Fanatical Prospecting
The Ultimate Guide to Opening Sales Conversations and Filling the Pipeline by Leveraging Social Selling, Telephone, Email, Text, and Cold Calling
Author: Jeb Blount
Length: 304 pages (~6.5 hour read)
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle, Audible
Grab your copy of Fanatical Prospecting on Amazon here.
Why This Book Matters
If your business relies on sales and your pipeline feels thin, Fanatical Prospecting is a wake-up call. Jeb Blount makes one thing clear: inconsistent prospecting is the root cause of most sales slumps. No amount of charm, clever marketing, or closing techniques can make up for an empty top of funnel. This book is a tactical, no-excuses manual for business owners and sales leaders who need more qualified leads, more consistent activity, and more revenue—especially when growth is stalling.
Core Idea
The number one reason businesses miss revenue targets isn’t product, pricing, or closing—it’s failure to prospect consistently. Blount argues that top performers treat prospecting like a non-negotiable habit. They build their pipeline every day, regardless of how busy they are. Discipline beats talent, and quantity drives quality over time. If you want to win, you need to make prospecting your obsession.
Key Tactics & How to Apply Them
1. The Prospecting Pyramid
You can’t rely on just one method—every channel matters.
How to apply: Build a multi-channel approach that includes phone calls, emails, LinkedIn messages, text messages, door-knocking, and social selling. Rank them by effectiveness (cold calls still win) and don’t over-index on passive outreach.
2. Protect the Golden Hours
The best time to prospect is when others are most reachable—and most avoid it.
How to apply: Block off your “Golden Hours” (typically 8–10 AM and 4–6 PM) for pure outbound activity. No meetings. No distractions. Just dialing, messaging, and booking meetings.
3. Keep a Full Pipeline—Always
Pipeline problems are lagging indicators of prospecting problems.
How to apply: Set a daily outbound quota (calls, conversations, or appointments booked). Track it religiously. Even when business is good, keep feeding the funnel to prevent future dry spells.
4. Ditch the Excuses
Believing “prospecting doesn’t work” is a trap. Activity drives results.
How to apply: Build prospecting into your culture. Reward consistency over short-term wins. Hold yourself and your team accountable to the numbers, not just the outcomes.
5. Use Scripts (But Sound Human)
You don’t rise to the occasion—you fall to your level of preparation.
How to apply: Write out your opening lines, value props, objection responses, and follow-up sequences. Practice them until they sound natural. Prospecting is performance—prepare accordingly.
6. Follow Up Like a Professional
Most sales are won in the follow-up, not the first contact.
How to apply: Create a 5–12 touch follow-up cadence for every lead. Use varied channels over several weeks. Be pleasantly persistent, not pushy. Most competitors give up after 1–2 tries—don’t be them.
7. Adopt the 30-Day Rule
What you do today affects your sales 30, 60, or 90 days from now.
How to apply: Treat prospecting like brushing your teeth—daily and non-negotiable. If you skip it today, you’ll feel the pain a month from now when deals dry up. Build it into your routine regardless of your current workload.
Real-World Example
A mid-sized SaaS company hit a plateau after several strong years of inbound growth. The founder realized their sales team had become reactive—waiting on demos instead of generating leads. They implemented Fanatical Prospecting principles: daily call blocks, tracked outbound metrics, and a clear follow-up system. Within 90 days, their pipeline tripled. Within 6 months, they hit their quarterly target for the first time in a year—without changing pricing, product, or headcount.
When to Use This Book
Your sales have plateaued and you don’t know why
You or your team aren’t generating enough qualified leads
You rely too heavily on referrals or inbound traffic
You’re hiring or training a sales team and need a proven system
You want predictable growth, not rollercoaster results
Grab your copy of Fanatical Prospecting on Amazon here.