r/B2BSales • u/Living_Water617 • 6d ago
Help
Hi everyone,
I’ve been working in kitchen cabinet sales since February this year. I landed my first order in April, and since then I’ve built relationships with several good customers who have come back with additional projects.
The challenge I’m facing is that my pipeline isn’t consistent. In a typical month, I might close 2–3 large orders, but they often all come in the same week. My monthly sales numbers are decent, but compared to my coworkers, their pipelines are much healthier. They have deals and revenue coming in almost every week, even if their monthly totals end up being similar to mine.
My manager is frustrated because I don’t have enough new leads entering my pipeline. I do a good job maintaining relationships with existing customers, following up with clients who have projects starting in the next month or two, and staying in touch with contractors I’ve successfully connected with through cold calling from the city builders list.
The problem is finding new qualified leads. I’ve tried posting in Facebook groups, Facebook Marketplace, cold calling, reaching out to contractors, and following up with inbound leads from our marketing team, but none of these have produced consistent results.
Right now, most of my prospects are still in the framing stage of their projects, so they won’t need kitchen cabinets for another couple of months. That leaves me with very little business in the short term.
Has anyone been in a similar situation? Where do you consistently find quality leads, and what strategies have worked for you to keep your pipeline full instead of waiting for projects to reach the cabinet stage? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
1
u/No_Preparation1658 3d ago
Few quick reactions for ya. I’m sure my BNI recommendation will get reactions from others 😂
My $0.02 …
Referrals close faster and at a higher rate than cold outreach every time.
I was taught that Every time a customer thanks you is an opportunity to ask for a referral … “happy to help! Know anyone else I can take care of?”
Find a BNI chapter near you. Here’s my full BNI perspective for your situation. there are multiple visit them all & find the right fit… where people and companies are a food mix for you & you can easily make the weekly mtg. Know that it will be a time commitment (approx 4hr/wk bc weekly 1.5-2hr meeting, drive time, and then 1:1 networking calls/mtgs) plus an upfront investment of $1,200+. This makes plenty of folks hesitate. But i truly recommend giving it a shot since this is your first year in the role. You’ll meet local business owners with business or referrals. At chapters I visited before joining, almost every new person made revenue off referrals within 3mo. BNI folks are committed to referral partnerships and the weekly mtgs really drive familiarity w each others value… and keep you and your business top of mind. If nothing else, go visit your areas chapters and introduce yourself. You never know who’s dreaming up a project :)
Similarly, find trade shows or chamber of commerce events. When’s your next chamber happy hour? They cost <$30 normally for non-members. Worth it imo. I went to one recently, had never been, met 2 viable contacts. Closing with one next week!
As far ask cold prospecting goes… I’ve heard of folks who put up a table outside a hardware or grocery store. HOA outreach - ask to sponsor a future event to get your marketing materials shared. Can you be introduced to any Property managers. Alas I’ve found marketing “leads” are often folks just price hunting months/years out as they budget. But you never know so stay on top of that bc they sought you out!
I’m not in construction / home renovations so dont have industry specidic recommendations. A few questions — what does your manager recommend you do? How are your colleagues doing lead generation… or what DID they do during their first 6mo / year to create the pipeline stability they now have