Synthesis, Inc. - Synthesis, Inc. - Administrative Support for Creative People

I just went through my ACT! database and deleted all folks with an ID/Status as “Suspect” who have not responded to my repeated attempts to contact them. I felt safe doing this, as those who did express some type of interest were immediately upgraded to Prospect and put in my sales funnel.

This simple process of casting the net to introduce our company and services to new markets every year has allowed us to tap into industries we never would have considered a candidate for our services! But we have learned: Nothing ventured, nothing gained, correct?

On the other hand, no sense wasting time and energy with folks who clearly are not interested. Send them one more email or call them one more time to tell them you will be deleting them from your prospecting list. If you get a response, great! That means they were just busy and now will find the time to work with you. If not, bye-bye and move on.

So, casting the net, converting suspects to prospects and following them through the sales process allows me to run a simple report in ACT! that tells me the benefit of my efforts.

The report is: Reports|Opportunity Reports|Sales Analysis by Record Manager.

I mention this report every year because it is the truest measure of whether I am honing my sales skills and effectively targeting markets. Looks like 2011 was a good year for me; my Close Ratio has increased dramatically from 43% in 2010 to 58% in 2011! My days open have averaged only 18. Our process of cold-calling, following up, letting go and repeating is a success – backed by the numbers.

Nothing spurs us on like success. Dare to look at your ratios – they will motivate you to improve, no matter the results!