The Pipeline

JUNE 19, 2017

Most sales people tend to ease off on their prospecting when they have a healthy pipeline. All kinds of opportunities to close at the peak, desperately prospecting (praying and hoping), at the bottom. Prospecting when your pipeline is “overflowing”, is one of the most fun things you can do.

Prospecting 224

Prospecting Pipeline Energy Forecasting 224

Zoominfo

SEPTEMBER 1, 2020

Prospecting can feel pretty similar. What is a prospecting workflow? Prospecting workflows are established so that sales reps don’t spend their whole day looking for prospects. Typical prospecting workflows involve researching and then connecting to prospects via cold calls, cold emails, and beyond.

Prospecting 264

Prospecting Lead Rank Lead Scoring Sales Qualified Lead 264

Understanding the Sales Force

MARCH 21, 2022

Why Your Prospects Won't Talk with You and What to Do About it - a rant. Why Forecasts are Always So Inaccurate - a rant on why it's not the forecast! On Sales Process and Methodology - the difference between popular sales processes and methodologies. Transactional versus Consultative Selling - a rant.

Video 296

Video Forecasting Cold Calling Consultative Selling 296

The Pipeline

FEBRUARY 22, 2022

Quota attainment remains under 60%, closed forecasted deals aren’t much better. Even before you identify specific prospects, we need to understand why they would interact with us. It is not about gathering information but helping the prospect to think. But to get the prospect to think. By Tibor Shanto.

Objections 351

Objections Forecasting Quota Buyer 351

Hubspot Sales

NOVEMBER 29, 2022

Today, 57% of sales reps inaccurately forecast their pipeline, according to data from Chorus. To reduce the probability of such inaccuracies, sales forecasting software has become an indispensable part of the professional sales kit. Benefits of Sales Forecasting Software. The 12 Best Sales Forecasting Software.

Sales Forecasts 124

Sales Forecasts Forecasting Software Software 124

Hubspot Sales

DECEMBER 4, 2023

If you’re a business owner like me, you’re probably familiar with the terms demand forecasting and sales forecasting. Not to mention, figuring out the difference between demand forecasting vs sales forecasting can be tricky too. Demand Forecasting — What is it? But as with all things, it’s not always that simple.

Forecasting 103

Forecasting Sales Forecasts Hiring Retail 103

The Pipeline

MAY 11, 2021

One can put stretch goals or every level between the rep and the VP recasting the forecast, there’s a balance. As bad as misrepresenting things to prospects is, the worst white or gray lies we tell, are the ones we tell ourselves. Changing a habit, which is what you want the prospect to do, is not easy, but can be modeled.

Quota 341

Quota Lead Rank Forecasting ROI 341

Gong.io

MARCH 15, 2022

Sales forecasting isn’t revolutionary — it’s been around since the dawn of time. Forecasting relies on opinions … subjective percentages tied to “what we think” will happen. Take a single deal: A sales rep who is overly aggressive may have a different looking forecast compared to a rep who is more conservative.

Sales Forecasts 127

Sales Forecasts Forecasting Call-back Decision Maker 127

No More Cold Calling

JULY 12, 2024

Sales leaders complain that reps don’t get enough qualified leads, their pipelines are fluff, and it takes them way too long to reach their prospects. Leadership can’t count on accurate forecasts when pipelines are unqualified. Big problem! Stop believing the myth that referral business doesn’t scale. I’m here to tell you it does.

Scale 317

Scale Referrals Penetration Sales Qualified Lead 317

No More Cold Calling

APRIL 15, 2021

Every sales leader says their #1 prospecting challenge is getting leads in the pipe. Considering half of the deals that are forecasted to close don’t, and customer retention has decreased as seller attrition increases, sales teams are facing yet another frustrating year if something doesn’t change. Try this instead. That’s a fact.

Lead Gen 397

Lead Gen Sales Qualified Lead Leads Marketing Qualified Lead 397

The Pipeline

SEPTEMBER 8, 2020

You can take that even one step further by involving the prospect in handling their own objection. This is The One: Pipeline = Ability X Execution X Leadership: The Complete Prospecting System. Long-term measurable success in telephone prospecting requires a dynamic process, skill set, and active leadership from the front-line manager.

Objections 276

Objections Forecasting Webinar Metrics Pipeline 276

The Pipeline

SEPTEMBER 7, 2020

If you only attend one webinar this month – This is The One: Pipeline = Ability X Execution X Leadership: The Complete Prospecting System. Learn how some companies are able to align skills, efficiency, and discipline leveraging a metrics-driven process for consistent prospecting and pipeline results.

Forecasting 307

Forecasting Webinar Metrics Pipeline System 307

No More Cold Calling

SEPTEMBER 26, 2024

You’ll find Kristie’s questions in Chapter One: “You’ve Got to Meet Yourself Before You Meet the Prospect.” Leadership can’t count on accurate forecasts when pipelines are unqualified. Leadership can’t count on accurate forecasts when pipelines are unqualified. And that’s just the beginning. Big problem!

Referrals 156

Referrals Meeting Scale Prospecting 156

Zoominfo

DECEMBER 11, 2024

In Q4, we released enhancements to Copilot, our GTM Intelligence platform, that further empower enterprise GTM teams to engage prospects and customers with greater precision, speed, and intelligence. We believe these innovations will continue to revolutionize how teams identify opportunities, engage prospects, and close deals.

Intent Signal 130

Intent Signal Prospecting Intent Decision Maker 130

Zoominfo

OCTOBER 24, 2024

Reaching the right prospects at the right moment is often the difference between closing a deal and coming in second. Improved Forecasting : AI-powered algorithms analyze historical data and market trends to deliver more accurate sales forecasts, enabling better strategic planning.

Software 211

Software Software Tools Hubspot 211

The Pipeline

OCTOBER 6, 2014

How many times have you sat with a prospect and had a discussion not about you product, but about something within your field of expertise. I often sit with prospects and will share a perspective, a view point, or just a way of doing something, and the prospect will respond positively in what I shared, they learned and can use.

Referrals 310

Referrals Forecasting Follow-up Groups 310

Sales and Marketing Management

MAY 10, 2020

While our sales teams at WhiteHat Security have always been distributed, communicating with customers and prospects exclusively over the phone or video is a new challenge. When presenting to a client over the phone, the prospect may not be fully focused, and there’s not a foolproof way of knowing. Finding the Right Customers.

Face-to-face 302

Face-to-face Hiring Lead Rank Lead Scoring 302

No More Cold Calling

OCTOBER 11, 2018

It can take a dozen touches to reach a prospect this way, and are they even prospects? Qualified means the prospect is vetted, has budget and a timeline, and needs our solution, and the decision-makers are on board. That’s how you get fewer, qualified leads and maximize the prospecting time of your reps.

Cold Calling 286

Cold Calling Pipeline Sales Qualified Lead Referrals 286

Zoominfo

SEPTEMBER 2, 2021

The integrations help revenue teams develop stronger prospect and customer relationships, make better decisions, and win more business. For example, reps can watch for keywords in conversations that historically indicate a prospect is more likely to buy, while sales managers can better coach their teams by reviewing call trends.

Data 52

Data Scale SalesForce Forecasting 52

The Pipeline

AUGUST 24, 2020

I have a lot of empathy for pundits in a subjective undefined area of practice, like prospecting for example. A great example of this Greek-like tragedy, is the never-ending debate about the best day to make prospecting calls? Many will tell you that their data has pinpointed the best day and time to make prospecting calls.

Call-back 290

Call-back Pipeline Face-to-face Cold Calling 290

No More Cold Calling

AUGUST 22, 2024

Leadership can’t count on accurate forecasts when pipelines are unqualified. Without high-quality prospects, your team can’t close enough deals to meet revenue targets. Inconsistent Sales Forecasting: With an unpredictable pipeline, accurate forecasting becomes impossible. Big problem!

Referrals 177

Referrals Sales Qualified Lead Hiring Face-to-face 177

No More Cold Calling

JULY 13, 2017

Calls with their sales managers become about justifying why prospects should be in their pipelines in the first place, and discussing ways these account based sales reps can accelerate the buying process. Have you checked out the prospect’s LinkedIn profile? What are your other connections to this prospect?

Account 287

Account Referrals Cold Calling Ideal Customer Profile 287

Sales 2.0

MAY 30, 2023

Once AI is implemented, she says, “The question then becomes, ‘do sales organizations that use technologies like this shift their time to higher value activities, like training, researching prospects and strategy, so that when they do get face-to-face time to sell, they show up prepared and better trained?’”

Face-to-face 312

Face-to-face CRM Forecasting Cold Calling 312

Zoominfo

AUGUST 27, 2020

With a focus on getting ahead of competitors, reps are assigned target prospects without overlapping each other. Greater adaptability: One of the main reasons territory maps are built is to maximize company visibility to sales prospects. What is Sales Territory Mapping? So let’s say you want to target larger enterprises in the US.

Territories 264

Territories Outside Sales Field Sales Segment 264

The Pipeline

AUGUST 31, 2020

As sales professionals, we need to be cognizant of this while approaching prospects. With many prospects lacking visibility in 2021, forecasting will be more of a black art than ever. Distraction is something you will need to deal with on every prospecting call. Good Enough. Catching Up. Go To The Club.

Face-to-face 258

Face-to-face Penetration Fashion Forecasting 258

Zoominfo

JUNE 24, 2019

At the time, one of the primary motivations for a CRM purchase was the promise of an increased pipeline, visibility, and control, which many believed would lead to more accurate revenue forecasts. However, while CRM adoption did have immediate benefits, improving forecast accuracy was not one of them. That process took longer.

Forecasting 272

Forecasting B2B CRM Quota 272

Zoominfo

JULY 12, 2021

Business leaders depend on the conversations that sales reps are having with prospects to grow their pipeline and stoke their go-to-market engine. Most notably, 83 percent of B2B leaders believe switching to digital omnichannel buying environments proved effective for reaching prospects and securing new business. Sales teams.

Face-to-face 264

Face-to-face Intent Data GoldMine Lead Rank 264

The Pipeline

NOVEMBER 26, 2019

The basic gist was a Reader’s Digest version of the message they would deliver live to a prospect on the phone. If something works once out of ten times, there is hope, and where there is hope, you will find forecasts. (Or Or is it where there are forecasts we find hope?) As will a salesperson, in the form of voicemail.

Call-back 319

Call-back Forecasting Face-to-face Buyer 319

No More Cold Calling

NOVEMBER 23, 2017

Most scramble to assemble every available technology to track down prospects and fill their pipelines. They figure the best strategy for how to generate leads is to research trigger events, send prospecting emails, reach out on social media, cold call , and invite prospects to events. So, what do account based selling teams do?

Lead Generation 125

Lead Generation Sales Qualified Lead Lead Rank Lead Scoring 125

Sales and Marketing Management

FEBRUARY 19, 2018

Next time you prospect a company, add a board member. He can torpedo the account, the opportunity, and pull it off the forecast. When you're at work, prospect incessantly. Tony’s most recent book is “Combo Prospecting.” Ruffling feathers? Do you think you can hunt for new business and win without stepping on any toes?

Call-back 329

Call-back Negotiation Decision Maker Sales Qualified Lead 329

The Pipeline

SEPTEMBER 10, 2019

They know that if and when it’s disqualified, it needs to be taken out of the pipeline, not forecasted; meaning they have to prospecting. And that’s the rub, many prefer to pretend, hope and sweat to bend the opportunity to their need. So they hang on to an opportunity they could recycle.

Trends 310

Trends Opportunity Pipeline Lead Rank 310

Zoominfo

FEBRUARY 28, 2018

And for good reason—your CRM manages customer and prospect data and contains valuable information regarding customer behavior and buying habits. Thanks to the internet, companies are far more connected to their prospects and customers. Predictive analytics: Predictive analytics use data to forecast future sales results.

B2B 225

B2B Social Media CRM Social Selling 225

Understanding the Sales Force

APRIL 4, 2024

Sales Forecasts How Better Accountability Causes Sales Performance to Increase Snowstorm & Weather Apps Explain Why 75% of Sales Forecasts are Wrong Lowering Resistance/Objections Is Excuse Making Actually the Biggest Obstacle to Increasing Sales? Consultative Approach to Selling Call Reluctance is Just as Popular as Ever!

Hiring 159

Hiring Sales Leadership Sales Forecasts Forecasting 159

The Pipeline

SEPTEMBER 9, 2019

“Lead Scoring” systems seem to work, according to a study by The Aberdeen Group, which found that a well-configured lead scoring tool could increase lead-to-prospect conversion rates by up to 19%. So why can’t we apply these lead scoring concepts and techniques to opportunities and increase our prospect-to-customer conversion rates?

Lead Rank 49

Lead Rank Lead Scoring Sales Qualified Lead Face-to-face 49

The Pipeline

FEBRUARY 4, 2020

In a piece I posted on July 19, 2011 , I questioned another mainstream piece forecasting a dramatic decline in B2B sellers and the nature of their role. The forecast was that much of the day to day functions would be replaced by automation. On the surface, the predictions may have been wrong, more sellers than ever.

Revenue 370

Revenue Top of Funnel Sales Qualified Lead Lead Rank 370

Zoominfo

AUGUST 8, 2018

Do you have your prospects’ email addresses and direct dial phone numbers on hand? How much do you know about each prospect’s professional background? 82% of sales reps feel challenged by the amount of data and the time it takes to research a prospect. Increase Sales Forecast Accuracy and Speed Up Your Pipeline.

How To 214

How To Decision Maker Sales Forecasts Forecasting 214

Vengreso

MARCH 2, 2021

Prospecting to generate sales leads is one of the most important jobs of the modern sales professional. In fact, if you ask any sales leader what their teams struggle with the most (and I have), they would say it’s prospecting, especially now that virtual selling is the norm. And this is what this prospecting guide is all about.

Pipeline 145

Pipeline Prospecting Ideal Customer Profile Sales Qualified Lead 145