Is Your Follow-up Communication Guilty of
Prospecticide?
By Paul McCord

Like Angela Lansbury in "Murder, She Wrote," I run into cases of
murder everywhere I go. Unlike Lansbury who faced cunning villains
who intentionally murdered, the cases I come across are unintentional,
but with the same deadly results. Lansbury's villains used guns,
knives, and other assorted weapons; the killers I come across use
words. She dealt with homicide; I deal with prospecticide, the killing
of prospects.

Are you guilty? Are you one of the millions of salespeople who have
committed one of the worst of sales crimes? Worse, are you a serial
prospecticider?

Most typically, prospecticide isn't a one-time crime. It becomes so
ingrained in the perpetrator that they don't even realize they are
committing the crime. And just as with Lansbury's villains, the
prospecticider faces stiff penalties in the form of lower income, more
difficult sales, and, possibly even the sales equivalent of the death
penalty--having to find another occupation.

How do you commit this heinous crime? You commit prospecticide
when you kill your prospects through communications with them that
train them to avoid you because you're focused on your needs not
theirs. Your phone calls, your e-mails, your voice mail messages, and
other communications are designed to advance your cause, not theirs.

Every communication you have with a prospect trains them either to
pay attention to you because you bring value to them or to avoid you
because all you do is waste their time.

Particularly in a long sales cycle, your communication with your
prospect is crucial. Each time you send something, call, or leave a
voice message, you are telling your prospect what you think their time
and attention is worth. You're telling them whether you're concerned
about them–or about yourself.

In addition, you're telling them a great deal about you and your
business. You're telling them what your time is worth, what you think
is important, and, most importantly, whether or not you have anything
of value to say. You're telling your prospect how professional you
are–or how shallow.Your communications, no matter what form they take, are you. Your
letter, your e-mail, your voice message, your thank you card are all
you, just without you physically being in front of the prospect. They
are you and your business to the prospect. The message they send is
just as important as any message you would deliver in person.

Before sending anything, before picking up the phone, and before
leaving the voice message, ask yourself a few questions:
· Would I want to hear from me?
· Would I want to receive this?
· Does this represent me well?
· Does this add value to our relationship?
· Is this designed to benefit the prospect–or me?

If your answer doesn't indicate that the communication is prospect
centered and adds value for the prospect, why are you delivering it?

Most salespeople seldom think about the content of the
communications they deliver to their prospects. The object, they
figure, is to keep their name in front of the prospect and to let the
prospect know they are interested in acquiring the prospect's business.

The issue isn't with the salesperson's objective, but with the way they
do it.

Typical follow-up communications are
· the "how ya doin'?" call
· the "is there anything I can do for ya?" call
· the "did ya get my package?" call
· the "I couldn't reach you, but I wanted to see if you need
anything" e-mail
· and the "here's my information again just in case you misplaced
it" package.

As most often made, these communications are time wasters for the
prospect. If they had made a decision or if there were anything they
needed, they would have called. These communications teach the
prospect to avoid the salesperson because they've learned the
salesperson will do nothing but waste their time. The next thing the
salesperson knows, their calls are screened and their messages not
returned.Prospects don't have their calls screened, ignore voice mail messages
and e-mails, and throw written correspondence in the trash without
reading it to be rude. They do these things because they have been
taught by salespeople that answering and returning calls and reading
the material salespeople send have no value. Salespeople have taught
them to avoid salespeople at all costs.

Does that mean you can't communicate with your prospects?

Certainly, you can. However, your first job is to teach your prospect
that you, unlike other salespeople, value of their time; and that when
you call, when you send an e-mail, when you request a return call,
when you send a letter or package, it adds value for the prospect and
that spending a few minutes speaking with you or reading your
communications is worth the time spent.

What can you communicate that will add value for your prospect?
There are a myriad of possibilities.
· Articles relating to aspects of the prospect's company or industry
that may impact the their business. These articles must come
from a source the prospect is not likely to have read.
· Changes in your product or service that enhance your ability to
meet your prospect's needs
· Articles or reports about micro or macro economic issues that
may make it advantageous for the prospect to make a decision
now instead of later.
· Announcements of awards your company has won for its
products or about new product enhancements or releases
· Possibly the prospect or his/her company has recently received
awards or press coverage or sponsored events you can
congratulate them on
· Articles relating to an interest outside of work you know the
prospect has. Again, these articles should come from sources
the prospect isn't likely to discover on their own.
· Special discounts, upgrades, or arrangements you can offer the
prospect that are outside your company's normal procedures

These are just a small sampling of the items that can add value for
your prospect. The more timely and pertinent the message, the more
value it adds. The more value you add, the more valuable you
become. The more valuable you become, the more you ease
competition out of the way and the less price is an issue.On the other hand, the less value you bring, the less valuable you are.
The less valuable you are, the more difficult it is to reach your
prospect. The more difficult to reach your prospect, the less likely a
sale and the more likely you just committed prospecticide.

If you're a serial prospecticider, there is hope. You can be
rehabilitated. Yes, there is a chance for recidivism, but once you
become aware that every communication you have with a prospect is
just as important as your first, and once you see the payoff of
becoming a respected and valued source of information, the less likely
it is you'll go back to your old murderous ways.

Do you want to be able to reach your prospect anytime you want? Do
you want your calls returned? Do you want to move your competition
out of the way? Do you want to eliminate price as a primary issue?
Then stop teaching your prospects to ignore you and begin teaching
them that you are the one salesperson they need. If they determine
they need you and that you add value to them and their business,
you'll have no difficulty in gaining their attention anytime you want it.


Paul McCord is a leading authority on prospecting, referral selling, and personal marketing. He is
the author of the best-selling book on referral selling, Creating a Million Dollar a Year Sales
Income: Sales Success through Client Referrals (John Wiley and Sons, 2007), which is quickly
becoming recognized as the authoritative work on referral generation. His second book,
SuperStar Selling: 12 Keys to Becoming a Sales SuperStar will be released in February, 2008. He
may be reached at pmccord@mccordandassociates.com or visit his sales training website at
www.powerreferralselling.com.



Copyright 2007, Paul McCord. You may reprint the article in full, with proper attribution
and short bio. Notify Paul of when and where it will appear with a short email to
pmccord@mccordandassociates.com