Business development and inside sales professionals come across many hurdles that they must solve in order to keep a business up and running. Below are five common obstacles that the sales industry and business development face on a daily basis and five solutions that will prepare them for handling that problem.

1. Obstacle: A prospect tells you that they are satisfied with their current product and are not looking for any other solutions at this time. From there it can be easy for the BDR to answer “ Thanks for your time,” but this poses a threat to losing that prospect.
Solution: Instead of taking the easy way out, ask the prospect if they know that your product is top-of-the-line, quicker, cheaper, etc. might grab your prospect’s attention. If they are not up to talking at the moment, follow up with a quick email that provides key information about your product. Offering up an alternative to talking on the phone will show your prospect that you are conscientious of their time.

2. Obstacle: Dialing numbers doesn’t seem like a big time consumer, but when there are fifty to seventy phone numbers to work through it can take a good chunk of time out of your day. This time can be used more efficiently elsewhere.
Solution: An auto-dialer will speed up this process! It can help you reach your quota for the day a little quicker and improve your call number.

3. Obstacle: Hurtles can form in lists due to inaccurate or lack of information. Researching the correct emails and phone numbers for contacts can be a hassle, since people are constantly changing phones or positions within their company. This process is frustrating and can lower company moral.
Solution: Cleansing your lists before you give them to BDRs will help them concentrate on the task at hand instead of having to fix false information. It is quite difficult to have a perfect list because of the constant change of information, but cleansing your lists will aim you in the right direction.

4. Obstacle: Talking like you are reading off of a script can put off off potential customers. Listening to a robot is the last thing they would want to do. This might be hard for BDRs because their mission is to explain key product information while not saying to much.
Solution: It’s plain and simple, practice.

5. Obstacle: Trying to stay in contact with someone who is interested and seems like a good fit for the product is tough.
Solution: Either contacting them more often or getting in touch with an assistant can be helpful. From an assistant you might be able to get a hold of the prospect in a different way. Eventually, your persistence should pay off.

Chelsea Jensen, Prospectr Marketing