Are You In The 10%?

Most people that go online and search for something are shopping – they’re not buying….yet! If they request information from your website, do they receive that information? Do you continue to nurture them beyond that? Will they think of you when they are ready to buy?

When you attend a networking event, do you follow up with the people you met? Or do you bring your business cards back to your office, lay them on your desk and months later, they’re  still lying there – untouched?

If you’re following up and nurturing, just like you should be, congratulations—you’re in the 10 % club! It’s fact that over 80% of sales close after the fifth call, so in order to make a sale, you have to reach out a handful of times. But if only 10% of businesses are following up more than five times, that means 90% of businesses are leaving money on the table (and 10% are getting all the work).

Are you gasping in disbelief at the realization that you’re in that unbelievable 90%? It’s time to figure out why you aren’t following up and fix them. Some common reasons include:

• Not enough time
• Forgot about it
• Unsure about what to do
• A “hotter” lead came along, leaving the others to seem less important
• Having the mindset that “If they really want my service (or product), they’ll call me”
• Don’t want to appear salesy
• Didn’t know following up was so important

Following up with prospects and clients should be—needs to be—a foundational piece of your marketing strategy. It doesn’t have to take a lot of time, come off as salesy, or be complicated. Your follow-up just needs to be consistent, relevant, and happen on a regular basis.

Once you set up your templates and scripts, using a sales and marketing system like Infusionsoft can help your nurturing to happen automatically. The marketing campaigns can be geared towards each specific service or product you offer and Infusionsoft will also allow your follow up to change course based on the actions of the reader. Minimal work on your part!

To start mapping out your campaign, list all the items in your arsenal. This includes your free offers and your products or services. Determine what your goals are. Do you want people to make an online purchase? Do you want to have a conversation? Do you want them to provide more information about their interest or business? Do you want to build a long-term relationship? Your goals might be different for each of your freebies and products/services.

Now take some time to map out how you want the journey for your prospect to be. This journey doesn’t have to be about just sending emails. By using a CRM like Infusionsoft, you can send a survey to capture more information, create a task to call someone, or go back to old school and mail something through the good ole postal service. Remember the rule that 80% of sales happen after five contacts are made…so that should be your minimum requirement!

If you’d like to see how you can improve your follow-up, or to see if Infusionsoft is right for you, click here to schedule a complimentary strategic consultation.