| Sales Information | Let us create a 3d Digital eBook for you! DigyCat.com |
|
|
|
Hate Follow-Up Phone Calls To Hot Prospects Who Won't Call You Back? Stop Calling!
We all learned in Sales 101 we must follow up with our prospects until they buy. Unfortunately, while we're busy trying to make all these follow-ups, some very fine prospects who are ready to buy now are flying under our radar. The trick in sales is to talk to buyers. Rather than responding, "Duh!", professional sales people find this the hardest discipline to execute. But like most successful strategies, it requires a tactical plan. If you've been relying solely on follow-up phone calls to close sales, why not try this plan for 30 days? 1. Create a follow-up activity series. If you use ACT! or another contact manager, assign the series after you send your proposal. If you close the sale, you can always end the series early. Your series could look like this: 0 Day-Proposal Sent 2 Days-Follow-up Phone Call 4 Days-Follow-up Email 7 Days-Follow-up Voice Mail 10 Days-Follow-up Email 14 Days-Follow-Up Voice Mail 30 Days-Follow-Up Email 2. Write a compelling voice mail script. Limit it to 10-15 seconds. (Time it!) Start with your name, company and phone number (which gives the recipient an opportunity to retrieve your number without having to wait for the entire message to play). Next, say your compelling message; then, a declaration about what you want them to do. Finally repeat your phone number at the end. I often give my email address as an alternative way to "return the call." My voice mail sales follow-up call goes something like this: "Hi, ___, this is Lori Feldman with Aviva, 800/264-5478. I just completed a project for another client who was as concerned as you are about ___. Listen to what happened when they bought my services: (Recap story). I have some additional ideas for (Company's project for which I sent you my proposal. When are you available to discuss it? Here's my phone number again and my email address, if that's an easier way for you to contact me: (Phone and email address.) 3. Send a Fax. Once I get 30 days out from a sent proposal, with no feedback from a prospect, I figure it's time to put him back in the prospect bucket where he'll receive the regular direct marketing I send to all customers and prospects (ACT! Tips, User Group invitations, newsletters, etc.) However, because he was interested in my services-enough to ask for a proposal-and he hasn't said "no" yet, I still want to give him his own follow up. Based on the value of the proposal, I may put in a recall date every 30 days, or start emailing again, but first I'll try my "last ditch effort," a fax that says, "It looks like your needs may have changed since we last talked. Please check the appropriate box and fax it back to me at your convenience: 1) We're still interested, but I've had no time to follow up with you. Try me in ___ days/months; 2) Our needs have changed, and we don't need you! 3) We went with another vendor, sorry! 4) Who are you again?" Humor goes a long way, too. It's true that persistence pays off in higher close rates. But your prospect is busy, too, and sometimes you're just not the high priority you think you are. Many potential customers prefer responding via email, which is faster and less intrusive in their day than a phone conversation can be. Giving a prospect several ways to communicate with you-especially when it cuts down on the time you're spending with non-buyers-is a more effective long-term sales strategy. When you focus selling time on buyers who want to buy today, your sales go up! Lori Feldman is president of Aviva, a mailing list/database marketing and Internet consulting firm and an ACT! Software Certified Consultant. She is this year's Direct Marketer of the Year, awarded by the Direct Marketing Assn. of St. Louis. Reach her at http://www.aviva-aviva.com/act.html
MORE RESOURCES: Sales - Google News What Nintendo's 2011 sales mean for Wii U, third parties - Gamasutra
Orchids Paper Products Company Reports Record Quarterly Converted Product ... - Sacramento Bee
Apotex pays Bristol, Sanofi damages over Plavix - Wall Street Journal
Beer sales could be boon for Arizona's universities - AZ Central.com
Fed Sells $6.2 Billion of Bonds From AIG Rescue to Goldman - San Francisco Chronicle
iPhone on Sprint: Great for sales, terrible for profits - Christian Science Monitor
Wells Fargo's Carroll eyes cross-selling by brokers - Reuters
Las Vegas Still Selling More Homes in January, Yet Prices Still Declining - World Property Channel
Newsstand Report: Sales Down Across the Board, Elle Plumets 18%, and ... - Fashionista
Average Salespeople “Fly By The Seat Of Their Pants” - Utah Pulse
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Sell YOU With Your Small Talk (Yes You Can) Want to build a relationship -- sell yourself for a job -- get ahead -- make a sale?Your 'small talk' is crucial.Everyday conversation can make or break you in personal relationships and in the business world. Use Pain To Get Commitments Whenever I speak with new salesreps and entrepreneurs, I hear a similar frustration: "I call a lot of prospects each week, most of which are really hard to get a hold of. When I do get someone on the line, I am thrilled just to talk to them. Creating Intense Emotions That Motivate People Ever wish that your presentations could be as much fun as a cool TV commercial? Come late January every year network TV treats us to America's finest and most expensive commercials - Superbowl commercials. You may remember some of these even now, 2 weeks later. Hate Follow-Up Phone Calls To Hot Prospects Who Won't Call You Back? Stop Calling! We all learned in Sales 101 we must follow up with our prospects until they buy. Unfortunately, while we're busy trying to make all these follow-ups, some very fine prospects who are ready to buy now are flying under our radar. My Competitor Has a Better Product The topic of this issue's article is a response to a question submitted by one of my newsletter readers. QUESTION - "At the moment, my competitor's have a far better product/deal, due to circumstances out of my control. Selling: an art of a skill? Selling is as much an art as it is a skill. The basics of the selling process can be learned by anyone, but the practice of selling is something that the super star sales people have brought to an art level. Your Proposal Was Rejected... But Why? When a request for proposal (RFP) comes in, you get excited! It's a chance to earn income, develop more business contacts, and expand your client base. You work your little heart out in order to be thorough, compelling, and professional. Leads, Prospects, and the Huge Gap Between The leads marketing delivers to the sales team never seem good enough. Either the leads are "bad" and are wastes of a salesperson's time, or there are just not enough "good" ones. How to Sell High Tech Solutions Many companies are looking to improve upon the speed, security, and accessibility of business technologies, especially satellite and broadband connections to the internet. While customers are becoming more savvy, many don't speak 'tech-ese,' and they still are baffled by terms such as routers, IPSEC, T-1s, WIFI, and broadband. Buying Wholesale Mannequins Many mannequin manufacturers sell their mannequins in wholesale. This means that they sell large quantities at a discount. "The Power Of Consumer Opinion, & How To Profit From It!" Selling is just a whole lot easier when you know what people really want.But unless you're psychic, or know how to do the Vulcan mind meld, "getting into their brains" is HUGE!I can't tell you how many times I've racked my brain trying to make sense of consumer opinion, & up until this point, I have to confess. Building Relationships A conversation: The Salesperson: "I don't cold call-I want to build relationships." Wendy: "Huh?" Recently I've had a number of conversations with sales professionals and entrepreneurs who tell me they do not cold call because they want to build relationships with prospects. Peak Performance - What You See Is What You Get! Would you like an easy way to track the performance of your sales SuperStars? Will a large sales activity board really make a difference? You bet! This article will give you three easy ways to improve the performance of your sales team because what you see is what you get!Setting up your sales activity board: Start by ordering a large erasable board from your local office supply store, the bigger the better (hint, a big board = assumed big results!) and mount this board on a wall easily seen by your sales team but not visible to your current or prospective clients. Use this sales activity board to track the performance of your company, highlighting the "critical" factors for your sales success. Refining Your Telephone Prospecting Techniques To Be A Master Closer! Let me create a picture for you. This is the best way to illustrate my point. Three Ways to Increase Mortgage Applications If you are in the mortgage business, the very first thing you need before you can get anywhere, is an application.I spent years working in the mortgage industry, and my goal was to close one loan per week. How To Improve Your Voice VOICEThe Image the customer has of the Salesperson is vital. In telesales the image is created through voice alone. Top Seven Ways to Write An Order-Pulling Sales Letter Ready to put your Web pages up? Ready to sell a lot more products and services? If you're not getting the sales, you want you may want to think "makeover." Whether you're just starting or doing a web makeover, you need to Power Write your sales letters. Letting Them Use Plastic Obtaining merchant status will help to increase your sales. Consumers are becoming creatures of convenience; when dealing with businesses-large or small-they desire ease of transaction. What Successful Sellers Know - Others Dont ... The Subtle Art of Closing Ask any salesperson, "At what point in the selling process does the 'Close' take place?" Eight out of ten will answer, "at the End". To be fair, they are not totally incorrect but they are, nevertheless, more wrong than right proving in principle and in practice, Perado's Law: Twenty percent of the sales force make eighty percent of the sales and profitability. 17 Tips for Bringing Your Event to Life Your job as an event planner doesn't stop with the meeting in the company boardroom. You may be called upon to organize an employee appreciate event, an awards dinner, a product launch, the celebration of a company milestone, a gala recognizing a longtime employee's retirement, an incentive event for company's sales force, a fundraising event, a holiday celebration?the list goes on and on. |
|
Looking For Royalty Free Photos for your Website, Business or Advertising?
List4Sale Domain Is For Sale - $10,000 For Enquiries eMail Us © www.List4Sale.biz 2011 |