Franchise Marketing Tip
By Daniel P. Martin -- President, IFX International Inc.

Rather than simply qualify your "impression" of a prospect's level of interest, have the prospect qualify themselves as well. Then, compare your respective ratings. At the very least, you'll have a better understanding of the prospect's understanding of his/her level of interest. In addition, you'll can track how a prospect's level of interest increases or decreases after subsequent meetings or presentations. This information may affect the way you rank prospects in the first place.

Assuming you have an "Information Request Card" or "Prospect Information Card" you use at shows or over the phone, add a category that has to do with the prospect's level of interest:

Prospect's Level Of Interest (on a scale of "1" to "10" with a "10" being extremely interested!): _______

Make sure that you directly ask the prospect for this information. Don't put words in his/her mouth. Let them rank themselves. If they are not sure, allow them to ask questions that will help them determine their level of interest. You'll find that you qualify prospects faster and more efficiently using this basic marketing tip.