Sales is quite a relentless industry, and what differentiates one salesman from another is their marketing strategy, product knowledge, employee engagement, ability to build and maintain a relationship with customers, negotiation skills – and, perhaps most important, the number of times you follow up with your prospects.
Let’s look at why the follow-up is a critical part of your sales methodology, and why if you aren’t doing it – and doing it right – you’re leaving money on the table.
Giving Up Before You Even Start
As a salesperson, it is difficult to determine when to give up on a prospect, but if you thought of calling it a day after just one contact, you statistically have only a 2% chance of success. Most salespeople tend to give up after the first contact with a prospect; however, statistics show that 80% of potential customers won’t seal the deal until the fifth to twelfth contact.
Your Potential Customers Are Busy
If you’re worried about annoying your potential buyers with repetitive follow-ups, keep in mind that they might not be ready to buy yet, or they may be simply too busy with their agenda and have their own workload to keep up with. So closing a transaction with you might not make it to their priority list today, but it doesn’t mean they’re a lost cause.
The numbers suggest that only 3% of your prospects are ready to buy at the moment, so if you miss a follow-up, you are missing the next best time to sell.
Follow-Up Is Not Necessarily a Hard Sell
When thinking about a follow-up, try not to limit your emails or calls only to selling and promoting goods or services. Following up is about staying visible to your customers and making sure they don’t forget about your offer.
If your potential buyers are more active on social media, do the follow-up there, call if they are phone people, or invite them to company events when you have the opportunity. Add value to the content you are sending. Create informational charts, post on social media, and build trust with your prospects.
The Sooner the Better
Prompt contact with a lead within five minutes increases your chances to convert potential customers by a multiple of nine, so the sooner you contact them, the better your chances of closing the deal. Keep in mind that when you lose the chance to close a transaction, you are missing out on sequential transactions, such as another purchase from the client or potential referrals.
How to Follow Up
During your first contact with a lead, pay attention to their responses and needs instead of overselling your product. Choose the right channel to communicate with your customers and know whether to communicate by email or pick up the phone and talk.
While phone calls add a more personal touch to the sale, emails are visual and can be read at a time suitable for the person, or be forwarded to other potential buyers or decision-makers.
If clients seem interested in the first contact, define a next step that they will commit to rather than leaving options open and waiting for them to contact you. Schedule a follow-up plan and go for a digital checklist that will help you stay on track without being too persuasive and following up too often.
The following infographic further describes the importance of following up with your sales prospects, and how to make your follow-ups count.
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