7 Secrets to Prospecting part 2

7 Secrets to Prospecting part 2.

Be sure you read the first part again as I’ll be using the story of the beggar for all 8 parts of the Secrets to Prospecting.  Every one’s taught to ONE-STEP Prospect.  The beggar used one-step-prospecting.  As you’ll recall our beggar sat by a stop light with a sign in his hand begging for money.  This approach to prospecting is called ONE-STEP because there’s only one step in the process.  The beggar raises his sign and expects people to respond with money.

Anytime you cold-call or door-knock you are using one-step-prospecting.  When you call you interupt your Prospect and you expect to make an appointment.  When you door-knock the goal is to set-up an appointment or get in the house for an immediate presentation.  Most cemeteries/funeral homes that advertise use a one-step approach.  The goal is the same.  They expect Prospects to phone in for an appointment.

In the pre-need arena one-step-prospecting is so common it is unlikely anyone has heard of a different way. 

For the Renegade Pre-Need Seller a better approach is to make all your Prospecting & advertising two-step.

Here’s how it works.  Anytime you advertise do not advertise your funeral home/cemetery.  Do not use a business card to advertise.  Instead, use a classified style ad.  Check out a newspaper or certain magazines that have Personal Ads.  A personal ad is a two-step-approach to advertising.  A personal ad has certain characteristics.  One characteristic of a personal ad is to identify what you’re looking for and things you’re not looking for.  For example, interested in non-smoker, loves hiking.  Individuals who are interested in the ad (based on what is wanted or not wanted) respond.  This process also serves to eliminate people he/she’s not interested in and narrows down the people he/she’s interested in.

When pre-need prospecting through an ad utilize a special report as the offer.  A headline with contact information is step one.  Your headline is similar to a personal ad.  You eliminate people you aren’t interested in your product/services while attract the folks who are interested.  Step two is your prospect responding to your ad for more information…the special report.  A few weeks after sending the special report follow-up with additional information through a sequence of sales letters.  Sequence your information, link the letters/post cards, and send multiple mailings using testimonials & articles. 

You are effectively developing a relationship with your Prospect.  When your Prospect becomes a porcupine he/she will contact you to meet for a presentation.  You’ve now developed a relationship with your Prospect.  You become a tester of the information you  send out to your Prospects until you’ve developed a complete two-step system for advertising.

Of course, you can do other things besides advertising.  There’s mining your natural market, there’s mailing a compiled list, there’s a Champion Endorser and the list goes on when utilizing two-step prospecting.

Give up the one-step-tired-approach.  Begin, today, to funnel all of your Prospecting into a 2-Step.

Happy Selling!

David

Click here for 7 Secrets to Prospecting, part 3