Finding leads and qualified prospects in the relationship economy
Finding qualified leads starts with having reliable sources. Here’s where to start looking!
There are lots of online directories, tools and resources that can help provide insightful prospect data. But with so many options available, it may be hard to know where to start. For busy business owners, it can be particularly important to maximize the time spent finding leads.
Here are five places you can source qualified prospects for your pipeline.
1. LinkedIn Sales Navigator
LinkedIn Sales Navigator uses the power of its 500-million-member network to help sales professionals find and build relationships with prospects and clients.
They have advanced search tools like job title, industry, location, and more to help your team find and connect with ideal prospects through social selling. Best of all, Sales Navigator can be connected with many CRMS (such as HubSpot) giving you an extra layer of insights into your existing customers and potential leads.
2. Dedicated prospecting platforms
There are plenty of paid prospecting tools that can help you secure decision-makers’ email addresses, phone numbers, job titles and so much more. Tools like VoilaNorbert and ZoomInfo can help your sales reps get accurate contact info and reach your potential prospects quicker.
The great thing about these prospecting tools is that they’re designed to support your sales reps in the relationship economy. They usually have features to help start conversations, schedule follow-ups, track conversions and more.
3. Twitter
Did you know that a report by Statista showed that 67% of B2B businesses use Twitter as a digital marketing tool?
Beyond being a helpful ticker for industry news, Twitter has an excellent advanced search feature.
It allows you to search for keywords, exact phrases or exclude certain words from your search. You can also search for high-intent hashtags that might reflect interest in your company’s area of expertise, such as #productnames, #manufacturinggoods, #events and #geographiclocations. (Naturally, replace these words with hashtags that match your business opportunities.)
4. Job boards
When a company is recruiting for a new role, it might signal that they’re investing in that general area or department. For example, a company looking for a new Head of Accounting may be searching for funding, grants or loans.
By searching job boards, your team can look for listings that match your buyer persona job titles. From there, you can reach out to the role’s hiring manager, who is likely a decision-maker.
5. Industry publications, networks and associations
Niche trade events and industry associations may be filled with members that fit your ideal client profile. These organizations often list their members, partners, affiliates and other stakeholders on their website. These directories are a quick way to find potential prospects.
To find these memberships and associations, run a quick Google search such as «best [industry] membership.» You’ll likely get results for nationwide associations, events and organizations.
No matter where you turn to for leads, the most important part of finding great leads is to have a solid sales prospecting process in place.
Up next: Updating your sales prospecting process for the relationship economy
