As with any company, a lot of time and money can be invested to bring in new customers. Whether it’s Facebook ads, search engine optimisation, press releases, printed adverts, direct mail pieces or even emails – there are many of ways to reach out to new potential customers. However, how much time and effort is actually invested in to following up on those leads?
Following up is one of, if not the most, important stage of securing a sale, but unfortunately it is a stage that people either overlook, or they simply don’t devote enough time and energy to it.
Who said that following up on leads has to be a lengthy and tiring process?
There are many different ways to effectively follow up on leads, so if you’re time or money conscious – there’s a solution for everyone.
Here are our 5 top tips to effectively follow up on a lead:
Quick, quick!
One of the most important factors to following up, is time. If you leave it longer than a week or so to follow up, you’ve got to expect that the potential lead could have forgotten their interest in the first place. Whether they sent a query through to your website, opened an email multiple times or received a piece of direct mail – it’s important to follow up QUICKLY. This means within the first 24-72 hours, depending on the origin of the lead.
Stop the hard sale
If you’re constantly contacting a lead to push your services, they will feel pressured and uninterested. Rather than hard selling, try providing some advice, ask how they’re business is getting on or provide some supportive information.
Relationships
Similarly to the previous point, staying focused on selling, won’t always get you there. Customers like a working relationship, they want to build up some trust, they want to understand your services and why they should pick your company over another, that’s why following up regularly can help nurture a lead into a potential customer. Whether you’re following up by email, phone or post, remember it’s about building relationships, not hard sales.
Know the difference
Not all of your leads will want your services or products, so it’s good to know the difference between a large, prominent prospect and a small, less significant one. That’s not to say don’t spend time on smaller prospects, just don’t invest as much time as you would for a more prominent prospect – these should be your main focus and desire until the opportunity is no longer available.
Keep track
To effectively follow up on leads, it’s important to track certain details. This includes who your leads are, when you follow up with them, how you follow up with them, how long it takes for a response and any other notes that may be relevant. Keeping an up to date track of your leads helps to keep you organized and informed of how long you are spending on each prospect.
Remember – the results of your campaigns and marketing will be directly effected by the effort you put in, fantastic creative will only get you so far…