What is your mindset regarding leads?

By Betsy Bennholz, Promotional Products Sales Manager at MEDiAHEAD

When it came to finding leads, at the beginning of my career I would literally pull out the phone book.

For the youngsters reading this, that was this big yellow printed book that listed businesses and doubled as a child’s booster seat. The big printed white book was for people who had a home phone attached to their wall. Sorry, I felt a history lesson was needed. All that to say, I opened the big yellow book and started in the A section and if someone had a bigger ad in the book, I thought they might have more money to spend, and I would call them first. Not exactly a scientific method, but it seemed logical at the time.

Fast forward thirty years and all that is gone. Now, it is social media, websites, and networking events. I still believe in “know, like and trust” and go to networking events. Building relationships is key in business, no matter the era.

What I find interesting is how the company culture approaches leads.

The following are lead behaviors that I have experienced in my career.

• The lead hoarder – It’s like they’re collecting treasures, even if they don’t plan on using them anytime soon.
• The lead holder – The mindset is that you exchanged cards and if they need something they can call, or they will get to it when I can.
• The lead delegator – This is smart delegation, passing the lead to the best-suited person or team to handle it effectively.
• The lead Piranhna – They’re hungry for success and will go after leads with determination and persistence.

I have experienced these working for three companies and also owning my own business. Each company had a different philosophy. Not every lead is meant for every salesperson or business and recognizing that can lead to better outcomes for everyone involved.

My personal philosophy is there are enough business leads for everyone, and collaborating with other salespeople who believe the same way has served me well. Not every salesperson is a good fit for a given client. If you haven’t made any transactions, I believe in passing those leads on.

At MEDiHEAD, Kat McDaniel is extremely generous with passing on leads and letting us do what each of us does well. This kind of environment fosters success and positive relationships within the team. When it comes to leads, we like to make connections. Let’s talk!