Unmotivated to prospect? Do these 6 things now

For many people, getting motivated is hard. For salespeople, it can be doubly so, since constant motivation is required to push through the myriad obstacles and rejection a typical sales rep faces on any given day. To put it simply: without motivation, a sales rep is dead in the water.

And there’s probably no single aspect of sales that requires as much motivation as prospecting. A good sales rep will spend at least a few hours on prospecting every single day, and it can be difficult to get yourself going when you’re typically starting from scratch with each contact — over and over again, with no end in sight.

But there are ways to motivate yourself beyond the classic “Drink a bunch of coffee and listen to your favorite music” approach (though this can help too). Approaching prospecting in a more strategic way can not only help you stay motivated, but it can increase your effectiveness, which will then motivate you further — a self-perpetuating cycle.

So if you find yourself unmotivated to prospect, try doing the following six things:

1. Think like a copywriter

You can send a ton of messages, but if the message isn’t compelling, then you’re simply not going to hear back. When prospecting, think like a copywriter. Ask yourself:

• “What’s the hook?”
• “Why would this person want to respond to me?”
• “Is this message compelling?”

And make sure you have an answer to each question before you hit send. Oh, and try to write how you talk. When communicating with human beings, it’s important to sound like a human being too.

2. Gamify your activity

Doing things on their own can be difficult, but turning them into a game can make them fun, especially when you view your activity as a rewarding challenge.

If you use Dooly, you can set up a comp and pipeline view tracker, so that you’ll have clear visibility into your activity and how it ties into the big picture. You can also approach it as a way to give yourself rewards.

For instance, you can tell yourself that you’ll earn that candy bar that you wanted from the vending machine, but only if you make a certain number of calls. By tying your activity to a reward, you’ll add that little bit of motivation to get yourself going.

3. Use video

Not only is using video to prospect a great way to stand out, but it can also be energizing to record yourself before sending it out, no matter how comfortable on video you might be.

Tools like Vidyard allow you to film clips and easily package and send them to prospects, and reps who use this type of software usually see increased response rates.

But aside from all that, recording videos can also raise your energy levels, as you’ll need to be “on” when filming, which can serve you well when you’re not feeling especially motivated.

4. Social selling

Social selling is a fun way to prospect — you know it’s true! Not only do you get to put a face (usually) to the name, but you get to learn a lot about people and their work histories, interests, and online behaviors, which is always a bit of treat.

When social selling, make sure to work smarter, not harder — use DoolyBar to take the gruntwork out of prospect research: conjure Salesforce using Dooly’s CMD+J and it will automatically scrape a profile for contact info to convert contacts and leads from LI.

And even if you don’t feel comfortable with social selling just yet, make sure to keep practicing, because it’s definitely the present, and the future.

5. Pomodoro

The Pomodoro technique can not only help you gain time and productivity, it can also help you break down your effort into smaller, more manageable chunks. Here’s how it works:

• Break down your prospecting activities into 25 minute “sprints.”
• Set a timer, then focus on outreach for those 25 minutes.
• After you finish, take a five minute break, then reset the timer and do another 25 minute push.

Pomodoro will help you stay accountable, and since the sprints are manageable, it will make prospecting feel a bit less daunting.

6. Keep the end-goal in mind

At the end of the day, if you want to stay motivated, you need to tie your goals to your activities. This means thinking about what you want to achieve (preferably at the highest levels), and mentally connecting those goals to your everyday activities, like prospecting!

For instance: maybe your goal is to buy that house with the massive floor-to-ceiling windows and the beautifully landscaped backyard, where you can relax on nights and weekends with your family. If so, think of that house whenever you’re working and have to do something you’re not motivated to do, because your activity will directly lead you one step closer to buying that house.

Whatever your goals are, remember them when you’re feeling unmotivated, then pick up the phone and make another call.