Where to Start?
Too many sales people only think about their follow up best practices when they are actually following up. The most effective of sales people know that the best way to avoid a follow up from going cold, is by setting good expectations of what is to happen next – before they hang up the phone during their first conversation with a prospect.
On the First Call:
The customer has given you some sort of reasoning that they are not going to buy on the first call, and you are going to have call them back while they do something (usually they want to think about it, speak to other decision makers, get quotes from other companies, etc).
- Understand the reason for the callback
Before you let them go, ensure you have established the reason they are holding back from making a decision – and do your best to overcome those objections.If you don’t ask at this point, by the time you call them back they will have talked themselves out of it and will not want to share what initially had them feeling uncomfortable.
- Collect Feedback
What do they like? How comfortable are they with the discussed options? How does the price fit with their expectations? Do they see this as a viable option?If you they don’t like the options presented, why are you calling them back to begin with? Go back to the drawing board and find a better option before ending the call.
- Establish Decision Making Process and Criteria
What needs to happen between the time you call them back?
Who do they need to speak to? When will they see that person?
What information will they need to make a decision?
How much time do they need to review what you are sending them?
- Agree on a Follow Up Time
After determining their decision making process, get them to agree to speaking with you again. Be as precise as possible. If they aren’t sure of their schedule to book a meeting time, use questions to drill down high probability times to reach them.
EXAMPLE 1: We connected today at 3pm, is this normally a good time for you?EXAMPLE 2: You mentioned needing 48 hours to review the material I’m sending – so if I called you on Wednesday (assuming today is a Monday), is there anything you can think of that would prevent me from reaching you? Any standard appointments or events that may keep you tied up on those days?
- Log notes into your CRM so you remember what happened when you call them back
Include details about goals, concerns, coverage details, options discussed, next steps, etc.
On The Follow Up Call:
- Call the customer when you said you would.
If you get their VoiceMail, leave a message informing them that you called like you said you would, and that they can reach you at _insert phone number_, otherwise you’ll try them back again later within _time_. - Upon making contact…
Introduce yourself including a reminder of:
- When you spoke to them last
- What was discussed (including what were their goals were, what kind of solution was presented to meet those goals, etc)
- What was supposed to take place between speaking with them
- And then ask an open ended question – How did things go? What thoughts did they have since last speaking? Try to get them talking!
On every follow up call that you make contact, if you aren’t getting your decision from the customer, your goal is to ADVANCE THE SALE. This means if you’ve called them back and they’ve done nothing, don’t just give them more time.
- Did they not review what you sent them? Ask if they can go to their computer right now and pull it up so you can show them what you included. Use this as a chance to re-walk them through the discussed options, and get some more feedback into their interest level.
- They’re not near the computer and it’s been a while since you sent the email? Resend it so it’s on top of their inbox and they don’t have to search for it.
- Did they not speak to other decision makers as planned? Suggest finding a time where you can connect with the both of them, so that you can give the spouse and abbreviated walk through of what you discussed the first time. Since they will likely have questions, you can answer those questions on the spot to make sure everyone is on the same page.
It’s up to you to find how you can be involved in helping them make a decision. Leaving it to the customer to make a decision takes you out of the drivers seat and you will lose control of your follow ups.
When the customer is complacent and you’re not sure how to “Advance The Sale”:
- Clarify the cost of doing nothing – because at the end of the day, there is a risk that comes with not moving forward. Should they spend the money required to know their bases are covered, or continue to not invest in their future and to not have the peace of mind in a solution for their problems.
