This is a question many of my clients frequently ask me.  CEOs of companies rely on their sales forces to bring new accounts and/or new business into their company.  Frequently, they express frustration regarding the cost of marketing.  I frankly don’t believe that marketing costs too much; I believe that too much of marketing’s cost is unpredictable and unmanageable.

Studies have shown that as much as 87% of our business-to-business generated leads are never pursued.  That means that 87% of the buyer’s energy, effort, time and talent that your company expends on marketing is wasted.  This 87% leakage factor is extremely expensive.  This problem can only be fixed by implementing a closed-loop marketing system.  Cargill Consulting Group’s LeadMinder service will plug the leaks in your sales funnel and/or pipeline.

There are many reasons why leakage occurs but, most often, leakage occurs as a result of a phenomenon I have nicknamed “the gap …

Many salespeople confuse establishing a sales funnel, or pipeline, with creating a pipe dream.  We are all naturally optimistic and, sometimes, this optimism gets us into sales trouble – specifically, when we confuse a prospect who is willing to talk to us with a prospect who has a set of needs that can be satisfied by you and your company.  These needs must be expressed in terms of some level of discomfort that the prospect is currently experiencing.

When you have the ability to help your customer achieve a permanent improvement in one or more circumstances within their business, then your pipeline is indeed a list of potential new deals.  Following are some questions that I suggest you examine for each opportunity in your current pipeline.  If you can’t answer these questions, then you don’t have a pipeline but, rather, a pipe dream.

Is there an opportunity?  Are you working with an …

Conflicts between sales and marketing can become so severe that neither department is able to function optimally.  The source of this conflict usually stems from the fact that sales and marketing fail to agree on a clear definition of an inquiry versus a lead, which too often leads to poor sales.

Inquiry Defined

Inquiries are responses to your marketing efforts from an individual or organization that may have interest in creating a relationship with your company.  I say “may”, as the conversion rate from inquiries to transactions is traditionally low.

However, research shows that anywhere from 45-63% of all inquiries eventually purchase products or services identical to that which they inquired about.  Unfortunately, this process takes anywhere from six to eighteen months, and the typical salesperson is neither able nor willing to nurture a relationship for that long.

To rectify this situation, I suggest keeping all inquiries within the marketing department, until …

There’s a lot of noise in the marketplace regarding internet marketing.  SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and PPC (Pay-Per-Click) advertising seem to lead the pack in terms of the most popular terms that are being batted around.

I have to admit that I have had to take a crash course in both of these technologies.  My good friend and strategic partner, Maggie Strevell at Naper Solutions, has been my tutor.  Her lessons have been augmented by input from my son, Edward Cargill, who has his Master’s Degree in Computer Science.

The reason I say I’ve had to gain a crash-course education in this is because I have sensed, for quite some time now, that it is an extremely powerful method of gaining leads.  As you will know if you’re a consistent reader of my newsletter and/or blog, filling the funnel is my passion.

I read an article several months ago indicating that fully …

This is not only the title of a 1950s-era rock-and-roll song, but it is an accurate description of many of the sales calls that I’ve observed.  I believe that, as our economy has soured, many salespeople are inadvertently demonstrating desperation during their sales calls.  Over-talking has been the bane of many salespeople for many years.  However, now it seems as if an epidemic of this unproductive behavior is occurring.

I’ve made several sales calls with individuals who work in entirely different industries and observed this same phenomenon occurring.  Literally, in one case, the prospect said, “Looks good; let’s get going,” and the sales representative continued to talk right past one of the loudest and clearest closing signals that I’ve ever observed.

In order to avoid being swept up in this process, make sure that you use open and reflective questions throughout every sales meeting.  Make sure that you pause and listen.  Power-listening …