Buyers buy when they are ready to buy, not when you are ready to sell. What does that suggest to you? Stay active with prospects, consistently, over your sales cycle so that when that buyer is ready, you are there and win the contract. What are smart ways your CRM can help you stay active?
What Does ‘Stay Active’ Mean?
“People hate to be sold but love to buy” is a quote heard many times. So, why should a buyer buy from you? Ask yourself; how do you make the buying process easy and reduce your buyer’s risk? What is the right type and frequency of outreach?
Striking the right balance means you have to know your prospect. Asking them “What is their preference?” is a great way to find out their interest level and how to interact.
Since people like to buy, make it easy for them to choose you. Start with your current sales cycle. What is the time from initial contact through sale closing? What are the steps your prospects go through? What are your most effective touch points?
How Do You Make It Easy and Comfortable?
Buyers need to have confidence that you will deliver. While they may check references and they like testimonials, you can build their confidence in advance of their buying decision. This has a great impact on their decision making.
How do you reduce a buyer’s risk? Make a list. Think about what you buy and apply it to your sales process. Whether you are selling legal services, CRM products, or HVAC units, your buyer wants to feel good about their decision, so describe to them how you can reduce their risk.
Touch Points, Content, and Consistency
The length of one’s sales cycle varies based on many factors including what you sell, a buyer’s circumstances, and your own selling skills. What you share with your prospects and when you share it during the sales cycle helps build buyer confidence and their perception of reduced risk.
What are the 3 things your buyer needs to know before buying from you? What can you tell your buyers that will motivate them to “demo” your product? What can you tell your buyers in advance of a key touch point in your sales cycle, so they become more knowledgeable? Answers to these questions can help shape your content.
Staying in touch on a consistent basis is often the biggest challenge faced by small and medium size businesses. Yet, your prospects crave attention when they are ready to buy. Being there at a consistent pace gives you the greatest chance of winning when your prospect is ready to buy! So, how do you reach all your prospects enough times and still have time for other priorities?
Staying In Touch Becomes Overwhelming
When you meet 40 prospects per month and contact them 4 times for 30 minutes, you have spent 80 hours in 1 month. That is one half of your month. Imagine if you did not have to do all the touches and all the remembering?
Your CRM’s Potential
Not all CRMs are the same or even look alike. Some are electronic rolodexes; others help with mail list management. A robust CRM makes it easy for you to:
- Reach prospects and clients automatically.
- Remind you to contact specific prospects and send reminders to others.
- Complete tasks based on deadlines you’ve set.
- Capture your notes, tasks, emails, and quotes all in the prospect’s record.
- Track your prospects through your sales funnel.
A robust CRM helps you close more sales because you have more time to spend with your best prospects and clients.
Perhaps, you don’t have a CRM or your CRM does not have the Fire Power you need.
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