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SalesCraft – Going beyond salesperson – Why do we develop a lead?

Developing your own leads means that you are catching someone off guard when you talk to them about your services. By off guard I mean that I have them in "regular work mode(RWM)", not "I have to search out a certain service for my company where I collect information from many companies and buy from the lowest/nicest bidder(SUCKY)".

RWM means that they are thinking about their job and how to do it in time to get home to watch the game/be with kids/enjoy life. Which in turn means they are really receptive to someone who knows who they are and what they do and how they can help them do their job faster/cheaper/better/newer/all of the above. SUCKY means that they have a list of you and all of your competitors and they are calling everyone of them and getting the pitch and then going over the data.

RWM means you are probably the only one talking to them, so you have exclusive audience and can take their needs (by listening as per my boi @conrey discussed in his recent post on Value) and frame those needs around your service/value. SUCKY means they are getting pulled all over by multiple vendors and giving you the framework and you them have to stick your service/value into it and maybe chop pieces off.

Bottom line RWM's will have a higher rate of margin and be much less stressful than SUCKY. The catch is that with RWM's you have to learn your craft, learn about your prospect, learn about your competitors, and work your ass off everyday(well that last part is debatable...=).

Discussion:
What's your take on Inbound versus Outbound leads?
Why do we like to fall back on Inbound leads?
What is the key to being good at developing your own leads?
What is the sales 'craft'?

Related posts:

1. Salescraft 101 – Creating a Road Map with your Proposal Toolkit