Intraprospecting: A New Revenue Generator

It's time to introduce a new term, a much-needed term dare I add, into the lexicon of modern selling.

Intraprospecting /ˈint•rə•prä•spekt•ing/, verb: The act
of searching for or creating new business within an 
existing client's company.        

I searched for the term on Google and none was to be found.

When it comes to finding new business, we rely on two overarching strategies:

• We have 'inbound' prospecting (marketing).
• We have 'outbound' prospecting.

And now, we have a third option, Intraprospecting.

In my new book, Mastering the Upsell (Available on Amazon) I describe a variety of strategies for selling more to existing clients. That said, upselling to existing clients is NOT the same as actively prospecting (i.e. searching, defining, uncovering for new business opportunities) within (intra) a company.

Intraprospecting is MORE than just rooting around an existing client's company for more business to sell more of your products (services) to increase wallet share. It also encompasses the act of:

• Product Development: Working with the company on modifying an existing product (strip it down or enhance it)
• Partnership: Proposing new (non-existent) products for joint development.
• Solution Selling: Creating a proposal that might include multiple vendors.

The act of intraprospecting is being able to create something (an opportunity) out of nothing. This new activity will require that a salesperson:

1. Really understand the client's business
2. Understand their own company's capabilities
3. Have a vision for what 'could be' developed
4. Bring together the right decision-makers to make it happen

Intraprospectiing is about selling more to existing clients, and it's also about creating new opportunities with the same!

Going forward I see several challenges:

• Companies currently don't have upselling strategies as part of their sales process
• Like prospecting, intraprospecting requires that a process be (a) defined and (b) put in place to ensure the activity is being done
• Training salespeople to learn the art (and patience) of prospecting for new business and being creative enough to 'see' what others don't.

Today's buyers are desperate for new approaches to increasing revenue, reducing cost, and/or expanding their market share. We need to start training our sales team members on how to be intraprospectors!

Victor Antonio, Author of Sales Ex Machina: How Artificial Intelligence is Changing the World of Selling, and his new book, Mastering the Upsell. (More info at VictorAntonio.com)