Closing a deal is hard. Not every demo or business meeting has a pretty straightforward happy ending at the bank. Most of the time you have to take time to sow the seeds for a fruitful outcome.
That’s why it’s important to have a follow-up strategy after a call or demo. This way you won’t be overselling yourself and your product. You don’t to be too pushy and annoy the person on the other end.
So how do you start a lead follow-up strategy?
First, let’s look at what it entails.
In lead follow-up, a business connects with potential customers through referrals or other marketing channels. A business can help a lead turn into a loyal, paying customer by following up on a lead.
Following up with a lead is a delicate process since the lead has not yet invested in the brand. It is important to follow up respectfully, clearly, and in the lead’s best interest to maximize success.
Why Following-Up your Leads is Vital
Only 2% of sales occur during the first point of contact, according to IRC Sales Solutions. Consequently, if businesses don’t follow up on their sales leads, they could lose up to 98% of them.
Most of the 2% who buy at the first meeting have done their research and know exactly what they want. They may be able to change business if they find someone who ticks all the right boxes and gets along well with them.
In reality, this rarely happens. The other 98% will only buy after trust has been established.
How well we close deals determines the success of any sale. Increasing sales means signing up both new and old customers, thereby positively affecting the bottom line of the business. Follow-up is the key to securing prospects’ commitment.
IRC Sales Solution says that the probability of a successful sale increases as the number of sales leads is followed up. Consequently, only 3% of prospects sign up on their second contact, and only 5% on their third.
Eighty percent of prospects will buy in after the fifth or twelfth contact, which is surprising. In light of this, following up is vital for your marketing strategy and should not be overlooked.
Benefits of Lead Follow-Up
- Assessing Interest
Businesses can learn more about how interesting their brand is to potential customers by following up on leads. By determining whether a brand’s marketing approach needs to be revamped to be more appealing or engaging, it provides clarity on the brand’s approach to generating new leads.
- Matching leads with their needs
A business’s ultimate goal is to solve a customer’s problem. If the lead has not met the business’ needs, the follow-up helps determine how it can meet those needs.
- Excellent customer service
Customers aren’t the only ones who need customer service. Taking action on a lead demonstrates that a business values its customers and leads, and delivers excellent customer service. Sometimes, the level of service a business offers can determine whether a lead will become a customer.
- Discovering marketing channels
Follow-up with leads can also help businesses explore new marketing channels and determine the effectiveness of existing ones. Through a follower or recommendation post on a social media platform you’re not subscribed to, a customer might learn about your brand and discover how you can use it.
- Setting up a point of contact
By following up on leads, a business can make future contact easier by establishing a point of contact for future contact. Initial contact can be established through email, social media, or by placing a phone call to remind leads the brand is interested in serving them.
- Selling a product
The primary cause of lost revenue in e-commerce is cart abandonment. Reminding a lead about their cart and sending an introductory email can encourage a decision to close the sale and become a customer.
Best Lead Generation Tools
It is possible to capture quality leads by using the best lead generation tools with as little manual outreach and follow-up as possible. A scalable lead generation machine, however, is quite the challenge. Once you get it rolling, it is very rewarding.
1. Live chat software
By proactively engaging with customers and prospects through live chat software in 2021, you will be able to increase revenue, generate leads, and offer support in real-time across multiple channels.
2. Landing page builder
Because there are no coding skills required and they offer some of the best lead generation tools, Unbounce is one of the most popular landing page builders for digital marketers.
Unbounce stands out from its competitors due to its conversion intelligence and smart traffic features.
3. FindThatLead
With FindThatLead, you can build lead lists and capture emails on multiple platforms. FindThatLead is commonly used by companies to:
- Search for targeted prospects and get their contact information.
- Schedule drip campaigns and segment cold email lists.
- Continually provide your sales team with leads to contact.
4. Leadzoom
The Leadzoom platform provides people the opportunity to reach out and follow-up to more people whether it be on LinkedIn or Email. Allowing business owners and marketing teams to concentrate on other parts of their company.
Final Words
Prepare a lead distribution process and ensure the right person is notified. Often, the first person a customer encounters sets the foundation for their relationship with the organization. Follow-up via email isn’t the only way to reach a customer. A phone call can be a valuable sales tool.
It’s okay to take your time when it comes to converting a lead to a customer. It’s important to understand what a prospect is seeking and to spend the time necessary to build a relationship, even if they provide you with a lot of detail.
In short, patience is the key to a happy ending.