Building Your Outbound Prospecting Team

OpenView Labs has offered recruiting support to seven of our expansion stage portfolio companies so far who have built lead generation services teams. Through the recruitment of these teams, we have gained a solid understanding of the type of candidate who will become a successful outbound prospector, as well as how to source that type of candidate.

When conducting a search for a Lead Qualification Specialist, we look for someone who is passionate about developing a career in sales, and who has somewhere between 1-3 years of work experience in sales or a sales-related role (e.g. recruitment or public relations). Anyone who is involved in outbound prospecting will be on the phone for a good portion of their day, so someone who has experience making calls at a similar volume will have a great advantage. We look for someone who understands the importance of lead generation as a part of the sales process, and who is excited by the challenge and experience that comes with this position.

Many of our top lead qualifiers have/had:

• Previous sales experience
• A solid academic performance as an undergraduate
• A passion for building a career in sales
• Held a leadership position in school, work, or an extracurricular activity
• Exceptional communication skills
• A positive attitude
• Persistence

Where should you look for lead qualifiers?

• Post the job description— Make sure to utilize your own webpage, LinkedIn, Craigslist, and university career centers.
• Get the word out that you are hiring to your employees and your network— Some of our best lead qualifiers have been referrals.
• LinkedIn— Send messages or InMails to people whose profiles may meet your qualifications to see if they may be interested in new opportunities. We have found several top candidates through headhunting.