What Do You Look for in Account Research?

The sales process seems to be getting more difficult and if you don’t know what you are doing it can be scary. On today’s episode of The Sales Evangelist, Donald talks with salespeople Ari and Kristen about how to overcome the fear of cold calling. 

What makes cold calling scary?

• No being prepared to have conversations with high-level executives and to overcome their objections. If you learn what the prospect is selling and who they are selling to you will have a better chance.
• The fear of sounding stupid. If you haven’t done your research you will sound like you don’t know what you are talking about. The conversation will be more organic and authentic if you have done research beforehand. 
• The fear of hearing no. Once you accept that a majority of the people you call are going to say no, it is easier to handle it. Reframe your thinking and realize that the prospects who say no aren’t the ones you are looking for. 

How do you effectively do research and still maintain volume?

• As you get better at research, you can do it a lot faster. With experience, you can see common trends in each industry. 
• Have an understanding of what their business is going through, even if you are totally off, a good senior-level leader will appreciate the fact that you did research. 
• Focus on what they sell, who they sell it to, and how they sell it. You don’t need to read an entire annual report to understand what they do. 
• Use all resources available to you including job descriptions. 

What advice do Ari and Kristen have for BDRs who are scared

• You won’t get over the fear of making calls by not making calls. Make as many calls as you can and learn from your mistakes. 
• Practice with a team lead, manager, or AE. Record your role plays and have your manager review them. 
• Let yourself be vulnerable and let yourself make mistakes. 
• No question is a dumb question, if you are having trouble ask for help. 

To hear more from Ari and Kristen, connect with them on LinkedIn. 

This episode is brought to you in part by LinkedIn.

The sales landscape is totally changing. The way that we are selling is out of line with the way our prospects are buying. You need to adapt to succeed. Imagine if you could use data that could give you insights into when somebody is ready and the challenges they are facing so you can fine-tune your message specifically toward them. Deep Sales, a part of the next generation of LinkedIn Sales Navigator, can help you do just that. Check it out yourself and get a 60-day free trial at Linkedin.com/TSE.

This episode is brought to you in part by Scratchpad.

Are you tired of a digital workspace cluttered with notes, folders, files, and half-filled spreadsheets? (Not that we’re speaking from personal experience.) Luckily, we’ve found the solution.

Scratchpad is the first Revenue Team Workspace specifically designed to adapt to each salesperson’s workflow, so you don’t have to change your habits. Scratchpad creates a streamlined workflow that allows everyone to be a little more productive each day without the hassle of updating a database with whatever info you can find. Get Scratchpad free at Scratchpad.com. 

This episode is brought to you in part by Calendly.

The power of scheduling automation has never been more critical than it is today. Your sales team needs a solution to easily meet with prospects at the right time, every time. With calendly, you can turn more meetings into revenue, accelerate your sales cycle, and increase your win rate when you choose to use calendly to automate your scheduling. Finish the year strong and request a demo of calendly today at Calendly.com/TSE. 

This episode is brought to you in part by Skipio.

Are you sick of crickets? As a salesperson, the pain of reaching out with phone calls or emails and not receiving a response is real.

But all text messaging is not created equal. 85% of people prefer text over email and phone calls because they want to engage in a conversation, not listen to bots. Be more like people and start having conversations that end in the conversions you want. Try Skipio at www.Skipio.com.

As one of our podcast listeners, we value your opinion and always want to improve the quality of our show. Complete our two-minute survey here: thesalesevangelist.com/survey. We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes by tuning in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, or Spotify. Audio provided by Free SFX, Soundstripe, and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and Produced by Brightseed and Hill.

Mentioned in this episode:

HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS

HubSpot and bluëmago | STUDIOS hubpspot.com/marketers bluemangostudios.com