19 Sep B2B Appointment Setting: Tips and Tricks to Ace the Sales Strategy
Mastering B2B appointment setting is crucial to succeeding at connecting and forming relationships with leads. These days, the sales process involves more than identifying leads and closing sales by any means. It consists of playing to the strengths of different sales team members and combining their skills to engage with promising leads. This is where the B2B appointment setting comes in.
While sales reps must have various skills they use at all stages of the sales process, some shine more at one thing. For example, you may have one sales rep exceptionally skilled at bonding with leads and building a great rapport. Another sales rep may be a master at closing deals and can sell anything to anyone.
Sending both sales reps to meet with leads will ensure a business never runs out of customers. B2B appointment setting is a strategy that uses the skills of multiple salespeople to engage with leads. Each sales rep interacts with the lead at different phases of the sales process to ensure a successful sale.
Three phases of the sales process
Prospecting
This is the first stage of the sales process, where the sales reps make initial contact to generate B2B leads. The prospect would’ve shown some interest in your offer, and it’s time for the sales team to determine whether there’s a real sales opportunity. They learn more about the customer to understand where they are in the buying journey. If there are signs of a high potential to convert, they’re moved to the next stage of the sales process.
Appointment setting
The second stage of the sales process focuses on nurturing the lead to get them to convert. At this stage, another salesperson may come in to engage with the lead and arrange an appointment. A sales rep skilled at spotting leads most likely to make a purchase handles scheduling meetings.
Convincing a lead to agree to a meeting can be a delicate task. So, some businesses delegate it to an external company that specializes in appointment setting. Outsourcing appointment setting frees up their reps to focus on other activities. They’ll focus on reviewing their proposals, and syncing with the rep handling the final stage of the sales process.
Lead closing
In the third and final phase of the sales process, the sales rep meets with the lead to close the deal. The ideal approach is for the rep with the best deals closing skills to attend the meeting with a highly qualified lead. With their negotiation skills, they’ll convince the lead to buy and finalize all deal terms.
Master the game of B2B appointment setting
- Do thorough research
Exhaustive research is one of the top ways to find and generate B2B prospects. It’s vital to find the right prospects, and learn as much as possible about them and their challenges. This will ensure you’re prepared to speak to them confidently. Research is conducted at the early phases of the sales process. It helps prepare material the closing sales rep can go into appointments with so they have informed conversations.
- Prepare for a meaningful conversation
Work to connect with prospects on a human level and build trust by having meaningful conversations. Going in with a pushy, all-sales pitch can rub lead the wrong way, leading to a possible loss of their account. Familiarize yourself with their needs and challenges, and ask thoughtful questions to learn if your offer will really add value to their business. This might determine whether they’ll get on board and purchase your offer.
- Ensure personalization
A one-size-fits-all plan for B2B appointment setting won’t be in your best interest. Creating a personalized pitch and messaging shows the lead that you’ve done due diligence and understand its needs and challenges.
- Be consistent and patient
The sales process is often lengthy, especially with larger companies where the buying decision involves multiple parties, so be patient with your leads. Companies are bombarded with offers and pitches numerous times a day, so building trust and confidence in vendors takes a while. It’s hard to expect enthusiasm after a single meeting with a prospect, so it’s important to show consistency through frequent check-ins and follow-ups. Sharing valuable resources and insights on the market can also help persuade your lead to convert.
- Consider outsourcing
Securing meetings in the B2B landscape can take months of planning to execute correctly. Consider outsourcing this task to an agency with the right skills for navigating corporate structures. With experts handling your B2B appointment setting, your sales team will only meet with qualified leads. This means they’ll have one less thing to worry about. These intermediaries provide B2B appointment-setting services if you can’t do the necessary prospecting or lack the marketing resources.
Tips to choose the best B2B appointment-setting services
Focus on quality
Look for B2B appointment-setting services that focus on generating high-quality leads. Simply getting a large number of leads is relatively easy. Consider the number of companies requiring products and services that solve their business challenges. However, using a company with a proven track record of supplying clients with qualified leads means you’re more likely to see increased sales. The service provider should have a good strategy for gathering, organizing, and validating leads. Tasks like these usually take time, and having the service provider handle this would be highly beneficial to your business.
Good track record of building trusting relationships
A good B2B appointment-setting service has a history of building trusting relationships with leads. Ensure the company you choose to work with has an effective strategy for maintaining relationships. Their content strategy should inspire trust by crafting personalized messages. They should also use targeted campaigns crafted using language that resonates with your leads, so they understand your offer’s value.
Success stories with executives that fit your prospect profile
Many companies have readily available testimonials and reviews from clients they’ve worked with. A quick look at their website or periodic reports will provide the information you need. They’ll likely have case studies of companies they’ve worked with and how they provide solutions that elevate these companies. Check that the service you’re considering has worked with leads that fit your buyer persona and prospect profiles. It’ll show they have experience handling such groups and know the right messaging to capture their attention.
Offer a guaranteed number of leads or scheduled meetings with key decision-makers
Transparency about the number of leads the service can guarantee they’ll deliver is also essential. The appointment-setting service should duly inform its clients how many meetings they can schedule. Information on the number of leads they’ll generate throughout the partnership is also important to ensure expectations are understood and met. These figures can be contained in a contract or other forms of documentation. This ensures each party knows what to expect and what should be delivered.
Provide customized solutions
What works and generates massive sales for one company may do nothing for another. Consider whether the appointment-setting service offers custom strategies based on its customers’ needs. Avoid companies that try to implement the same lead nurturing strategies with multiple clients. Work with a company skilled at providing bespoke appointment-setting plans that match your company’s needs.
Linked Strategies expertise in building high-level executive relationships makes us highly skilled at B2B appointment setting. Over the last 10+ years, we’ve employed innovative strategies to meet our client’s needs. We also leverage our connections to secure appointments with executives in different industries. Contact us today and we’ll work with you to find, nurture, and set appointments with the right leads.