Here are three areas where leading reps distinguish themselves:

Smarter targeting. Social media platforms offer rich demographic information, and the smartest sales pros are using it to segment “likely buyers” into “buyers who are ready to buy now,” capitalizing on something that yesterday’s sales pros could only dream of: intent signals. These signals, which include job changes (people are more inclined to make bold moves when they enter a new role), social posts (an indicator of top-of-mind questions), and hiring patterns (an indicator of investment), help sales pros know when it’s time to reach out. Sales pros can use social media features like advanced filters and lead bots to further facilitate the process of identifying qualified leads.

Better understanding. A recent survey found that 80% of buyers don’t believe that the salespeople they deal with understand their business. When salespeople start the conversation with a tried-and-true opener like “Can I ask you a few questions?” they reinforce this perception. By contrast, leading sellers tend to open with “I noticed that you’ve been thinking about…” How? They’ve followed social media threads to prepare for the face-to-face meeting long before it happened. Part of asking the right questions is understanding who’s on the buying committee, which is particularly challenging given that 6.8 people are involved in purchasing decisions, on average. Since buyers have next to no tolerance for vague questions fired off by the uniformed, the sales pro who can most quickly get to the heart of the matter with every decision maker typically wins.

Closer engagement. Twenty-three percent of deals go dark because reps fail to engage buyers through the entirety of the sales process. When sales professionals are unable to provide ongoing value, the buyer feels no obligation to maintain a dialogue. On the other hand, when connections are made through a trusted mutual acquaintance, a buyer often feels obligated to stay engaged longer. And once contact is made, the best sellers use technology to gauge whether the information they’re sharing with a buyer hits the mark. Tools like email tracking and PointDrive allow sales reps to see where a buyer digs in and what a buyer ignores, providing a feedback loop. They can then use that information to tailor future interactions.