B2B Leads Signify Not Only Opportunities But Also Needs

 You have to face it. People these days don't like salespeople. Even business owners themselves are starting to absorb the mentality from outspoken consumers on the pushiness and eagerness of companies these days. Who can blame them? For decades, many professionals and analysts have admitted that companies have cared more about selling than they are about giving the people what they needed. And in times of economic uncertainty, both businesses and consumers alike have become more focused and aware of prioritizing their needs first.

However, does this mean the end of sales and marketing? Hardly. It only means that a lesson should be learned here. It means that you need to prioritize those needs first. Fortunately for you, businesses are likely to have more needs as entire organizations than simply categorized groups of private consumers. On the other hand, how do you prioritize these needs if you don't even know what they are?

This is another thing that lead generation is supposed to do. And in light of recent developments, it seems to have been forgotten. When you're setting out the criteria for a qualified lead, you shouldn't limit yourself to just the budget or if whether or not a potential client may not be so potential after all in terms of sales. It's shouldn't be just about the money you'll be getting. It should be about whether or not you can give these people what they need. Frankly, the following piece of wisdom may seem tried but it's still well tested. If you're eager more about making a buck than making yourself useful, then you will indeed turn off a lot of decision makers and just all people in general.

Look at B2B telemarketing as one example of this. These days professional telemarketers often avoid giving everything away about their business (or the one they're representing). Why? Because they know the person on the other end likely doesn't care. What they do instead is ask questions. These questions in turn extract more information and help with the qualification process. Some of them even offer appointment setting between you two so that you'll automatically have a set opportunity to make use of that information.

Still, where's the point in them getting all that information for you if you don't use it to identify needs? It may even hurt you more if you spent resources on your own in-house call center instead of outsourcing because you spend so much effort but undermine the value of the results.

Now whether you're outsourcing a lead generation company or carrying on with your own, doing either means nothing if the only thing your sales team will focus on is the part about the money and not about what you can do for the business you're engaging with. In fact, it can even come to the defense of making money. You'll still need it to stay afloat after all, everyone does. It'd be pretty stupid to refuse an offer that can serve on the grounds that you're trying to make a fast buck. That will only work however if you've decided to concentrate on an business organization's needs and not just out to make an opportunity out of them.

Maxwell Stinson is a B2B Telemarketing Specialist and Marketing Expert that works for Kick-Start Sales Force. Max invites you to visit http://kickstartsalesforce.com/ for more details on B2B telemarketing.

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