Are Your Sales Prospects Playing Ball?

The process for converting suspects into prospects, prospects into leads, leads into customers is much like playing a baseball game. You'd love to hit a home run every time you step to the plate, but the game is really won on base hits. This is where your focus should be (1st Base-Engage Suspects, 2nd Base-Qualify Prospects, etc.). And like baseball, where you don't get to skip second base to speed your journey to home plate, you must make sure you touch every milestone in your sales process. Not doing so can result in wasted time quoting or selling to unqualified opportunities.

But to successfully play the game of sales baseball, one thing MUST also be true...your sales prospects have to be "playing ball." Because if they aren't playing ball, you're wasting your time.
Here are three techniques to determine if YOUR prospects are playing ball:

Evaluate Participation. Regularly analyze how engaged your prospects are in the process. If the person doesn't take your call or respond to your email ...you've got nothing. If the person agrees to hear your pitch, but doesn't give you detailed information about their needs ...you've got nothing. If you get all the right information, but you present the solution to someone with no power to make the buying decision...you've got nothing.

Ask Closing Questions. I call this step the "confirm or deny" technique. Many sales people mistake this step to be the final step you take in the sales process. Actually, the good closers know how to ask the right questions throughout the entire process (when converting suspects to prospects; prospects to leads; and THEN leads to customers). Determine your confirm or deny questions for EVERY milestone in the process...not just the end...and then be sure to ask them before you consider the next step. Don't be afraid of the "deny" because it is better to hear it earlier than later-while you still have time to address it.

Confront Time Wasters. It's important not to take this step with hostility or emotion. Yet, at the same time there comes a time with some prospects where you need to address the unpleasant fact that they are wasting your time. If you've been following the first two steps of this article, then this step should be a lot easier. Sometimes the "take-away" gets the prospect off the dime. Remember, it's okay, in fact recommended, to call your prospects OUT when they aren't playing ball. Doing so clears the way for you to focus more attention on the deals you have the best chance of winning!

Saying NO to a potential opportunity, especially when the pipeline is not as full as you'd like it to be, can be very tough for any salesperson. Just remember though, if they aren't playing ball you can never win the game!

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