Are you in a sales job struggling to meet your sales targets each month? Do you find it challenging to find leads, nurture them and then convert them into hot leads or buying customers? It isn’t easy but no said it cannot be done. It so happens that most people tend to spend a lot of time sourcing leads but rarely does any effort goes into nurturing, following-up, and converting these leads into customers. Here are a few ways to squeeze your warm leads into willing, buying customers:
Call them at an Interval
Telephone was – and still is – one of the most important tools ever created for sales people, small business owners, and other professionals. It’s just that most people don’t know when exactly to use the phone. As a result of using the phone at the wrong stage of the sales process, you’d tend to kill the prospect of selling even before anything positive happens. The best time to call people is when you know that they warmed up to you. When you know that your prospects elicit interest in your products or services, you can call them up at regular intervals and follow-up.
Use the consultative approach when calling
One of the biggest mistakes most people do when they call prospects is to pitch their products and services right away. This, in fact, should be the last thing you should ever do. When making follow-up calls, make sure you use the ‘consultative approach’ to sales. That is, in effect, asking the right questions and leading the conversation through your prospects – almost as if it’s them who is suggesting everything and not you.
Ask for the sale, the right way
No, you don’t ask for the sale directly. No one likes a direct approach. Even in dating, although women do like men who are confident and macho, they tend to cower back in slight withdrawal when you come on too strong. That’s why being subtle plays a huge role in the sales process. Say something like “shall we get done with the paperwork?” or something similar. Whatever you do, make sure you ask for the sale indirectly.
Never walk away with something in hand
Another mistake most sales persons and self-employed entrepreneurs do is to ask for the sale and then quietly withdraw after the rejection – even more so after repeated follow-ups and after spending a lot of time on the prospect. It could be that the prospect is not ready for you yet. Or it could be that your solutions might just be out your prospect’s price consideration. Don’t be disappointed – it’s all a part of the process.
Sales is a numbers game. So, what do you when you face a rejection? Ask for one of the other two important things if your prospect isn’t giving you a sale: another time in the future (probably when your prospect is ready) and/or the numbers and names of three other people who might benefit from your services or products.
What do you think about the sales process? What are your primary challenges when dealing with your prospects?