How to overcome prospecting jitters

With my managers over the years, I have developed a method for seeking out and finding new sources of business. Here are a few tips that have served me well with the mental aspects of prospecting:

• Do the math. Prospecting is a numbers game. If I make enough calls, I will succeed. I know exactly how many sales calls I must make a year to achieve the amount of income that my family and I need. If I divide that number by the number of work weeks, the result is the minimum number of weekly prospecting calls I must make.
• Put a price on each sales call. I decide on the income I want to make this year and divide it by the total number of sales calls it will take me to get there. I’ve figured out that I am paid $29 a sales call. Placing a dollar value on a sales call is helpful when I approach a building and don’t want to enter. I have two choices: pay myself $29 by going in and making the sales call, or throw $29 in the trash and drive away.
• It’s a party! When I go to a party at someone’s house, I meet many people. Some are OK, and some aren’t so friendly. I probably will meet one or two nice people, however, with whom I might pursue a friendship. It’s the same way in prospecting. I may meet one or two not-so-nice folks, but I definitely will meet many friendly people. I’ll find one or two with whom I want to pursue a business relationship.
• Be a risk taker. One well-placed kick can win the Super Bowl. But what if the kicker decides he doesn’t want to kick the ball because he isn’t confident that he will score? Producers should remember that any kick they don’t take is a missed opportunity. Why not take the kick? There’s a good chance to score.

Editor’s Note: The preceding tip was taken from “Make prospecting a sport,” a Sales Sizzler by Donna Gentile that ran in the September 2003 issue of Life Insurance Selling.

To read last week’s Tip of the Week, click here.

For more advice on building prospecting confidence, see: