During a recession, the best sales process is one that can quickly and inexpensively maximize the number of qualified prospects. This is often done by relying on the internet or targeted lists for phone prospecting.

Recession pressures means that the quality of our targeted list becomes even more important. There are excellent sources for targeted lists on the internet and many are highly reliable while others may be as much as 40% bad. These bad contacts simply waste marketing and sales dollars, so focus on using a quality list.

The use of Capture Pages or what is also called a Landing Page has become a popular way of gathering leads on the internet. Normally a free offer is made in exchange for the person filling out the form. This type of marketing or lead generation is also called Permission Marketing.

One technique that has become popular for warming up a prospect is to send a postcard or a greeting card prior to the phone call from the salesperson. There are several services that you can use to electronically send out these post cards or cards through the US Postal Service. All you have to do is to upload your prospect list and then select the card to send and it will send it out immediately in your own handwriting.

It is critical, before making any follow-up calls on a lead from a Landing Page, that a script be setup that can be roll played and will cause the prospect to do most of the talking in order for the salesperson to determine if the prospect is a good fit. This is normally done with a Question Oriented Sales Process.

One area that is frustrating for salespeople is what to use for an opening statement when doing cold calling. It really takes a specialist like a Cold Call Consultant or Coach to help the salesperson create a script that does not sound like a telemarketer or a salesperson. The best scripts engage the prospect where the prospect does the majority of the talking in order to let the salesperson know if he/she is qualified.

One action that a business owner needs to take while developing a sales process is to actually do the cold calling so he/she can develop a script to be delegated. The fear of cold calling comes from a fight between the conscious mind and the subconscious mind. The more a business owner understands how to control and use their subconscious mind, the more successful they will be because they will eliminate the fear of taking actions like cold calling that move the business forward.