching, persuading and moving-to-desired-action the very people whose behaviors affect the organization the most, the public relations mission is accomplished.Consider the kinds of results such a blueprint can produce. Prospects prowling about; new joint venture and strategic alliance proposals; local thoughtleaders beginning to seekyou out; customers making repeat pur
Is there a fit with the current products and services in use or will additional products and services be required?
Is the Mr. Prospect willing take specific action(s) towards a solution?
Evaluation Criteria
What is the evaluation criterion, if any? Will they fax it to you?
Do you have a criterion you can provide them with?
The final decision is based on what factors?
Is there an agreement on what is important or what is of value?
Have evaluation criteria been defined?
Business Impact
What is the cost of inaction or taking the wrong action?
What are the consequences or penalties if the account does not take action by a certain date?
What is the cost of losing a customer?
What is the cost of acquiring a customer?
How much would an addition to the head count cost?
What is the cost of shopping cart abandonment in their web store?
What is the cost of additional training and the time spent away from the job while learning?
Have you calculated the cost of the business impact?
What does Mrs. Prospect personally stand to gain or lose if a solution is or is not implemented?
Processes
What are the exact evaluation, budgeting and decision-making processes?
Who does the negotiating?
What is negotiable and what is non-negotiable?
Who signs the final Agreement?
What are the payment terms (Net 15, Net 30, etc.)?
Is a purchase order required?
People
Who will be involved or influence the final decision?
This can be one or different individuals.
Is there an individual (or individuals) that understands the value of your product or service, but has not found a good fit yet?
Have all the key stakeholders been identified and contacted?
Are you speaking with the correct contact, which, assuming you have the right solution, has the authority to buy?
Do you know how much authority Mr. Prospect has before further approvals are required?
Who are the decision-makers, evaluators, influencers, and end users of your potential solution?
Final Decision Maker(s) signs the check.
Motivation: What is the effect on our bottom line?
Evaluator(s) screens out and says no.
Motivation: What is the best solution that meets our needs?
Guide(s) want to help guide you through the process.
Motivation: I like your solution. How can I help you get your solution as the one chosen?
End User(s) are concerned about the effect on them and their job.
Motivation: Will it make my job easier or harder?
Initiator(s) want to look good.
Motivation: How can I show that I did a good job of gathering information?
Purchasing/Legal/Contracts are responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions.
Motivation: How can we get the most favorable terms and conditions for our company (i.e. additional discounts, extra technical support or consulting services, lower pricing, more training or extra sets of documentation, better payment terms, guarantees, etc.)?
Organizational Chart
What is the formal and informal organizational structure?
Who reports to whom?
Who influences whom?
Who are the counterparts, back-ups, peers and subordinates?
Who are the assistants?
Do you have all names and titles spelled correctly?
Do you have the correct street address (room, floor, suite, mail code, etc.),
e-mail addresses, fax numbers and extensions?
What are the responsibilities of each of your contacts?
Products and services
What types of products and services are currently in use?
Does the prospect have the necessary people, time, money and equipment in place or available to implement your solution?
Could the correct environment to support your solution be put in place?
Competition
What other companies are also being considered and why?
Who is favoring the other company's solution and why?
What is it Mrs. Prospect likes or dislikes about their current supplier?
If Mr. Prospect had a wish list and could have or change anything he wanted with their current or a potential supplier, what would be on the list?
Locations
Are decisions centralized (one location makes the decision for all locations) or decentralized (each location decides for themselves)?
How many locations, subsidiaries, partners, alliances and/or joint ventures are there and do we do business with any of them?
Is it possible to sell your solution on an enterprise wide basis rather than a departmental or business unit basis?
Do any other locations have an existing relationship with your company, partners or affiliates?
Confidence
Does Mr. Prospect trust you?
Have you established credibility?
Does Mrs. Prospect know the company you represent?
Does Mr. Prospect believe you sincerely have their best interests at heart?
Does Mrs. Prospect have confidence in your company's ability to provide them with and support your solution that works?
Resources
Does Mr. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to conduct an evaluation?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to prepare a cost justification?
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget available or access to discretionary funds?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the right physical environment for your solution?
What are the bare minimum requirements for your product or service to work?
Next Steps
After summarizing your conversation, follow up with a next step question such as:
"What's next?" or "What's the next step?"
"Where do we go from here?"
"If we had a solution that would help you do a better job than your current solution what is the process you go through to look at new solutions?"
"What do we need to
The Motorola H5 Miniblue Bluetooth headset is the best option for your Bluetooth needs. While you may be looking at other similar Bluetooth headsets, the Motorola H5 Miniblue clearly wins them over when all things are considered.In the not too distant passed, if you had a Bluetooth on your head it meant that you needed to see a dentist, right away. A Bluetooth was defiantly nothing anyone would ever wish for. How times have changed for the better. Now, if you look in the mirror and see a Bluetooth when you smile, you have nothing to worry about. In fact the reason you are probably smiling is because you have the latest in communications technology plugged on your happy head. How can that be? Well, let me briefly explain.Bluetooth technology is quite simply the latest technological innovation in personal and business communications accessories available in this day and age. So you thought your fancy new cell phone, loaded with all the whistles and bells was the end of the line? Well you thought wrong. The good news is that your new cell phone is most likely Bluetooth compatible, so don't throw it against the wall, because you still have a use for it.In short, a Bluetooth headphone is one of those things you have seen recently hanging on the ear of someone walking or driving along talking to himself, or so you thought. It's an ultra compact, low voltage wireless headphone that has completely changed the way
Do you know how much authority Mr. Prospect has before further approvals are required?
Who are the decision-makers, evaluators, influencers, and end users of your potential solution?
Final Decision Maker(s) signs the check.
Motivation: What is the effect on our bottom line?
Evaluator(s) screens out and says no.
Motivation: What is the best solution that meets our needs?
Guide(s) want to help guide you through the process.
Motivation: I like your solution. How can I help you get your solution as the one chosen?
End User(s) are concerned about the effect on them and their job.
Motivation: Will it make my job easier or harder?
Initiator(s) want to look good.
Motivation: How can I show that I did a good job of gathering information?
Purchasing/Legal/Contracts are responsible for negotiating the terms and conditions.
Motivation: How can we get the most favorable terms and conditions for our company (i.e. additional discounts, extra technical support or consulting services, lower pricing, more training or extra sets of documentation, better payment terms, guarantees, etc.)?
Organizational Chart
What is the formal and informal organizational structure?
Who reports to whom?
Who influences whom?
Who are the counterparts, back-ups, peers and subordinates?
Who are the assistants?
Do you have all names and titles spelled correctly?
Do you have the correct street address (room, floor, suite, mail code, etc.),
e-mail addresses, fax numbers and extensions?
What are the responsibilities of each of your contacts?
Products and services
What types of products and services are currently in use?
Does the prospect have the necessary people, time, money and equipment in place or available to implement your solution?
Could the correct environment to support your solution be put in place?
Competition
What other companies are also being considered and why?
Who is favoring the other company's solution and why?
What is it Mrs. Prospect likes or dislikes about their current supplier?
If Mr. Prospect had a wish list and could have or change anything he wanted with their current or a potential supplier, what would be on the list?
Locations
Are decisions centralized (one location makes the decision for all locations) or decentralized (each location decides for themselves)?
How many locations, subsidiaries, partners, alliances and/or joint ventures are there and do we do business with any of them?
Is it possible to sell your solution on an enterprise wide basis rather than a departmental or business unit basis?
Do any other locations have an existing relationship with your company, partners or affiliates?
Confidence
Does Mr. Prospect trust you?
Have you established credibility?
Does Mrs. Prospect know the company you represent?
Does Mr. Prospect believe you sincerely have their best interests at heart?
Does Mrs. Prospect have confidence in your company's ability to provide them with and support your solution that works?
Resources
Does Mr. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to conduct an evaluation?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to prepare a cost justification?
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget available or access to discretionary funds?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the right physical environment for your solution?
What are the bare minimum requirements for your product or service to work?
Next Steps
After summarizing your conversation, follow up with a next step question such as:
"What's next?" or "What's the next step?"
"Where do we go from here?"
"If we had a solution that would help you do a better job than your current solution what is the process you go through to look at new solutions?"
"What do we need to
Every business needs to find a way to become recognizable. Whether this be a household name or a product that has a niche' market only to a select group of people, it's important to have a good brand to your target customers, and a positive vibe among your repeat customers.One way this can be accomplished is by creating a philosophy that you do business by, and sticking to it for all customers/clients. Especially treating all customers/prospects equally. How many times have you bought something only to have another person get a better price than you? How did it feel knowing you were not as "important" as the other buyer?Everyone has been "taken" before in business. It could be something huge like buying your dream house, that new car, a tiny island out in the pacific, or even cold french fries.The point being, either way, when you walk away feeling angry, ripped off, stepped on, or just uneasy about the whole situation it's not a great feeling. Use this negative feeling as your guide for writing your business model and philosophy. Almost all are commonsense rules; it's just sometimes we are tired , in a foul mood, or some people are just plain greedy and would rather risk losing a possible long term repeat customer than to deal with an unhappy customer/client. It's short-sighted to say the least.Also keep in mind, that maybe the person you are speaking to about your product/service may be
Who is favoring the other company's solution and why?
What is it Mrs. Prospect likes or dislikes about their current supplier?
If Mr. Prospect had a wish list and could have or change anything he wanted with their current or a potential supplier, what would be on the list?
Locations
Are decisions centralized (one location makes the decision for all locations) or decentralized (each location decides for themselves)?
How many locations, subsidiaries, partners, alliances and/or joint ventures are there and do we do business with any of them?
Is it possible to sell your solution on an enterprise wide basis rather than a departmental or business unit basis?
Do any other locations have an existing relationship with your company, partners or affiliates?
Confidence
Does Mr. Prospect trust you?
Have you established credibility?
Does Mrs. Prospect know the company you represent?
Does Mr. Prospect believe you sincerely have their best interests at heart?
Does Mrs. Prospect have confidence in your company's ability to provide them with and support your solution that works?
Resources
Does Mr. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to conduct an evaluation?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the time and staff necessary to prepare a cost justification?
Does Mr. Prospect have a budget available or access to discretionary funds?
Does Mrs. Prospect have the right physical environment for your solution?
What are the bare minimum requirements for your product or service to work?
Next Steps
After summarizing your conversation, follow up with a next step question such as:
"What's next?" or "What's the next step?"
"Where do we go from here?"
"If we had a solution that would help you do a better job than your current solution what is the process you go through to look at new solutions?"
"What do we need to do to move forward on this?"
What actions need to be taken by you and the prospect to get them to evaluate your solution?
Have you set up a Sales M.A.P. (Mutually Agreed upon Process(tm))?
What day and time do these actions need to be completed by?
What is the time-line or what are the milestones for moving the sale to its completion?
Next steps need to be time and date specific. "I'll call you back next month" is not the same as "We'll speak next Tuesday at 3 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss the merits of the proposal after you have had the opportunity to review it with your peers, correct?"
Examples of Next Steps
Do you have permission to send literature, an email or a fax while also setting a specific date and time to call to be sure the information is received and to answer questions or discuss the materials?
Is Mrs. Prospect willing to accept your proposal or do they want a demonstration or presentation?
Is a call required to answer or clarify any complex issues?
Are you in the habit of following a phone call with a fax or an email?
Do you follow a fax with a phone call or an email?
What about following an email with a phone call or a fax?
Conclusion
If you or your sales force has not defined the characteristics of a most profitable prospect, it is time to do so. Consistency of definitions and the use of a well-defined sales system result in qualified prospects that are well qualified and ready to buy what you are selling.
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