If your selling geography is limited, meaning you have a limited number of prospects to call on, then you simply must make the cold call count. One way to make your cold calls count and set yourself apart from all the other salespeople is to gather information on your prospects. But, how can you get the information you need?

Ideas for gathering information before the cold call

• Go to the prospect's company website. Read their mission statement, learn about their goals and objectives, ascertain their financial situation, and look for areas where they could benefit from your product or service.

• Read their annual report and absorb as much information as you can.

• Search newspapers for articles, advertising, and other information.

• Do a search via the Internet for articles and other items related to the company. If you type a company's name into a Google search, followed by the word "scam," you can often discover if a company has been involved in any recent scandals. Just don't put quotation marks around the phrase.

• Ask people with whom you are doing business in that industry what they know about the company, or if they know any important individuals within that organization. Ask them to refer you to those people.

• Ask around. Find any colleagues or other business partners who have had any contact with the company.

Following are some ideas regarding gathering information on individuals:

• Do a Google search on the Internet using the person's name.

• Check out the Who's Who directory in their area and see if the person is listed.

• Research school directories. If you know where the person went to school or college, you may be able to get a yearbook at the school or local library.

• Do a search on the local newspaper's website. Again, use the person's name.

• Ask other people at companies you are doing business with if they know the prospect personally, or know anything about him or her. Ask if you may you drop their name.