The best time to pursue new business is not when you need it most. It's when you don't need it at all.

Imagine the selling cycle as a pipeline. When you make a first-time contact, you're putting that prospect 'into the pipeline.' They come out the other end when they actually buy which, depending on your industry, could be two days or two years later. If there aren't enough prospects in the pipeline, and a business slowdown occurs, the sales person is left at square one of the business development cycle.

The top reason given for this situation is....time. Even people who are reasonably good time managers find it difficult to "do it all" when it comes to maintaining current customers, with all the contact and administrative time required, and still be effective prospectors.

Top performers recognize this as an excuse, and take steps ahead of time to avoid the empty pipeline problem. Their strategy is based on three clearly-defined steps:

1) They have a plan. Essential elements of their plan are to have a goal, a prospect list and a means to measure their progress.

The 20-4-1 Rule says that for every 20 prospects called, only about 4 will eventually entertain serious proposals from you, and that 1 out of those four will buy right away. We can argue the justifications of specific numbers, but the lesson is: not every prospect called is going to buy now, so plan to talk with more than you need.

Another part of your plan is to create the actual Target Prospect list. These are what we call 'future customers.' Rather than just listing those top-of-mind names, invest some time and do a little digging via business publications, on-line resources or through networking to create a larger, more balanced list of large, small, short-term and long-term prospects. Then, make your plan measurable. Some companies will measure by using the number of new prospects visited on a weekly basis, or number of presentations made.

2) Set Aside Business Development Time. Isolate blocks of time every week for new business development. Treat that time like you would an appointment with your best customer. Schedule other activities around it.

3) The third step is personal discipline. You're busy. Everyone's busy. Yet, peak performers 'make the time' to keep growing. Business development will be unsuccessful if it's a sometime thing. Your existing accounts may be exhausting your time now, and adding another activity may appear a hindrance to serving them. But challenge yourself, be disciplined with yourself. And, every week that you fulfill your plan, reward yourself.

During peak times, sales pros sometimes use Cluster Contact systems. An example would be a mass mailing to each prospect in the pipeline with an article and a handwritten note, keeping them and their company at the top of each prospect's mind.