How many times do your salespeople follow up with customers? Five or six times? Less?
A recent report tells us that high-growth organizations use 16 touchpoints per prospect in 2-4 weeks.
That is a lot of touchpoints, and most salespeople give up after the fourth call attempt.
Recently, Adi Klevit spoke with Dubb Founder and CEO Ruben Dua about proven follow-up systems and how they can create powerful connections with prospects. Below, we will share some key points they covered during their discussion. You can listen to the entire conversation here.
Why Your Follow-up System is Unsuccessful
There are four main reasons that potential customers are not responding to your follow-up attempts:
1. Your message isn’t valuable to them.
2. They don’t have time.
3. You haven’t gained their trust.
4. You have not yet reached them.
When a salesperson is trained to reach out and say, “Hey, I just wanted to see if you’re interested in XYZ product or service,” they are not providing value. The interaction becomes immediately transactional.
Of course, in sales, you are trying to close a transaction, and being upfront with the potential customer is valuable. But finding ways to approach the prospect with more empathy, respecting their time and attention, and providing them with value can go far in taking a transaction to its close. This is a mindset shift more than anything else, but changing your attitude can change how you approach a sale – and your success rate.
Use These Steps to Build a Proven Follow-up System
Here are seven steps you can use to upgrade your existing follow-up system and make it more effective.
1. Give your follow-up a personal touch.
Send them a video, take them to coffee, or ask them to a networking event or free webinar. A personal touch can go a long way in eliciting a response and making a potential customer feel safe enough to share the challenges they are encountering with you.
2. Follow up using more than one platform or method.
Don’t just cold call a lead. Send them emails, reach out on LinkedIn, send a coupon in the mail, text them, and otherwise find ways to reach out.
3. Determine your potential customer’s pain points.
Find out more about this lead by chatting with them at a networking event, listening to podcasts they have been on, reading up on the company, or checking social media accounts.
4. Provide value.
As mentioned above, many salespeople are trained to say, “I am calling about X,Y,Z product,” rather than immediately providing value. Instead of the immediate sales approach, you can provide value by offering a free ebook, sharing a helpful blog post on social media, or offering to interview them on a podcast. There are many methods of providing value to a potential customer; some can be small, like sending them a checklist that solves common industry problems. Others can be larger, like mailing them a book that you found helpful.
5. Be honest.
One of Ruben’s recommendations for making cold calls is to immediately let the potential customer know that this is a cold call. There is no need to lie to them and say it’s not; instead, ask them for 30 seconds of their time and some feedback. Honesty leads to trust.
6. Increase the number of times you follow up.
95% of all converted leads convert on the sixth attempt. If you do not follow up at least six times, you are missing a majority of your potential customers.
7. Measure your system’s efficacy.
Use metrics to determine your follow-up system’s efficacy. Assign specific metrics to monitor the effectiveness of any new script, touchpoints, or modifications made to your follow-up system. You can use A/B testing to check which changes are best and which are not working. No matter what type of measurement you utilize, you must monitor metrics to ensure any changes to your follow-up system benefit your sales numbers.
Your business will benefit from improved numbers and an effective follow-up system. Find out how to build processes and procedures in every department, improving your overall metrics and supporting scalability. Contact Business Success Consulting Group today.
