Written by: Ken Kupckik
If you polled a giant group of salespeople and asked them what the most challenging aspect of sales would be, prospecting would be at the top, along with dealing with rejection and uncertainty. Prospecting is a challenge for many salespeople and is oftentimes the part of sales that people hate most.
(But using an AI-powered sales automation CRM , like Spiro, can make prospecting a whole lot easier.)
Thankfully, anyone can teach themselves to embrace, and even possibly enjoy, prospecting. Like anything in life, it just takes a certain amount of willpower and a willingness to look at things a bit differently. To finally stop hating prospecting, try doing some (or all) of these seven things:
1. Set specific time aside for prospecting
You need to make sure that you’re setting blocks of time strictly for prospecting, because if you try to wing it and you don’t enjoy prospecting, you’ll keep putting it off indefinitely. If you keep yourself to a strict schedule then there won’t be a way to avoid it or make excuses to yourself for why you didn’t do it. You also need to make sure to set aside the appropriate amount of time, since reaching a prospect can take patience and persistence .
2. Make a game out of it
Part of the reason people don’t like prospecting is because they take themselves way too seriously. Make a game out of prospecting even if you are the only who is playing, or start one with your teammates. When you start to approach it as a challenge or even as a source of entertainment, you’ll be surprised at how effortless it will become.
3. Get used to it
Many people don’t enjoy prospecting because they’re not comfortable doing it. It can be hard to get over the fear of prospecting . But like anything else, once you’ve gotten over the hump of starting and learning, you’ll feel more and more natural doing it. And after you’ve become comfortable prospecting and embracing all of the negatives (and positives) that come as a result of it, it’s very likely you’ll stop hating prospecting altogether.
4. If you have a negative experience, move on quickly
The worst thing you can do after you have a negative experience when prospecting is sit and stew about it. This will make you overthink what you’re doing and associate the negativity with the act. Instead, realize that it’s one bad experience and that you’re just as likely to have a great one on your next call and dive right back into it.
5. Get yourself motivated to prospect every time
Different people can pump themselves up in different ways, whether that’s by listening to your favorite music or having photos of your inspiration on your desk. Whatever works for you, always take the time to get yourself pumped up before prospecting. It’ll make a huge difference in your input which will then give you a better output, and you’ll stop hating prospecting.
Related: 7 Ways to Effectively Engage Prospects and Close More Deals
6. Always think about your ultimate goal
A great way to stay motivated and embrace prospecting is to always remember what your ultimate goal is. Maybe you have a personal financial goal like buying a new house for your family, or a goal to sell enough and save enough money to never work again. Whatever it is, make sure you keep it in mind before you sit down to prospect, so you understand exactly why you’re doing what you’re doing.
7. Sell a product you believe in
You really, really need to sell something that you believe in. If you truly believe that you sell a great product that adds value then prospecting becomes so much less difficult. All it takes then is to convey your beliefs to other people as often as possible. On the other hand, if you’re selling something that you don’t think has any value, then you’ll probably always despise prospecting because it’ll mean you have to convince yourself just as much as you have to convince other people. If that’s the case, it might be time to leave your current sales job .