Do you need sales prospecting software, but don’t know where to begin? An excellent prospecting tool is crucial because there’s plenty of risk at the prospecting stage.
You may connect with an unqualified prospect. Or you might waste an afternoon building a list of hundreds of contacts, only for half of them to be invalid.
Without the right prospecting tools, you could waste twice as much time as your competitors building your pipeline.
But why waste precious time making mistakes or repeating the same monotonous tasks (i.e., list-building, data entry, etc.) when there are fantastic prospecting tools out there that will fill your pipeline for you automatically?
So if you don’t want to run out of leads and you want to increase ROI, you need the right prospecting tools to help you out. These tools help you reduce the time and effort it takes to make a sale by streamlining the lead generation and outreach process.
There are several categories of prospecting tools that you can use. And they all support you in defining your audience, finding potential customers, gathering contact info, establishing communication, managing data, and reviewing your results.
Keep reading because we will explain the basics of prospecting software, how quality sales software can change your business for the better, and share some fantastic prospecting tools for less stress and more sales success.
Related: Prospect Easier With Seamless.AI
What Is Sales Prospecting Software?
Sales prospecting tools are essential resources that empower businesses to identify and engage potential customers effectively. These tools leverage data analytics, automation, and targeted outreach strategies to streamline the sales process, enabling organizations to identify and connect with prospects, ultimately driving revenue growth and enhancing overall sales performance.
There are many steps to prospecting that can take time and effort. But skipping out on the prospecting stage of the sales process isn't an option.
Setting yourself up for success in sales prospecting helps you create a strong sales pipeline and creates a strong foundation for a more streamlined sales process.
Sales software does all the heavy lifting for you as it automates lead and pipeline generation, contact research and validation, and essentially the most painful parts of prospecting.
Let's explore some of the best sales prospecting tools in the industry.
Related: What is Sales Prospecting?
7 Best Sales Prospecting Tools
Now that you understand some of the benefits of good sales software and how it can help you set your pipeline on fire, the next question is– which tools should you go with?
There are thousands of prospecting tools out there, but lucky for you, you don’t have to go through the agony of trying out each one.
Here’s a short list of some of the top 7 best sales prospecting software tools on the market.
1. LinkedIn Sales Navigator
A contact data provider helps you get the emails, cell phones, and direct dials you need to plan your outreach strategy properly.
With 900 Million+ users, LinkedIn is a goldmine for sales reps looking for leads.
To 10x the value you get with LinkedIn, try LinkedIn Sales Navigator. Sales Nav has advanced search filters (i.e., company size, leads with shared experiences, etc.) so you learn more about target accounts ahead of conversations. Plus, you get more daily InMail credits, which means more chances to connect.
2. Outreach
Outreach is a sequencing platform that helps you automate and scale your outbound efforts across every channel (email, phone, social media, text, etc.). Build out sequences and send customized messages lightning-fast, so you can focus more time on selling.
3. SalesLoft
A sales engagement platform helps your team interact with prospects across multiple channels (cold call, email, social media, etc.), track progress, and optimize for the best results.
SalesLoft is a sales engagement platform that helps your team build repeatable cadences and optimize the buyer’s experience from the prospecting stage to closed-won. If your reps need sales enablement or your marketing and sales teams need insights to align better, SalesLoft is a great starting point.
4. Calendly
Calendly is a calendar tool that can automate all the scheduling you have to do (appointments, calls, etc.) for every stage of the buyer’s journey. You just input your time preferences for meetings, send a prospect a link to your calendar, and all they have to do is pick a time that works for them. No more time wasted on back-and-forth emails!
5. Zendesk
A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system helps you keep track of your leads and customers.
Zendesk is a CRM tool where you can log in any helpful info on a lead (name, number, email, company name, number of employees, work number, etc.). You can also track your interactions with the lead (what was discussed and when). That way, your communications are strategic, and you’ll know where each lead is in the sales funnel.
6. Woodpecker
An email sequencing platform can connect directly to your lead gen tool, CRM, or both. That way, you can email potential customers as soon as you find them and add them to your database automatically instead of manually entering them all one by one.
Woodpecker is an email sequencing platform that will automate campaigns, cold emails, follow-ups, etc., and test sequences so you can figure out what resonates with your target.
7. Seamless.AI
A lead generation platform helps you define your ideal customer and find look-alike prospects who will most likely buy your product.
Seamless.AI is the #1 sales software and the top lead generation tool you need for all your prospecting. Seamless.AI uses artificial intelligence to research and verify contact information in real-time, so you know the data you’re getting is always fresh. In fact, our AI has researched over 3 billion contact and company profiles, so you can consistently replenish your pipeline with real-time verified contact data.
On top of that, with premium features like Data Enrichment and Job Changes, you can cleanse old lists, update whenever a contact changes jobs, positions, or industries, and fill in any gaps with missing information.
Seamless.AI additionally has powerful automation so you can build lists of hundreds of contacts in minutes, automate all your CRM data entry, and get back to closing.
This platform additionally has powerful automation so you can build lists of hundreds of contacts in minutes, automate all your CRM data entry, and get back to closing.
Curious to see how you can use Seamless.AI to save 3-5 hours a day in prospecting work? Sign up for a demo!
Sales prospecting for small businesses requires dedication and persistence. By understanding your target audience, personalizing your outreach, and providing value, you can build a robust pipeline of potential customers and increase your sales opportunities.
Related: Guide to Pipeline Generation
How Can Sales Prospecting Software Grow Your Business?
Because sales prospecting software automates the busy work for you, this tool can help you work more effectively, giving you back time in the day to focus on boosting close rates and making money.
In fact, if you choose the right sales software that will not only retrieve more accurate B2B contact data than bad but also provide insights to identify the right prospects to sell to at the right time, you’re going to have a game-changer for your business.
Related: B2B Prospect Email Strategies
Solid sales prospecting software is the ultimate multiplier because it can help you decrease the time it takes to close, it can help you generate more leads, close more deals, and ultimately drive more revenue.
A great sales software tool will not only help your business thrive during a recession.
Bonus Tip
In addition to these essential prospecting tools, make sure that you’re constantly tracking your success.
Track all the measurable KPIs that will help you improve your prospecting in the future. These will include metrics like open rates on emails, A/B test results, demos booked, and conversion rates.
Without critical insights like this, you won’t know how to identify weak points in your pipeline. You need prospecting tools to guide you, or you’re in the dark.
Recap
We hope this article helped you find some new sales software tools to add to your stack and elevate your prospecting game. Happy prospecting!