One of the key aspects of sales is to understand the customer’s environment and how you can help them. Never before has so much information been available to help sales with this task. Research can be used to help prospect new clients and help with existing ones.
When it comes to researching the companies you want to work with or sell to, finding all the necessary research before you make that call can be quite time consuming. Well, I’ve drafted out a list of the top free B2B sales research tools and strategies you take take advantage of when conducting your research.
Company Website
This is the most obvious, but sometimes not used as thoroughly as it could be. Often you can find news, media releases, leadership team, and if applicable, publicly traded financial information. Another great spot that does not often get reviewed is the career section. As an example, there can be details in job descriptions that can give insight into processes and technology they use.
Google can be used in many ways. Looking at recent news gives you an idea of what the market is saying. Searching on keywords, like the type of solutions you are selling and the company name, can lead to press releases from competitors. Searching on the contact title and email can lead you to contact details.
By using the company page you can get a snapshot of the company with locations, product offerings, blogs, twitter feeds, and most importantly, how you may be connected to the company. You could be directly connected and use that to find out more about the company or get an introduction to a key contact. You may also have a 2nd connection that you can use for an introduction.
I suggest trying to follow the Twitter addresses of prospects and current account companies, as well as their key contacts. Create a private Twitter list and track the activity at the account.
Jigsaw
Jigsaw is a great tool that not enough people know about. It is a crowd sourced on-line database of companies and contacts. You can search on the contact you are looking for or even just job title. With Jigsaw you add contacts in order to gain points, which are then used to access another contact’s information. The data is not always 100% accurate, but it works most of the time. There is also a for fee service.
These tools and strategies will help with prospecting and account management. For more sales and marketing tips follow @vapartners.ca or subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
