Deck 9: Developing and Qualifying a Prospect Base

Question 1

Mohar has taken some golf lessons and joined the local golf club with the hope of making new business contacts.This is called networking.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The goal of prospecting is to build a prospect base made up of current and potential customers.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

A major difficulty in prospecting is that sales calls are often made on people who do not have the authority to make the purchase.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

As part of the qualifying process,you should try to determine the prospect's credit rating.

Question 5

Non-sales employees such as receptionists and service technicians should also be involved in prospecting.

Question 6

The telephone directory should not be used as a source of new prospects because it is considered intrusive.

Question 7

Cold calls do not represent an effective way to introduce a new product or service.

Question 8

The "endless chain" prospecting technique is easy to use because it fits naturally into most sales presentations.

Question 9

Cold calling should be avoided as it is not an effective way of prospecting.

Question 10

The sales process model is the total set of prospects being pursued at any given time.

Question 11

Prospecting is easier in a business-to-business sale because the customers are easier to identify.

Question 12

"Mr.Nikhil,would you know any other person who might be interested in our interior decorating services?" is an example of prospecting.

Question 13

The use of friends and family members is not an acceptable way to build a prospect base.

Question 14

Prospecting is necessary for all businesses due to customer attrition.

Question 15

Research indicates that it takes more time to explain and sell a product to someone referred by someone else than it does to sell to a prospect secured by cold canvassing.

Question 16

Using an existing customer as an intermediary (preparation of a letter or note)can reduce the amount of time spent on prospecting.

Question 17

After closing the sale,it would be inappropriate to ask for the name of potential buyers.

Question 18

Effective prospecting involves increasing the number and quality of prospects,and reducing the sales cycle of potential customers.

Question 19

Networking skills are of special importance to established salespeople who must find new prospects to maintain their sales growth.

Question 20

In most cases,technicians,receptionists,bank tellers and other non-sales personnel can do little to help with prospecting.

Question 21

All of the following are basic qualification criteria for a prospect except:

A)is it possible to have access to high-level decision makers in the customer's organization
B)the person must have a need for the product
C)the person must be authorized to purchase the product
D)the person must be presold on the product
E)the person must be able to afford the purchase

Question 22

Prospecting refers to the process of:

A)identifying unmet needs.
B)developing a social network.
C)developing new products.
D)developing new sales techniques.
E)identifying potential customers.

Question 23

Which one of the following efforts is used by progressive marketers to improve the quality of the prospecting process?

A)increase the use of cold calling to identify prospects
B)avoid the temptation to develop quality standards that might interrupt the steady supply of prospects
C)shorten the sales cycle by quickly determining which of the new prospects are qualified prospects
D)increase the use of telemarketing to identify prospects
E)reduce the number of prospects who "board the Ferris wheel"

Question 24

Which of the following statements about trade shows as a source of prospecting is false:

A)it is harder to close a sale at a trade show because customers can do a lot of comparison shopping
B)visitors to a trade show tend to be qualified buyers
C)there are a large number of people from a common industry
D)it is possible to demonstrate the newest products
E)they are a cost effective source to make contacts in a short period of time

Question 25

New salespeople often have to rely on cold calling to look for new prospects because they don't have established clients to ask for referrals.

Question 26

Information collected on a prospect's previous purchases is referred to as sales intelligence.

Question 27

Emma knows that a potential customer has four basic qualifications:
1)they need the product,
2)they are able to afford the purchase
3)they are willing to buy the product,and
4):

A)they will use the product.
B)they will refer others to buy the product.
C)they will return for other products.
D)they are authorized to buy the product.
E)they are part of a buying centre.

Question 28

When a salesperson asks a customer to prepare a note or letter of introduction that can be delivered to the potential customer,this person is using which prospecting method?

A)telemarketing
B)cold canvass
C)networking
D)mail inquiry
E)referral

Question 29

Which of the following is true regarding prospecting at trade shows?

A)it is hard to identify prospects
B)it is an expensive method of prospecting because of the trade show fees
C)it is costly because it is hard to close sales for trade show prospects
D)it requires over five sales calls to close a sale from trade show prospects
E)it is easier to identify good prospects and close a sale at a trade show

Question 30

Trade shows are useful to salespeople because:

A)they can learn about their competitors' products.
B)they can invite friends and family.
C)they can demonstrate their newest products.
D)they can learn new selling approaches.
E)they can meet other salespeople.

Question 31

Which one of the following sources would be best if you were considering exporting to an international country and needed foreign country and market information?

A)Canadian Foreign Investment Guide
B)Fraser's Canadian Trade Directory
C)Department of Industry,Trade,and Technology
D)Canadian Trade Index
E)Export Development Corporation

Question 32

A typical company will lose approximately ________ percent of its customers every year.

A)25 to 30
B)5 to 10
C)45 to 50
D)35 to 40
E)15 to 20

Question 33

Which of the following is a true statement regarding prospecting?

A)Personal observation is an unlikely prospecting technique.
B)Not all prospects are equal.
C)Businesses with loyal customers do not need to prospect for new customers.
D)Cold calling prospecting is a systematic approach to identifying prospects.
E)Salespeople should not use friends and acquaintances as a source of prospects.

Question 34

Stanley is the new sales representative for the ABC Company.He understands that the main purpose of a sales person is to:

A)educate himself about his company.
B)create customers.
C)keep former clients up to date on new products.
D)educate himself about the products he sells.
E)make the sale.

Question 35

Networking,as it applies to the field of selling,is a method of prospecting:

A)with the telephone.
B)popular only in the telecommunications field.
C)which is seldom used today.
D)which is more common in north america than in the rest of the world.
E)that relies on making contacts with people and profiting from the connection.

Question 36

A major barrier to prospecting is time.Therefore,salespeople should:

A)get involved in prospecting only after completion of all regular selling activities.
B)integrate some prospect identification with regular selling duties.
C)try to spend at least 50 percent of every week on prospecting.
D)try to avoid spending time available for actual selling on prospecting.
E)perform prospecting duties first.

Question 37

It is inappropriate for a salesperson to ask current customers to recommend them to other prospects.

Question 38

Account analysis is conducted to estimate the sales potential of each prospect.

Question 39

"How soon do you plan to replace your existing car" is an example of a qualifying question.

Question 40

Sabrina is the new sales representative for the ABC Company.She wants to increase the number of "qualified" prospects in her prospects base.These would be prospects that:

A)have a line of credit with a bank.
B)are members of a buying centre.
C)have bought from competitors.
D)have a need for the product.
E)do not want a transactional sale.

Question 41

Networking is the act of:

A)talking about your business to people outside your organization.
B)talking business at social occasions.
C)keeping contact with existing customers.
D)socializing.
E)making and using contacts.

Question 42

Which of the following statement about prospecting is not true?

A)Prospecting can take place in any environment.
B)Prospecting requires self-discipline.
C)Prospecting should start with a careful study of your market,product or service.
D)Prospecting should not be integrated into a regular sales call.
E)Prospecting can be easily integrated into a regular sales call.

Question 43

The probability of achieving better closing rates,larger sales and shorter sales cycles is through:

A)referrals.
B)trade lists.
C)cold calls.
D)telemarketing.
E)networking.

Question 44

Ivan is a successful pharmaceutical sales representative.He establishes a business relationship with a well-connected and influential doctor with the hope of getting new prospect names.The doctor in this case can be called a:

A)router.
B)target market.
C)centre-of-influence.
D)agent.
E)qualified prospect.

Question 45

When prospecting,a salesperson needs to collect two kinds of sales intelligence on the prospect,the prospect as an individual and:

A)the prospect as a centre-of-influence.
B)the prospect as an opinion leader.
C)the prospect's business.
D)the prospect as a referral.
E)the prospect as a reference group.

Question 46

Customer attrition is:

A)customer dissatisfaction.
B)customer disloyalty.
C)the loss of customers.
D)the growth of customers.
E)the need to educate customers.

Question 47

Customer attrition can be related to all of the following causes except:

A)customers moving to new locations.
B)companies going out of business.
C)companies merging with another business.
D)prospects who are unqualified to buy.
E)customer dissatisfaction.

Question 48

A university professor who is in a position to influence a buying decision in the purchase of laboratory equipment but does not actually make the buying decision could be considered a:

A)reference group.
B)product expert.
C)prospect.
D)opinion leader.
E)centre-of-influence.

Question 49

Centres-of-influence are:

A)buying centres
B)an organization which provides prospect mailing lists
C)influential people who are a good source of referrals
D)training centres
E)senior management

Question 50

Roger often prospects on an ongoing basis.Because of this he knows that he should:

A)treat all prospects that own businesses the same.
B)treat all prospects as individuals.
C)group all prospects by industry.
D)treat all prospects the same.
E)group all prospects by employee size.

Question 51

Which person in the buying centre has the most influence on the purchase decision?

A)the technical influencer
B)the financial influencer
C)the gatekeeper
D)the user influencer
E)all may have equal influence on the purchase decision

Question 52

Rebecca's source of prospects comes mainly from referrals.Referrals are:

A)Rebecca's friends and family.
B)prospects recommended by a current customer.
C)prospects with high buying potential.
D)a current customer who wants to continue doing business.
E)former customers returning to do future business.

Question 53

The practice of making business contacts at places such as professional meetings and social situations is called:

A)networking.
B)routing.
C)socializing.
D)prospecting.
E)cold calling.

Question 54

In cold calling the salesperson selects a group of people who may or may not be prospects and:

A)entertains them.
B)calls or visits them.
C)sends them a letter and business card.
D)prepares a potential list.
E)sends them a brochure.

Question 55

Studies show that the average company loses what percentage of customers each year?

A)60-65%
B)75-80%
C)15-20%
D)25-30%
E)5-10%

Question 56

Natalia is building up her prospect base which is made up of current customers and:

A)company members.
B)friends.
C)family members.
D)potential customers.
E)previous customers.

Question 57

One strategy sales people can use in order to make connection with upper-level executives of an organization is:

A)use the foot-in-door technique.
B)make a joint call involving a higher-level executive of their own company.
C)use the centre-of-influence method.
D)identify who is part of the buying centre.
E)networking.

Question 58

Improving the quality of prospects implies:

A)finding prospects who have high profit potential.
B)finding prospects who are respectful and value relationship selling.
C)finding qualified prospects.
D)finding prospects who are not as concerned about price.
E)finding prospects who want to buy quality products.

Question 59

Nancy tends to use the endless chain prospecting approach.The type of questions Nancy tends to ask are:

A)yes/no type
B)long explanatory type
C)probing questions
D)closed-ended type
E)open-ended type

Question 60

Patrick Jones is a skilled networker because he meets as many people as he can,tells them what he does,and:

A)pays for all entertainment costs.
B)does business while he networks.
C)likes to network.
D)asks everyone he meets for a referral.
E)does not do business while networking.

Question 61

A systematic process of identifying potential customers:

A)prospecting
B)qualifying
C)net-working
D)cold calling
E)referral selling

Question 62

Asking a customer,"what role do you generally assume in the buying centre" is aimed at collecting __________ on the customer.

A)marketing intelligence
B)qualifying data
C)sales data
D)personal data
E)sales intelligence

Question 63

The difference between sales data and sales intelligence is:

A)sales intelligence is used for sales forecasting purposes,while sales data is used for strategy planning.
B)sales data is collected from secondary sources,while sales intelligence is gathered from primary research.
C)sales intelligence goes beyond sales data by giving more insights into the prospect,their firm,and the market place.
D)there is no difference between sales data and sales intelligence.
E)sales data is collected by the salesperson,while sales intelligence is collected by professional research companies.

Question 64

The process of identifying prospects who are most apt to buy a product is known as ________ .

Question 65

The two popular tools for performing account analysis and allocating resources to qualified prospects in the data base are:

A)the BCG matrix and portfolio analysis.
B)the product/market opportunity matrix and the BCG matrix.
C)sales intelligence analysis and CRM analysis.
D)the portfolio models and sales funnel models.
E)the pipeline model and sales funnel models.

Question 66

Improved prospect planning involves not only improving the number and quality of prospects,but reducing the sales cycle by __________ the prospect.

A)developing partnership with
B)qualifying
C)networking with
D)screening
E)developing relationship with

Question 67

From a prospecting point-of-view,a positive outcome of very satisfied customers is:

A)shorter sales cycles.
B)increased referrals from current customers.
C)no negative word-of-mouth advertising.
D)lower buyer's remorse.
E)sales person does not need to actively look for prospects.

Question 68

In business-to-business marketing,the method which has the greatest inquiry generating power is:

A)cold calling.
B)telemarketing.
C)direct response advertising.
D)centres-of-influence.
E)trade shows.

Question 69

Which of the following would be good sources of new prospects?

A)Uncle Harry,who is retired,but was a CEO of a mid-size company two years ago
B)Megan Wong,a current customer
C)Marty,the mail-room clerk
D)the Canadian Business Resources
E)all of the above

Question 70

________ is done to decide how to allocate sales calls across accounts.

Question 71

The technique of looking for prospects from sources such as Uncle Harry,who has many business contacts,is called:

A)the referral method.
B)endless chain method.
C)networking method.
D)cold calling.
E)the centre-of-influence method.

Question 72

Many banks,investment firms,accounting firms,and wine merchants use educational
________ to generate new prospects.

Question 73

In some situations qualifying is done during the __________ of the sales process.

A)negotiations stage
B)planning stage
C)need discovery stage
D)prospecting stage
E)demonstration stage

Question 74

Women's Wear Daily,Oilweek and Canadian Grocer are examples of:

A)centres-of-influence.
B)qualified prospects.
C)prospect lists.
D)trade publications.
E)trade shows.

Question 75

The model used by salespeople which classifies prospects based on where they are in the sales process is called:

A)the sales process model.
B)the account analysis model.
C)the sales funnel model.
D)the strategic/consultative model.
E)the pipeline model.

Question 76

By collecting sales intelligence on their prospects,a salesperson can:

A)develop long-term customers.
B)plan effective sales strategies.
C)add value to the sale.
D)gain competitive advantage.
E)all of the above

Question 77

Joe Girard,popular sales trainer and consultant,used the ________ concept to illustrate the relationship between prospecting and the loss of customers due to attrition.

Question 78

Good prospect base management should result in a ________ ,which means that there is sufficiently large number of prospects at each stage in the sales process.

Question 79

The process of managing all prospects in the sales funnel to ensure there are regular and predictable sales over time is called:

A)portfolio management.
B)funnel management.
C)sales process management.
D)pipeline management.
E)prospect management.

Question 80

The tool used by salespeople to classify potential customers in terms of customer needs and relationship strength is referred to as:

A)the sales funnel model.
B)the account analysis model.
C)the portfolio model.
D)the customer segmentation analysis model.
E)the pipeline model.