Improve Your B2B Sales Research by Knowing Where to Look and What to Look For

magnifying glassSales can be a challenge but the odds of a successful close can be boosted by understanding your targeted prospect. This requires the daunting task of research to be undertaken.  To help make research less of a challenge this blog will provide you with helpful tips to quickly evaluate the fit of a company and find contact information.

Mine the company website

One of the most readily available sources of information on a company will typically be their own website. Beyond the more obvious pages for information, it is often very helpful to examine the career or application section of a company site. These two sections can help you identify the specific type of best-fit contact or identify if a function/service is currently needed or already utilized.

Determine a good fit

Once you possess a basic understanding of the company you can look for the fine details to help you decide if the company is a good fit. I find it very valuable to examine the company mission, vision, goals, and values. By understanding these elements you may be able to identify if your offering can help the company achieve what they strive for or if it complies with what they value. Ruling out companies early on that do not fit will prevent wasting both time and effort.

Use the company website for employee lists

Some company websites will feature information on their employees. This information can help you identify the specific contact you need to reach and potentially provide you with an e-mail or phone extension.

Try data.com for more contact information

When the company website does not offer contact information for employees, try using salesforcedata.com. While there are many free research tools, data.com is an excellent source for contact information. It allows you to search by criteria like company name, web address, or contact name and provides both company and employee information.

Use social media to see who is connected

A company Facebook page or a LinkedIn search of the company name may be able to provide you with employees associated to the account. I am particularly fond of LinkedIn’s advanced search function as it allows me to tailor my search criteria and increase the chance of better contact results.  Once you have an employee name you can attempt a new search, or connect with them over social media.

If stuck, look online

If contact information still eludes you I recommend searching the company name in Industry Canada. If this method fails to provide me with a contact I then turn to a Google search featuring the company name, the position I’m after and key words such as staff, employees, or directory.

I hope that these tips help you reduce the challenges of B2B sales research. Getting the right company and contact information will help move you one step closer to increasing your sales. If you liked this blog and want daily tidbits of great sales, marketing and social media information be sure to follow us on twitter at @vapartners.

Improve Your B2B Sales Research by Knowing Where to Look and What to Look For