Lead Qualification Best Practices for Brokers

Show me a broker's calendar and CRM. I can predict what their business looks like 12 months from now. Who you call, who you stay in touch with, and who you follow up with determines almost everything. Here is how I approach my prospecting: 1. Narrow your focus first I chose my markets deliberately. Queens and Long Island, investment sales, retail and office. I am not trying to know every asset class and every geography. I want to know my lane better than anyone else. 2. Learn your market at a deep level I want to know the buildings and the owners. - Who recently refinanced - Who inherited a property - Who has vacancies I study rent rolls, sale comps, cap rates, demographics, and lease structures until I know enough that when an owner picks up the phone, I immediately sound relevant. 3. Never make a random call Every call needs a reason. I speak with every owner in my market three to four times per year. But I never want those calls to feel like check-ins. I bring something useful every time. 4. Keep notes on everything. If they are talking, I am typing. Goals, family, timeline, concerns, portfolio strategy. Next time I call, I continue the conversation instead of starting over. 5. Protect your prospecting time My prospecting block is sacred. Prospecting is the highest value activity I do because it creates every future opportunity. Most brokers skip half of these. Then wonder why their pipeline dries up every six months. Implement all five and that problem goes away.

Selling a business isn’t just about closing a deal…it’s about finding the right buyer who will sustain and grow what you’ve built. Here’s how to evaluate them wisely. 𝟏. 𝐇𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐚 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐁𝐫𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐫 • Leverage expert guidance for buyer evaluation and negotiations. • Access a network of serious, qualified buyers. • Secure the best deal for your business. 𝟐. 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 • Assess assets, liabilities, and credit history. • Ensure financial stability for long-term success. • Avoid risks from underfunded buyers. 𝟑. 𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐥𝐞𝐝𝐠𝐞 • Prior experience ensures informed decisions. • Relevant skills drive sustainable growth. • Industry expertise prevents operational missteps. 𝟒. 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐳𝐞 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐎𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐇𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 • Review past successes and failures. • Identify management style and financial discipline. • Avoid buyers with red flags. 𝟓. 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐌𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 • Identify serious buyers vs. competitors seeking information. • Ensure aligned long-term goals. • Clarify investment intentions. 𝟔. 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭 𝐓𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 • Analyze similar business sales. • Benchmark buyer offers against market value. • Gain negotiation leverage. 𝟕. 𝐀𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 • Evaluate knowledge of operations and policies. • Identify training needs. • Ensure alignment with existing workflows. 𝟖. 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 • Understand strategic plans for expansion. • Ensure sustainable business continuity. • Align future goals with your legacy. 𝟗. 𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬 • Verify past acquisition history. • Assess credibility through prior sellers. • Gain insights into their reliability. 𝟏𝟎. 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐋𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐥 𝐃𝐨𝐜𝐮𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 • Consult a lawyer for contract clarity. • Protect against future legal disputes. • Secure a fair, binding agreement.

There’s an AE on my team that hits 200% of quota. Consistently. 🤯 Here’s her secret:  She asks the hard questions. 1. “You mentioned [date] as a goal. What’s driving that timeline, and is that date firm?” Verifies whether the timeline is real or aspirational. 2. "Based on what you’ve seen so far, is there anything that’s giving you pause about moving forward with us?” Invites honest feedback to surface objections early. One of my favorites. 3. “How does our solution compare to others you’re evaluating?” Tests competitive positioning and whether you're the frontrunner. 4.“Who else on your team needs to feel good about this before a decision is made?” Instead of just jotting down names and objections, she builds pages in Aligned to address concerns. That way, when new stakeholders join later, all the context is already waiting for them. 5. “If [insert key stakeholder] were here, what concerns would they raise?” Forces your champion to think on behalf of other decision makers. Great way to learn real objections. 6. “Have you ever purchased something like this before? What did that process look like internally?” Surfaces potential red tape or hidden decision criteria. 7. “What needs to happen between now and [target close date] for this to actually happen?” Pushes them to co create the buying journey and surface risk. 8. “When you picture this going live, what’s the ideal outcome for your team in the first 90 days?” Surfaces their definition of success. These questions do 3 things: – Build trust. – Surface the real decision process. – Give you everything to close/won the deal. 🎯 Bonus Tip: She doesn’t just ask the hard questions, she operationalizes them in Aligned. Here’s how… https://lnkd.in/gs7Gt5Rd That’s how you turn discovery into closed/won deals. - Mike G

CUSTOMS BROKERS: do not skip these rules of your customs broker license or national permit when you run a US brokerage: ↳ Customer Screening Before you take on a new client, thoroughly screen them to ensure they’re compliant with U.S. import laws and regulations. This includes verifying their importer of record (IOR) number, EIN, and trade history. Don’t rely on assumptions—non-compliant customers can expose your brokerage to severe penalties. ↳ Customer Catalog Screening Dive deeper by screening the products your customers are importing, especially during onboarding but along the way too if they are repeat importers. Ensure that the product classifications (e.g., HTS codes) are accurate, and check for any restrictions or additional documentation requirements. Doing this by hand can be painful, and you should be considering some kind of automation to guide your screening if your customers have more than 500 product SKUs. Please comment below of any solutions that you've heard are useful for this! ↳ Restricted Party Screening Run Restricted Party Screenings (RPS) against all clients and their supply chain partners. Use reliable tools to check against the U.S. government’s consolidated screening list. Engaging with sanctioned or restricted entities could result in heavy fines or even license revocation. If you are serious about compliance, you'll also be screening against the UK and EU CSL as well. If you don't know how to implement this, just send me a DM and I'm happy to point you in the right direction! ↳ FDA and Other PGA Documentation Requests If your customer’s imports are subject to oversight by the FDA (very common), CPSC, or any other Partner Government Agencies (PGAs), request the necessary documentation upfront. Missing or incomplete PGA documentation can halt shipments and lead to compliance breaches. Retaining these documents will save you and your clients' time and money during customs inspections. Detention and demurrage add up fast! ↳ Document Retention Maintain meticulous records for all transactions. CBP requires brokers to retain documentation for five years. Having an organized and accessible document retention system is essential for audits and mitigating risks. Your obligations to meet “responsible supervision and control” under 19 CFR §111.28 do not stop here - it also includes a number of other requirements, which I'll cover soon... for now, this one has been a "hot topic" in conversations I've been having: ↳ Keeping an active Power of Attorney (POA) Brokers are required to keep an active and valid POA on file for each client. Failure to do so can lead to compliance violations during CBP audits. Worse, some brokers make the mistake of asking customers to backdate POAs—a practice that can result in serious legal and ethical consequences, including penalties or revocation of the broker's license. #customscompliance #lcb #customsbrokers

After leading sales teams for 15+ years and analyzing thousands of discovery calls, I've noticed something interesting: Many reps rely on basic qualification questions and wonder why their win rates suffer. You know the ones I'm talking about: “How’s the weather down in Florida?” "How long have you been in business?" "Who makes the final decision?" "What's your budget?" The spirit behind these questions isn’t wrong. However, they lack planning and don’t demonstrate focus, effort, or skill. BANT was always just the beginning. Think of these questions as the foundation of a house. You need them, but you wouldn't stop at the foundation, would you? The best sellers I've coached understand that transformative discovery happens when you push beyond the surface long before the call even starts. They use research to power discovery as they explore: How current challenges impact the client's business Where the client sees their organization and their career heading in 3-5 years What success looks like beyond the immediate goals.. for the business.. and for them personally Which previous solutions have failed (and why) Clients don't just buy products – they invest in understanding. When you demonstrate genuine curiosity about their business, you grow from a vendor to a strategic partner. Want to increase your win rate? Start treating discovery as a chance to uncover opportunities for transformation… Not just qualification. Your clients will feel the difference. And so will your commission checks.

Qualifying a lead is a key skill in real estate. It helps brokers, especially new ones, save time they would otherwise spend with the wrong prospects. Here are 3 key questions to help you understand if a lead is authentic immediately. #1 “Are you interested in a specific community? (If yes, why?)” The goal is to understand how much they know about the communities they are interested in. As a rule of thumb, serious buyers usually do their research and narrow down their findings to one or two communities. 2- “Where are you in the financing process?” It’s a great open-ended question that will give realtors insight into the lead. Answers may range from “I haven’t started the mortgage process to I’ve already secured a loan.” The answer will immediately signal buyer intent. 3- “What type of property layout are you looking to buy?” Serious buyers already know exactly what they’re looking for. They may prefer a specific type of floor layout, open or closed kitchens, number of bedrooms, etc. Real estate is a service-based industry and relationships are EVERYTHING. This is why, the way you ask your questions matters more than anything else. We don’t want to come across as interrogative, but rather helpful and curious.

One of the biggest blessing about being in my role is that I get to chat with other GTM leaders every day (it’s one of the reason’s I wanted to get into GTM tech). Here's something that a lot of GTM leaders aren't thinking about too deeply: As a vendor, you usually have a 2-4 week period before you miss an evaluation at an account (excluding enterprise). Which account do you want your team focused on? - The one showing 5 buying signals this week… - Or the one with 50 signals spread out over 6 months One’s heating up, the other is simmering down. **Buying signal velocity is a signal in and of itself** We all talk about “Right buyer, write message, write time”. Getting the timing right from an orchestration stand point across a lot of data is very hard. The challenge with ABM is that most motions - nurture campaigns, sales outreach, CS expansion plays etc. are based on static account snapshots, not real-time momentum. Here are a few ways we are using this internally: 1. Momentum-based scoring Complement signal-based lead and account scores with a visualization highlighting directional trends. See which scores are climbing, declining, or sitting still at a glance. Prioritize the prospects who are most engaged right now. 2. Precision-level ABM If 3+ people in the target accounts buying committee are showing signals, that’s a red hot lead that needs to be worked NOW. We are tracking signal growth alongside signal volume for target accounts. 3. Outbound workflow automation Use signal trend fields as filters for automated outreach. New KEY hire role + signal trend is sky-rocketing? Shooting an automated outbound automation that is going BTL to get key info so we have 1st party data that we can go to the buyer with. Give it a go: https://lnkd.in/gwceUJNq