10 Best Books for Learning Sales Prospecting

For your sales reps to be successful, they have to get better and better at prospecting. 

Today, sales reps face more resistance than ever. The virtual world has presented new hurdles and made it harder for sales reps to effectively connect with decision-makers. Whether virtual or in-person, reps face unreceptive people who just don’t want to talk to a “sales guy.”

What it takes to succeed here has changed. 

It’s time to embrace better prospecting techniques that help your team command the attention of their target customers. 

One place you can pick up some new prospecting skills? Books written by experienced sales leaders with a track record to back up their claims. 

Here are ten of the best books for learning sales prospecting (in no particular order): 

1. Fanatical Prospecting – Jeb Blount
2. Combo Prospecting – Tony Hughes
3. High-Profit Prospecting – Mark Hunter
4. Predictable Prospecting – Marylou Tyler and Jeremy Donovan
5. New Sales. Simplified. – Mike Weinberg
6. Agile Selling – Jill Konrath
7. Potent Prospecting – Curtis W. DeCora
8. Perpetual Hunger: Sales Prospecting Lessons & Strategy – Patrick Tinney
9. Outbound Sales, No Fluff – Rex Bibertson and Ryan Reisert
10. unReceptive: A Better Way to Sell, Lead, and Influence – Tom Stanfill

At ASLAN, we offer sales training programs that give reps and leaders the skills they need to excel. Connect with us to learn more. 

1. Fanatical Prospecting by Jeb Blount

This best-selling book from experienced sales trainer Jeb Blount offers a practical guide to prospecting. The book explores a variety of different prospecting techniques, including social selling, email, text, and cold calling. 

Blount highlights the importance of always having a full pipeline of prospects. He shares a step-by-step approach sales reps can adopt to keep their pipeline busy at all times, ensuring a constant stream of opportunities.

2. Combo Prospecting by Tony Hughes

Combo Prospecting explores how sales reps can use a blend of old and new sales techniques to cut through the noise and create connections with decision-makers. 

Alone, neither old-school techniques like cold calling nor fancy new sales prospecting tools hold the answer. But when these tools are used together, they have the potential to create a powerful one-two punch that opens the door to all kinds of new opportunities. 

3. High-Profit Prospecting by Mark Hunter

Hunter’s book, High-Profit Prospecting, takes a similar approach to Combo Prospecting, advocating for a blend of time-honored sales tactics and emerging strategies. 

The book offers a number of specific sales tactics, with sample email and phone scripts, guidance on how to leave an effective voicemail, and the importance of leveraging referrals to get past gatekeepers and into the room where decisions are made. 

4. Predictable Prospecting by Marylou Tyler and Jeremy Donovan

Predictable Prospecting is written for a B2B audience, focusing on techniques that B2B sales teams can leverage to attract more valuable prospects into their sales pipeline. 

The book offers a comprehensive prospecting framework accompanied by a series of real-world examples. There are also additional resources including email scripts and a variety of other prospecting materials. 

5. New Sales. Simplified. By Mike Weinberg

Written by sales consultant and coach Mike Weinberg, New Sales. Simplified. offers readers a formula they can adopt to boost the effectiveness of their prospecting strategies. 

Weinberg outlines the mistakes that most salespeople make, offering practical tips and guidance that help sales reps build trust with their prospects. 

6. Agile Selling by Jill Konrath

Jill Konrath is a big believer that to be successful, sales reps must go above and beyond their prospects’ expectations. 

Her book, Agile Selling, aims to give sales reps the tools they need to process new information, tailor their sales pitches, and fit right into their prospects’ world. In today’s fast-moving world, sales professionals need to be quick learners that can effortlessly adapt to new environments and be successful. 

7. Potent Prospecting by Cutis W. DeCora

As a sales rep, there’s nothing worse than an empty pipeline. In his book Potent Prospecting, Curtis W. DeCora documents insights from sales leaders all over the world and shares real-world strategies that are proven to drive success. 

The book is based on DeCora’s ten year study of sales prospecting techniques, offering a comprehensive overview of the prospecting strategies that work (and don’t work) for some of the world’s top sales organizations. 

8.  Perpetual Hunger: Sales Prospecting Lessons & Strategy by Patrick Tinney

In Perpetual Hunger: Sales Prospecting Lessons & Strategy, author Patrick Tinney aims to give sales leaders the prospecting tools they need to address the constant threat of customer churn. 

The book shares a series of prospecting strategies backed by real-world examples. The focus is on giving sales reps tactics they can use to effectively engage high-level buyers who are experienced in dealing with sales reps. 

9. Outbound Sales, No Fluff – Rex Bibertson and Ryan Reisert

Outbound Sales, No Fluff advertises itself as a highly-practical book that can be read in just 45 minutes. It’s concise, actionable, and incorporates the latest sales prospecting techniques to enable sales reps to deliver real results. 

The book covers all of the fundamentals of sales prospecting, including cold calling tactics, how to group leads, an overview of the role of sales prospecting tools, and more. 

10. unReceptive: A Better Way to Sell, Lead, and Influence by Tom Stanfill

Written by ASLAN Co-Founder and CEO Tom Stanfill, unReceptive takes a different approach to most other prospecting books. Instead of focusing on gaining access by overcoming a lack of receptivity.  

unReceptive encourages sales reps to earn attention and have conversations through an Other-CenteredⓇ framework.

Building receptivity with prospects flips the entire sales process on its head, enabling sales reps to eliminate barriers to resistance and form lasting relationships. 

For Reps to Practice What They Learn From Books About Sales Prospecting…

Books are great. Reps can learn a ton and get exposed to fresh perspectives and ideas. But no podcast, book, article, etc. will sub for high-quality sales training programs. 

Many of the books outlined here offer a one-size-fits-all approach to prospecting. There are little tips and tricks and tools. The real difference is achieved in the application, which requires huge seismic paradigm shifts and lots of real-world insights and practice. 

The highest performing sales organizations in the world invest in customized sales training programs. 

Which is what we provide.ASLAN has spent decades developing sales training programs that truly change the game for you and your team. This includes training the prospecting skills even your highest-performers need to uplevel. Check out our programs here to learn more.