COVID Prospecting

How do you prospect, in a world where social distancing is the new norm? Networking, stopping into businesses to introduce yourself, and being involved in the community has changed overnight. Many financial services professionals are asking, “What does prospecting look like now?”

Yes, things are different, but for the most part prospecting hasn’t changed. Prospecting is still about going where your target market is or finding a way to attract that market to reach out to you.

Now, where your market is and how to reach them has changed. As a result, it’s important that you change how you approach your market; and update your prospecting strategy. It starts with your understanding of your target market.

Creating a target market profile that outlines what you know about your market will also help you understand what you don’t know but need to find out. For instance, your profile might describe:

• What your target market is doing for fun.
• Are they still going to work? Or working from home?
• Are they homeschooling their children?
• What are they worried about?

Once you understand what has changed about your target market, the next step is understanding what you can do. For instance, if your target market likes to attend wine tastings, they may not be able to do that right now. However, you could partner with a local winery and host an online wine tasting.

If your target market is working from home, is there any promotional items that you could send to them that is both helpful and promotes your company? Even company branded notepads or pens might be welcomed.

The list of what you can do for prospecting is limited only by your creativity. People are still the same. They still have passions and hobbies. They still want to have fun. They still have worries. They still need your products and services. Your challenge is to figure out how to adapt.

Current events highlight the importance of knowing your target market, but it doesn’t change the fundamentals of prospecting. Prospecting still centers around knowing how to reach your market and compelling them to reach out to you. Go back to the basics and look at your target market profiles to understand how your prospecting strategy can adapt.