You're working a DEAD DATABASE. You need to renew it.

It's a thankless job, but you've got a lot of sins from a past life to atone for ....

Let's assume that you've been working  on 'new client' lists of about 100 names at a time, as explained in 'Finding New Customers'.

(If you haven't downloaded your copy of the free report 'Finding New Customers' from our website, then the rest of this won't make much sense.  Best download it and read it this weekend).

Every time you get a fresh stack of 100 leads you put the list into your database and go through the list one name at a time. If it's a decent list, then you'll find that you reach about 30 percent -- about 30 people -- the first time through.

Of those 30 people, you'll find three, four or five of them are really interested, and close some of them. (If you don't throw away the WHOLE of this sub-list and find another one).

Another three or four will ask you to call back at a future time, and the rest will have no interest.

On your second pass through the list - with about 70 people remaining -- expect to reach another 30 percent -- about 20 people. This time you'll find about two, three or four good leads. And make a sale or two.

What about the remaining 50 people on the list?

These people are much harder to reach. They're never at their desks. They don't respond to voice mail messages, e-mail, faxes, or letters. Now you're drinking downstream from the herd, which any cowboy will tell is a BAD move ...

And when you finally get one of them on the phone, they say something like: "I'm in a meeting and can't talk now. Why don't you just send me something and I'll call you if I'm interested."

So you've got 50 'unreachables' from one list, and another 50 'unreachables' from another list, and .... Now, you've filled your database up with people who you can't get on the phone, won't talk to you, or won't make a commitment.

You've got a DEAD CLIENT DATABASE.

What to do ...?

1. Clean up your database and get rid of all the dead weight.

2. Start digging up new prospecting lists again - BIG TIME. (See Finding New Customers). Find some NEW lists with 100 names on and start working through them. Cream off the four to eight people that will buy from you as you work your way through the list on the first or second passes.

3. DECIDE how many times you'll try to reach someone - four, five, six, seven times? Or, how long you'll try - 30 days? 60 days? 90 days? Once you've tried to reach the name your set number of tries -- THROW THE NAME AWAY (and all the other names on a list which stops producing INTERESTED prospects).

Hmmmn ... Your right. It's HARD to discard those people in your database when you've invested so much time, effort, energy, and money into them.

But once you start prospecting fresh lists again, your sales will come back to life. Looking for new business keeps you alive. Your juices are flowing, you're sharp, alert, and on your toes.

Your CHALLENGED. It's exciting and fun. You're closing more sales, meeting nice people, making friends ... and making lots more money.

Why not have another look at 'Finding New Customers' to get some ideas for finding new lists of prospective advertisers ...