Prospecting is conducted by means of letters, telephone calls, and face-to-face meetings. The quickest way to generate numerous prospects is to use the telephone. The degree of effectiveness, however, depends on whether you initiate the call based on a referral or make a cold call. The cold call is the least effective prospecting method, but it is very efficient and thus generates a much larger volume of contacts than any other prospecting method. Letters require follow-up - preferably by telephone - to be effective. While face-to-face meetings will be your most effective prospecting method, such meetings are very time consuming; they will cut down on the overall efficiency of your prospecting campaign.
The basic operating principle behind prospecting techniques is probability: the number of sales you make is a direct function of the amount of effort you put into developing new contacts and following-through. Expect no more than a 10 percent acceptance rate: for every 10 people you contact, 9 will reject you and 1 will accept you. Therefore, the more people you contact, the more acceptances you will receive. If you want to be successful, you must collect many more "nos" than "yeses". In a 10 percent probability situation, you need to contact 100 people for 10 successes.
These prospecting principles are extremely useful for your job search. like sales situations, the job search is a highly ego-involved activity often characterized by numerous rejections accompanied by a few acceptances. While no one wants to be rejected, few people are willing and able to handle more man a few rejections. They take a "no" as a sign of personal failure - and quit prematurely. If they persisted longer, they would achieve success after a few more "nos". Furthermore, if their prospecting activities were focused on gathering information rather than making sales, they would considerably minimize the number of rejections. Knowing this, your best approach is to:
- Prospect for job leads.
- Accept rejections as part of the game.
- Link prospecting to networking and informational interviewing.
- Keep prospecting for more "yeses", contacts, information, advice, and referrals that will eventually translate into job interviews and offers.
- Develop enthusiastic one-on-one appointments and informational interview presentations.
- Be consistent and persistent in how you present your case.
- Give prospecting and follow-up high priorities in your overall daily routine.
- Believe you will be successful given your persistence with these techniques; prospecting is a probability game involving both successes and failures.
A good prospecting pace to begin with is to make two new contacts each day. Start by contacting people in your immediate network. Let them know you are conducting a job search, but emphasize that you are only doing research. Ask for a few moments of their time to discuss your information needs. You are only seeking information and advice at this time - not a job.
Prospecting and networking, above all, requires persistence, For example, it takes about 20 minutes to initiate a contact by telephone - longer by letter. If you contact at least one person in your immediate circle of contacts each day, your prospecting should yield 15 new contacts each week for a total investment of less than two hours. Each of these new contacts could possibly yield three additional contacts or 45 new referrals. However, some contacts will yield more than three and others may yield none. If you develop contacts in this manner/ you will create a series of small pyramids or networks. If you expand your prospecting from one to three new contacts each day, you could generate 135 new contacts and referrals in a single week. If you continue this same level of activity over a two-month period, it is possible to create over 1,000 new contacts and referrals! At this pace, your odds of uncovering job opportunities/ being invited to formal job interviews/ and receiving job offers will increase dramatically.
The more contacts you make, the more useful information/ advice/ and job leads you will receive. If your job search bogs down/ you probably need to increase your prospecting activities. Indeed/ the single most important reason for slow and ineffective job searches that result in complaints that "there are no jobs out there for me" is the failure to conduct an active and persistent prospecting campaign that leads to referrals and informational interviews.
The linkages and pyramids on page 83 constitute your job search network. Always remember to nurture and manage this network so it performs well in generating information and job leads. As you follow-through on making new contacts, expect about half to result in referrals. However, a few of your contacts will continue to give you referrals beyond the initial ones. Consequently, you need to continually develop new contacts while maintaining communication with prior contacts. When conducting informational interviews, as we will see shortly/ ask your contacts to keep you in mind if they hear of anyone who might be interested in your qualifications.
While prospecting is an excellent way to create contacts, it also helps you develop a realistic objective, effective interview skills, and self-confidence. In using this system, you will seldom be turned down for an informational interview. You should uncover vacancies on the hidden job market as well as place yourself in a positive position to take advantage of such opportunities.
Never directly ask for a job while prospecting, networking, and conducting informational interviews. Asking for a job puts your contact under pressure; it is the quickest way to be politely shown the door. The basic principle behind networking is: the best way to get a job is never ask for a job directly; always ask for information, advice, and referrals. By doing this, you will be interviewed, your resume will be read, and you eventually will be offered a job through one or more of your contacts.
Our prospecting system is similar to the networking techniques used in the direct-sales businesses. These proven, low-keyed sales techniques require persistence, a personable approach to people, and the ability to share a "product" and offer an opportunity to prospective buyers. This low stress approach does not threaten individuals by asking them to buy something, or, in your case, give you a job. Some of the most successful businesses in the world have been built on this simple one-on-one prospecting, networking and referral strategy. When adapted to the job search process, the same strategies have resulted in extremely successful job placements.
