[rbeale]

Hi -

When you qualify a prospect, you want to think about 4 letters BANT. Budget, Authority, Need, Timing.

1) Budget - does this prospect have enough money to afford my product/service 2) Authority - Am I speaking with the decision maker (the person who holds the purse strings - typically CEO for businesses with less than 50 employees). For an educational institution, you will want to ask, "how does your purchasing process work?" You need to be able to uncover who the final decision maker is. 3) Need - why do they NEED your product. Please note that "need" is far different from "want" your product. For example, is the educational institution behind on the technology curve? What does your product do to give the educational institution a competitive advantage in either making professors more efficient or attracting more talented students? 4) Timing - educational institutions are businesses. They have budgets. It is getting close to the end of 2010. Perhaps purchasing your product is within the budget.... for 2011. They may love your product but are waiting to pull the trigger on Jan 1, 2011. How do you figure this out? Well, you need to ask, What are the next steps on your end?

Every deal is different. One thing that is consistent is BANT qualifying prospects. If you can identify 1) a PROBLEM 2) a PAIN and 3) CONSEQUENCE - the probability of converting leads into customers goes WAY UP.

Hope this helps. :)

Ryan