Grabbing your prospect’s attention is the first stage of the sales process. It doesn’t have to be difficult, right? Yep, but 40% of sales representatives don’t feel the same. They say grabbing your prospect’s attention is one of the most challenging tasks.
So, what to do? How do you grab your prospect's attention, hook them, and get them interested in your service or product? Read on to know…
3 keys for successful sales prospecting
5 most successful sales prospecting strategies
Our age-old secret to prospecting 🙂
Here we go!
3 Keys To Sales Prospecting Success
Before we move to the strategies, it is crucial to get the basics right. This will increase your chances of success and help attract prospects that are highly likely to convert.
Define your target audience
The prime reason why a prospect isn’t showing any interest is that they are not the right person for your product/service. Studies show that for companies who shoot in the dark, 50% of prospects aren’t a good fit for what they’re selling. So, we highly recommend that before you strategize anything, work on building a target buyer persona — an ideal person who is highly likely to buy your product/service.
Ask these questions:
Who are your top 5 customers?
Who are your worst 5 customers? They are NOT your target prospects.
Who will benefit the most from your product? Target them the most.
Polish up your copywriting skills!
Whether you’re writing social media copy or sending a cold email pitch, the words you choose can make or break your prospect attraction efforts. Great copy attracts eyeballs, bad copy makes them go eww! Don’t believe us? Check out this example:
❌ Double or triple? Nope. Sounds fishy and untrustworthy.
✅ 200-300 qualified leads? Sure, that sounds promising because of a definite number.
A well-written copy can change the perspective about your brand and catch your prospect’s attention [almost immediately]. Here are some basic copywriting tips:
Write in a conversational tone – like you’re talking to a friend directly.
Focus on benefits over features of your product/service.
Use action verbs wherever possible (ex: executed, managed, planned, headed)
Use active voice over passive sentences.
Include a strong, compelling, yet easy-to-follow call to action (CTA).
Avoid using complicated words (you don’t want your prospect to trash the email just because they didn’t understand a word’s meaning!)
Employ analytics for your existing strategies
You can’t improve if you do not know what’s wrong. So, measure the results of your current prospect attention strategies (by calculating how many qualified leads you’re getting each month).
Use tools like Google Analytics or Social Sprout to track your existing strategy results, whether they’re reaching your target audience, their demographics, user behavior, etc.
Employ the given tactics below, compare the results, and see what works best! 🎯
5 Strategies For Grabbing Your Prospect’s Attention
Haha! When Mr. Obama says something, everyone listens. So, here we go…
1. Paid Advertising
Get in front of prospects who are actively looking for a product similar to yours — with paid advertising. There are 3 primary types of PPC ads for B2B prospecting:
Search Network Ads
These are the ones that you see in Google search results. Use it when you want to target prospects who are actively searching for your products.
Display Network Ads
These ads appear on Google’s partner websites. They enable you to reach people who have visited websites similar to your own.
Remarketing Ads
These ads allow you to target people who visited your site but left without converting.
And irrespective of which type of ad you run, follow these tips:
Combine your manual efforts with automation — to manage bids and create ad variations based on engagement metrics. Leverage tools like Google’s Campaign Manager or DoubleClick.
Without keywords, you might no
t even get in front of your target customers. So, use the right keywords and tools like Ahrefs or Google Trends to find what your target audience is searching for.
Incorporate dynamic keyword insertion (DKI) to insert keywords based on the phrases that users are searching for.
Identity ‘long-tail keywords’ and optimize your keywords for voice search as well. We recommend using natural human language to mimic how users speak.
Create an online home for your business — typically, a website or a single landing page where customers can know more about your product or service.
2. Website Optimization
When a prospect sees your ad, they would want to know more about your company. And, your prospect will likely search online. You certainly need an optimized website for your prospect then.
While crafting your website, follow these attention-grabbing tips:
Be concise. Show your visitors what they’re looking for (i.e., keep your primary content above the fold or the first banner).
Ensure your copy communicates value as soon as the prospect lands on your website. Just like this! 👇
Lead your prospect to the action you want them to take with a compelling CTA. It can be subscribing to a newsletter, book a demo, or even download your ebook!
Know that your prospects don’t read everything on your website. Thus, make your website scannable with short paragraphs and visuals.
Use exit-intent popups or slide-in opt-ins to grab visitors’ attention and encourage action. Like this! 👇
3. Content Marketing
Now that you have grabbed your prospects’ attention and kept them on your website, make them spend more time on your website. And how do you do that? By publishing high-quality content that addresses their pain points. We recommend you to be consistent with your content, by posting:
Short Blogs
Long-form Articles
101 Guides
Case Studies
Infographics
Ebooks, etc.
Okay, but how do I know what topics to write about?
That’s where a simple Google search can help. Enter your primary keyword and analyze the top results. Check the “people also ask” section to know what your prospects are searching for.
E.g.: if you offer marketing automation tools, search “marketing automation.” You will see something like this:
This means, “what is marketing automation”, “marketing automation tools”, and “examples of automation” are great content ideas. After this, follow these best practices to attract your prospects:
Focus on educating your customers first. Sell later. If your content stands out and is helpful to your prospect, they’d automatically be sold.
Provide actionable tips to help your target audience solve their pain points. Give value in your content.
Make your content scannable by breaking it into small paragraphs, using subheadings and bulleted/numbered lists.
Use visuals to make the content attractive.
Want examples? Read the blogs we publish at The Scalelab 😉
4. Social Media Marketing
You have created content for your website. Why not share it on social media to widen your reach and expand your prospecting base? Social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter are great for attracting B2B prospects.
Did you know of all the social media platforms, 97% of B2B business leads depend on LinkedIn. And it comes with a conversion rate 3 times higher than any other channel. The best thing? Meet decision-makers and gatekeepers of the biggest companies on social media!
These tips can make prospecting in social media easier:
Break your blogs into short content and share them across platforms.
Connect with relevant people like decision-makers, ideal buyers, etc. of your target companies.
Share tips and tricks to help your target audience solve their pain points.
Showcase your expertise by engaging with posts related to your industry.
Post how you solved a problem for a past client or reached a said result — these are the things your prospect is interested in!
This strategy — networking, engagement, and posting — helps in establishing your business’s brand, and keeps your name floating in your prospects’ minds. So, when you send them a cold email, they’d recognize you 🙂
TAKE NOTE: While it is good to follow and connect with your competitors, remember that your competitors won’t become your clients. So, see that you are connecting with your prospects, potential clients, and ideal buyers who are likely to get services from you. Craft your content keeping them in mind.
5. Cold Email Outreach
When done correctly, cold email outreaches can grab prospects’ attention and encourage them to engage with your business. However, with an average person receiving more than 120 emails daily, how do you stand out with your email strategy? Here are a few tips:
Write a catchy, clear, and concise subject line.
Use a personal email ID to show the human side of your company.
Highlight their pain points to grab attention.
Give a brief solution that will add value to them right away.
Include a compelling call to action (CTA).
Time your cold emails well.
We know this isn’t that detailed, because we’ve got a whole series of articles on cold email tips and tricks! Read on…
Wrapping Up…
Your best bet to grab your prospect's attention is by getting in front of them at the right time. PPC ads let you do just that. Then, keep their attention by optimizing your website, publishing relevant content, and leveraging cold outreach via social media or emails.
Remember to focus on providing value first and sell later.
And, as you know, the GRAND SECRET…
Be Human in your approach.
Be authentic, conversational, approachable, and break the ice with a smile, an emoji, or even a gif! Be unique, break the standards, and focus on building long-term relationships.
That’s what we’ve been doing at The Scalelab 🚀
Until next time…
Signing off,
Team TSL