5 Prospecting Myths Debunked

In this article, we’ll debunk five common prospecting myths (plus one bonus myth) to help you improve your sales strategy and seal the deal using prospecting methods that work.

In this article:

  1. The Earlier You Get to the Client, the Better
  2. You Can’t Do Cold Calling Anymore
  3. The Best Way To Target Prospects Is With a Single Silver Bullet
  4. Breaking Through To The Client Is Tough
  5. Cold Meetings Won’t Convert to Sales Wins
  6. Bonus Myth: Buyers Find Meetings with Sellers Valuable

Debunking 5 Prospecting Myths Plus 1 Bonus Myth

1. The Earlier You Get to the Client, the Better

Sellers always want to stay ahead of the game, which is why in prospecting, salespeople often try to contact their buyers way before they’ve locked in on an actual purchase.

This is known as the defining division or the early stage of the sales process where buyers are most receptive to a sales call. Effective sellers know it’s during this time when they need to go all out, contact potential clients, and close the deal ASAP.

Nowadays, it’s much harder to convince potential clients early on to choose your product over others. The advent of the Internet has made it possible for buyers to do their own research and gain access to information on the product they want to buy.

When you prospect potential clients, don’t be surprised to find out they’re already somewhat informed of your and your competitor’s product or service. What’s more, they’ve probably already made up their mind about which one they’ll probably choose.

It’s this phenomenon that’s slowly breaking the dominant sales notion of “the earlier, the better.” Right now, the assumption you’ll lock in a buyer when you tap them early enough in the sales process is looking more like one of those prospecting myths. If prospecting new customers early in the game isn’t as adviseable anymore, what else can be done?

Research shows that 71% of people still want to hear from a seller before making an actual purchase. This opens a window of opportunity for you to push your product or service towards your prospects even during the last stages of the selling process and hopefully make a sale.

2. You Can’t Do Cold Calling Anymore

man using phone | Prospecting Myths Debunked

Many of today’s sellers think cold calling is a thing of the past. After all, we’re living in the age of technology where prospective clients can be reached digitally like through e-mail, messenger, or even video call.

With today’s technology, you can acquire data that gives you an in-depth description of your prospective clients. This helps you make your communication strategies more targeted towards a specific clientele and will increase the likelihood of making a sale.

If you’re one of those sellers who think cold calling is outdated, you’re very much mistaken. In fact, it’s one of the biggest prospecting myths out there. Making cold calls remains to be an effective sales strategy when done right.

Cold calling allows you to speak to your potential buyers directly. You’ll be able to hear the other person’s voice, making the transaction more candid and personal. Plus, talking to your client directly makes it easy for you to negotiate on-the-spot. This spells the difference between sealing the deal and losing a sale altogether.

3. The Best Way To Target Prospects Is With a Single Silver Bullet

A lot of sellers also think reaching out to potential customers with sales messages using the most popular platform is an effective way of getting their attention. Again, this is also a prospecting myth. No single silver bullet that enables you to convince people to buy your product or take advantage of your service exists.

We suggest you take a multimode approach when marketing to your prospective customers. Use a marketing strategy that implements different ways of contacting your buyers. For example, you can send them a couple of direct e-mails and supplement these by leaving a voicemail.

While it’s a great idea to contact your buyers on the medium they’re frequently on, don’t make the mistake of reaching out to them through just one platform. Be flexible and creative enough to look for other platforms you can use to communicate with them.

RELATED: Prospecting At Scale To Grow Sales

4. Breaking Through To The Client Is Tough

Two gentleman shaking hands | Breaking Through the Client Is Tough | Prospecting Myths Debunked

This one is a prospecting semi-myth. While it’s true that breaking through to a client and convincing them to purchase your product or service is challenging, it isn’t impossible. As with cold calling, getting through to the client is achievable when you do it right.

When sellers pitch to their prospective clients, they often talk about the product being sold, what it does, and how it’ll benefit the buyer. There’s nothing wrong with this kind of sales pitch, but if you really want to seal the deal, there’s a better way to talk to the buyer.

Other than talking about the “what” aspects of your product or service, focus more on communicating the value of what you’re selling instead. For example, if you’re offering your market research services, highlight your company’s research ethics and best practices. In this way, your clients get to see the value in what you bring and will end up trusting you and your service.

5. Cold Meetings Won’t Convert to Sales Wins

This is a prospecting myth that, unfortunately, a lot of sellers also believe in. To tell you the truth, it’s actually a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you as the seller don’t believe in your ability to come up with a sale at the end of the meeting, then it’s definitely not happening.

When you’re leading a sales meeting, make sure to not just sell the product or service. As discussed previously, highlight the value your product or service brings to the table.

Sell your product or service as a package deal consisting of your company’s insights and your product’s capabilities. When you’re client sees you’re capable of providing them with a quality product and valuable insights at the same time, you’re sure to convert any cold meeting into a sales win.

Bonus Myth: Buyers Find Meetings with Sellers Valuable

meeting at cafe | Buyers Find Meetings with Sellers Valuable | Prospecting Myths Debunked

Unfortunately, not all buyers consider meetings with their sellers valuable time spent. In fact, 58% of buyers mentioned not learning anything value-adding from a sales meeting.

To mitigate this, use the meeting with your buyer as a way to really get to know them and their real needs. This way, you’ll have a better understanding of the nature of your client’s problems. Use what you learned to be able to provide them not just with a targeted solution, but also with valuable insights to help establish a lasting relationship with them.

We’ve successfully debunked six prospecting myths that hinder a lot of salespeople from implementing effective sales prospecting techniques. We hope we’ve inspired you to explore more creative ways to prospect new customers for your business. Also, remember to start communicating your product and service’s value to your clients. This way, you’ll be able to gain their trust and build a lasting sales relationship with them.

Aside from the ones listed above, have you heard of any other prospecting myths? Tell us about them in the comments section below!

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