From Chaos to Conversions: The Surprising Way Staying Organized Streamlines Sales

We’re having a bit of an organization craze in this country right now. Have you noticed? We just can’t get enough of Marie Kondo’s “spark joy” philosophy, The Home Edit’s rainbow-order bookshelves, and endless images of perfectly contained pantries, closets, and drawers. Perhaps we have a stuff problem, or a stress problem, or both, fueling this obsession. But I digress… 

Whether our efforts to tidy up are a symptom of something healthy or not, the reality is that being organized has a lot of benefits—especially when it comes to sales. My go-to tool for keeping my ducks in a row is Sales Navigator. To me, there’s no question that the organization it offers is worth the investment. Here are just a few ways that a clear and systematic process can make selling smoother. 

• Thoughtful outreach
  Staying organized allows you to keep track of your prospects’ important milestones and interests. I don’t know about you, but I can hardly keep my schedule in my head, let alone personal facts about dozens of prospects. An organized system helps you demonstrate knowledge of a person.
  
  When you reach out with a well-timed congratulations on a new job or news feature, for example, it shows you care and you’re paying attention. Sales Navigator can do the leg work for you by notifying you whenever saved leads have important updates. If your prospect management system is disheveled, you’re throwing away sales gold. All the little tidbits you gather about a prospect spark conversation and connection.  
   
  
• Fewer mistakes 
  Have you ever experienced that awkward moment when someone you’ve met several times introduces herself like it's for the first time? Not a good feeling. You run the risk of making your prospects feel the same way if you’re not keeping your engagement interactions documented. 
  
  A great prospect management system, like Sales Navigator, will let you know if you’ve already reached out to someone before and when. That way,  you’ll save yourself the embarrassment of re-engaging someone who’s already said no, or congratulating Tim on his promotion when it was actually Tina. 
  
  
• Greater efficiency 
  An organized system helps you make the most of limited time. In a matter of seconds, you should be able to see who you want to reach, how they’re connected to other stakeholders, recent milestones, and the history of your communication.
  
  If your account info is jumbled, disjointed, or hard to review, you’re wasting time. You should be able to review your lists and progress without much effort at all. Sales Navigator’s Account Map feature is one way to get a visual of who and how you need to engage.
  
  

Why Sales Navigator 

There are about a zillion different ways to organize information, but when it comes to keeping track of prospect information, I love Sales Navigator. I train clients all the time on how to nurture connections using this tool. It makes so much sense to me to have your research tool and prospect management system all in one.

Sales Navigator has several advantages over the free version of LinkedIn. First, the saved search feature is so powerful! It automatically notifies you whenever new leads fit your filters. It literally works while you sleep and keeps you from missing new opportunities. 

Second, with Sales Navigator, you don’t have to be connected with your leads to keep tabs on them. And just in case you’re worried that this approach feels like “LinkedIn stalking,” I just want to remind you it’s perfectly normal and professional to let someone know you’ve done your research. It’s not weird anymore for people to say, “I saw on LinkedIn that you were featured in your local business journal!” 

As my friend Walker McKay says, “You get paid for the information you gather, not the information you give.” And that’s exactly what Sales Navigator helps you do. Collect, organize, and leverage information. 

The Surprising Truth about Prospecting Tools 

Staying organized won’t just help you save time and show up well. It’s also a great way to help you move on from the prospecting phase altogether and close a deal. Sometimes my clients are surprised when I tell them that one of my favorite things about Sales Navigator: If you use it correctly, it should propel you off of the platform.

Let me explain. I love LinkedIn, but it should not be your only outreach tool. Your goal is to get offline and get on the phone. You can’t qualify leads unless you talk to them. Use LinkedIn to score that conversation. (And when you do close the deal, don’t forget to attribute the success to LinkedIn!) 

Looking for other ways to tidy up your sales process? Let me help! I give you access to my key tactics (that clients pay top dollar for!) in my digital resource: 3 Proven Principles to Accessing Your Target Market on LinkedIn (And Land More Clients!) Check it out…your future self will thank you.