|
I think this really depends on what type of sales role you have. For example, you could be a lead gen rep (SDR), a inside sales rep, or an outside sales rep. I'll break the tools down by type that way: For Lead Gen reps (SDRs), I don't think that there is much better than Linkedin - its got everything in it. The have recently become so stingy with their 'inmails', even for their premier accounts, that you really have to get names from them and then figure out what the pattern is. The trick here is to be a highly connected individual in the group that you are trying to sell into. Joining LION (linkedin open networker) can help here. Sales Loft does a nice job of generating the emails and their patterns too. Voilanorbert is a new service that I've played with a little bit which seems like a good way to generate emails. You can also use the Rapportive trick (just Google it, its complicated). Once you have an email, you can ping the mail servers to ask if an address exists with Mailtester (its free). For InsideSales Reps, InsideSales.com (clever name guys...) and Close.io can be great tools to help with your phone calls productivity rate. Whatever flavor of CRM your company has should become your best friend too. If your lucky you'll get Salesforce or one of the other modern cloud based ones, if you're unlucky you'll get Seibel or a homegrown CRM or maybe something else made 15 years ago and hardly supported today. If this is you, sorry. For Outside Sales People, The Badger Map can be a serious time saver and productivity enhancer with the way it maps out your territory and gives you the ability to organize and prioritize your life. Waze or Google Maps should always be on, just don't forget your car charger. Different Sales people need different tools, for example its rare to see outside sales people living in their CRM the way an inside sales rep will. I feel like everyone should use mail merge or some other automated mail system more than they do. There are free ones and ones you pay for here. Anyway, this is my brain dump, hope it helps. |