Being a salesperson involves more than making calls and holding meetings. What happens before you make a call is what helps get that next referral.

Failure to plan is the weakness of many salespeople who just randomly go from facility to facility hoping someone will say yes and refer.

Planning takes time and that is time you could be spending in front of your prospects. This is why many salespeople hate to plan – they don’t see it as a part of selling. But the key to successful selling is to include planning time in your day and to plan well.

Here are some tips:

Make a list.

Who are your prospects? If you don’t know who they are, you don’t know whom to call. Your company will have a list of past referral sources… USE IT! But if you are just starting out, you may have to generate your own list. This will involve research!

Research your prospects.

Have they used your services before? Are they using any home care agency? How often do they use a home care agency? Who is the decision-maker? Who is the gatekeeper? What are the office’s or facility’s business hours? The internet has made this SO EASY for you! Most facilities are super proud of their building and their staff? Look them up! Google your hospital + annual report. TONs of great info in those pages!

Prioritize your prospects.

Some are top prospects. You will not know until you ASK YOUR QUALIFYING questions on the 1st sales call. Your goal is to create a list so you can go and qualify and then rank the referral source!

Make yourself a schedule.

Salespeople have a lot of freedom and often it is easy to waste time. To make sure you don’t miss any potential clients, plan your calendar! Add time to your schedule for planning. Organize your sales calls by geography (zip codes work best for me when routing). Google Maps and Speedyroute will help you plan.

Stick to it.

Cheating on your schedule is like cheating on a diet. If you cheat, you won’t make your goal. Make sure you stick to your plan as much as possible. The one month you don’t call on that prospect could be the month they needed a home care agency or they got a new social worker! They are likely going to reach out to the salesperson that has made regular visits. They generalize if you are there for them — your company will be there for their patients.

Sometimes you have to slow down to go fast!

If you are looking for more guidance on the best account types or the best qualifying questions to ask. Join us in the High Performance Sales Academy!

Keep Serving Seniors,

Melanie Stover, OT

Co-Owner of Home Care Sales