Summer time and prospecting for business – really? Absolutely. Summer is a great time to continue to prospect for new business opportunities and take advantage of longer days and warmer weather.
I have outlined a few reasons why prospecting doesn’t stop in the summer.
Less Selling Competition
As many of your peers have taken their own vacation or slowed down their activities for the summer, you will have less competition; so take advantage of it. Your prospects may take a week or two off over the summer months, but there are very few people in the workplace today who take the summer off of their job. Even if they are working “summer hours” chances are they are still connected to their office via their smartphone.
Prospects are Generally Happier
Honestly, how much better do you feel when you have had a few sunny, warm days behind you and have more to come? People’s moods oftentimes improve over the summer months. Strike while they are amicable – they could be more inclined to consider your pitch.
Set Yourself up for Fall and Winter
B2B enterprise sales can take time and the sales cycles can be long. Don’t lengthen your sales process or miss an opportunity by not continually prospecting for business and pushing leads to close. Don’t forget to put all your information into a CRM to assist you .
Watch for Out-of-Office Notifications
This allows you to gauge when your prospect will be in the office. Schedule a call or another email for them upon their return and you can even show an interest by asking how their vacation was.
Gatekeepers do Vacation
If you have experience getting stuck at the gatekeeper before, then you know how frustrating that can be. If you find the gatekeeper is on vacation take advantage of it. Send a volley of emails and make a number of calls to try to book a meeting directly.
Planning and Strategy Time
The summer for many industries is a little slower than other parts of the year. This means there will not be as many employee requirements so organizations may spend more time on planning. This then could be a good time to introduce a new idea, concept, way of business, product, technology or solution.
If you are in need of assistance from a sales and marketing perspective feel free to contact me. I would be happy to see if we can help. Alternatively, if you are simply looking for a source of excellent sales and marketing information, please feel free to sign up for our newsletter or follow us on Twitter.
