A formalized approach to prospecting helps ensure that your prospects move steadily through your pipeline — toward becoming clients, according to Sara Gilbert, founder of Strategist Business Development in Montreal. “Having a methodology ensures that things don’t fall through the cracks,” she says.

A formal process also helps you qualify your prospects so you can remove from your pipeline those who do not fit your niche.

Here are two key ideas to remember as you develop your prospecting process:

> Keep yourself organized
Just as you dedicate time for client reviews and team meetings, you must also make strict appointments with yourself to take care of your prospecting activities.

Gilbert recommends “focus-zone charts,” in which the days of the week are listed on a sheet of paper or a computer file; each day is then divided into three boxes, representing morning, lunch and afternoon. Decide how many of these periods should be dedicated to prospecting each week. If you’re a junior financial advisor looking to build your business, you probably should block more time for this activity than an advisor who is only looking to maintain a client base.

Another element of being organized is setting deadlines to complete prospecting-related tasks, Gilbert says.

Simply checking in on your current prospect list is not enough. Specify the day on which you will complete specific communications with these prospects. Be sure to track all of your prospecting activities through a tool such as your contact-management system, your email program or a simple spreadsheet.

> Qualify prospects at each step
The purpose of each interaction is to learn more about the prospect to help you determine whether this person fits your ideal client profile. Keeping your prospecting pipeline organized means knowing which potential prospects should be politely let go.

You won’t be able to find out the prospects’ income or asset size during those initial meetings, but you can learn more by paying attention to the concerns they mention to you and what you can glean from their LinkedIn profiles. For example, does the prospect’s choice of career fit your niche? What other topics does he or she emphasize in conversation with you?

If you conclude that this prospect will not be a good fit, you must let that prospect go. Perhaps, for example, you want to specialize in young professionals, while your prospect aspires to be an entrepreneur. If that is the case, Gilbert says, be honest with the prospect about why you won’t pursue this relationship further. Consider referring him or her to an advisor who would be a better match for his or her needs.

Says Gilbert: “You end the relationship on a good note and are still a resource person.”

This is the second part in a two-part series on prospecting.

Click here for part one.