Are you doing the right follow-up with your accounts or are you just letting them fall off the table like so many sales people do? How long do you stay in touch with a prospective buyer? How long do they stay on your sales database? How long do you keep trying?
One thing people can never accuse me of concerning sales is giving up. They might wonder why I am still chasing a client (prospects are only clients not yet doing business with you), after years of never making any sales to them. But they will never see me give up unless there is no way this client could ever use what I sell (in which case, why was I chasing them in the first place).
So, how do you learn the right process for follow-up? What is that right process for follow-up anyway?
I learned follow-up by selling computer consulting services in the 1980's to large accounts. At that time I had a list of 100 key accounts that I knew could use what I sold but were not doing business with me. So I had a simple program, every month I called this set of clients. I ask for the director of information systems. Some times I got through and got a no. Sometimes I didn't get through and left a message. Every month I called them. After a while they knew who I was and would joke with me and we started to build a sales relationship. This went on for months and months and months. Yet my persistent work did pay off. One day they would say, "Manny, you just won't give up until you get in here and we talk about working together". And they would give me a sales appointment. Other times it would be, Manny, you called at just the right time, got a need, get in here and let's talk. This process sometimes took years. But I keep going, finally got the business.
The point is very simple and it really does work. If you have a prospective buyer (one who can use your service) and you follow-up, build a relationship and persist in going after them. You will win sales in the end. It might take a while, but you will get the business. Problem is, most people quit about 1 call short of success. Just like most people stop 20 feet short of the top of the mountain when the fog gets to heavy to see.
Today I do sales coaching and sales consulting work. As many of my existing clients know, I do not give up. I just stay connected, educate, inform and build a relationship until they do business with me. I sold an account earlier this year, after 4 ½ years of working the client. Finally they saw a need for me. If I had gone away, they would never have called me. But persistence again paid off for me. What about you, are you doing the right follow-up, are you being persistent, are you continuing until you get the deal? Or, are you stopping just short of the mountain top.
The great thing today is that you can do follow up so much easier, so much quicker and with so much bigger of a group by simply using email. This does not mean that the phone has gone away, it just creates a second method to do follow up. Yes, some people do get mad about emailing them, but they also are usually the ones that get even madder when you call them. So they might not be sales prospects at all?
I learned from some of the best that those who like what you have, even if they are not buyers today, will never push you away. They might not read your email for months, but they will never unscripted because you never know what the future will bring.
Today's key thought is very simple. Do you have a program of consistent follow-up on the people you meet and the prospects you find. Is that sales program working for you? If not, what are you doing to get a sales program together that works.
Today we simply discussed the importance of follow-up. In the future we will be talking about what that means and how to do it, so please stay connected.
Follow-up Is it really simple. Actually it is to simple for some because it just requires staying connected in some small way. Most would rather keep casing new business, it is much more exiting.
But for those looking for great success, once you find the right prospects, just keep doing the follow-up and you will be amazed at how much business you end up with.
