Let’s face it, for most salespeople getting into a new prospect is a tough job.  It takes persistence, requires lots of phone calls and typically puts the seller through an emotional wringer.  Discussions with hundreds if not thousands of distributor salespeople indicate this is one of the most difficult parts of their job.  First, it takes multiple (actually, our research shows seven) phone calls and email messages just to get to the right person.  Sadly, sellers, who are faint of heart, give up before the actual contact is made.  Many would rather put the task off and procrastinate for weeks.  Some, with established territories, simply refuse to make this kind of call until their managers apply massive pressure to open new accounts. The point is, lining up this kind of call is not on anyone’s top ten list of things to do.  There are dozens of articles on the topic of getting the appointment; my intent is not to provide a tutorial on the topic. ...