By Brian Carroll

Recent studies show that sales people want selling time more than sales leads. Best practice driven companies are recognizing that it is futile to continue to pass marketing driven inquiries directly to sales before they are rigorously qualified as "sales ready."

Last week, I visited with a CEO who was really upset with his marketing team because he felt they were generating a lot of "junk leads." He said, “I don't think my sales people will invest any more time calling marketing generated leads until I pay them to do so.” That may sound extreme but numerous studies have shown that 70 - 80% of leads are never contacted by a sales person.

We must realize that the extreme time pressure salespeople face—especially those with a complex sale—requires them to ignore what is not immediately relevant and highly likely to produce revenue. Why? They are not paid to do anything else. And that makes quality more important than quantity to them.

Related post: How to ensure every single lead is followed up on

My company has tried and tested a number of different lead qualification and scoring approaches for our clients. We have found that using the phone - aka teleprospecting - is the single best way to qualify leads as part of a overall lead management process. No other tactic is as accurate when it comes to collecting the qualitative information salespeople require to justify pursuing a prospective lead. The phone is timely, interactive, and personal—the perfect combination of assets for building a relationship.

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By Jim Berkowitz, CRM Mastery

Lori Richardson's Top Ten Symptoms of an Ineffective Sales Force post in her salesprocessdiva blog noted:

Here are ten symptoms that your sales force or sales efforts are not effective, per Ian Selbie of Power Marketing International:

Top Ten Symptoms of an Ineffective Sales Force:

1. Consistently not achieving assigned sales quotas
2. Lack of confidence calling at executive levels
3. An absence of account and / or opportunity planning
4. Poor understanding of your customer's business pain
5. Poor understanding of what the customer sees as value
6. Underestimating the competition
7. Pursuing deals blindly
8. Spending more time in the office than with customers
9. Spending more time using computer software than selling
10.Inaccurate revenue forecasting

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By Brian Carroll

I liked this article by Sally Roffman in the Triangle TechJournal. Roffman contends, that brand building must not be sacrificed for the sake of lead generation but rather; marketers should strive to integrate both activities together.

While Roffman's ideas are not new, we're reminded that a well-executed lead generation strategy can deliver value to the sales team and build brand awareness at the same time.

They key is to have a relevant dialog with the right people in the right companies timed by where they are in the buying process. How you may ask?

I've distilled a few ideas below: 

• Start with your sales process -- don't ignore the rich knowledge of the people on the frontlines, salespeople, inside sales and telemarketers. 
• Make sure you are lead generation messages are relevant to your audience by customizing your messaging based on titles, industry verticals, anticipated business issues -- i.e. show them that you "get it."
• Integrate your message by choosing the right execution vehicle, target audience (ideal customer profile) and make sure your message is aligned with your brand platform. 
• Fine tune your messaging based on timing -- where they are in their buying process. 

How has lead generation postively impacted your brand awareness? 

Leading the Way! How to Create an Integrated, Brand-Savvy Lead Generation Campaign

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