Owners and salespeople say, “They are overwhelmed by the follow up required to sell.” Following up is hard and requires consistent, thoughtful touches at key points.
The data says it can take 12 touches to make a sale. The more people you meet, the more follow-up required. Here’s some follow up math:.
7 new contacts/week X 48 weeks X 8 follow-ups X 20 minutes/contact
896 hours – 43% of the year.
As business owners, we wear many hats and that’s one big chunk of time when many of us also produce the work.
Overwhelm Hurts
The causes of overwhelm range from chasing bad prospects to using sticky notes and spreadsheets to manage follow up. The cause does not matter. What matters is that many business owners, sales managers, and salespeople suffer from overwhelm.
Sales Funnels Tell the Truth
Visualize 3 sections of your sales funnel. What happens to prospects at its top, middle, and bottom? What did your best clients experience? At what section do prospects drop off? Your Top of funnel (TOFU), Middle (MOFU), and Bottom (BOFU) will tell you a lot.
Here are example reasons why prospects drop off at each section:
- TOFU – They were sniffing around but didn’t have a need.
- MOFU – They did not see your differentiator or compelling offer.
- BOFU – They did not receive close personal attention or the price they needed.
Review your trends and compare them to your best client experiences. What is different?
Combine 8 to 12 touches and TOFU, MOFU, and BOFU and you have:
A Powerful Closing Tool!
In sales, you “woo and qualify” prospects. Which prospect is real? What sales magnets (i.e., offers) draw prospects through MOFU and BOFU? Who are the buyers who take you up on your offers?
More Sales Less Overwhelm
Strategy and systems (or the lack of) are the primary causes of overwhelm. Here are ways to increase sales and reduce overwhelm:
-
- Rank prospects and allocate sales’ time based on rank.
- Create “Qualifiers” and “Milestones” that show buyer interest.
- Personalize every touch and mention items about them.
- Segment by rank and your business criteria.
- Automate up to 50% of your touches.
How can you do this by yourself or with your team?
More Sales Less Overwhelm
Use a robust CRM! You will have more time to spend with your best prospects. Here’s how the CRM supports your “High Touch” approach:
- Personalized outreach is triggered by ranking, your criteria, sales funnel stage, and prospect engagement.
- A&B prospects receive in-person and phone contact supported by automated outreach. Salespeople receive “Reminders” to follow up after outreach is sent.
- “News Flashes” are sent in a flash using up to date “Dynamic Lists.”
- “Repetitive Emails,” pre-populated as templates are sent with a click.
- Tasks, notes, emails, texts, and quotes are centralized in the Contact record.
What happens when your robust CRM supports your “High Touch with High Tech?”
You Will Have 4 to 8 New Hours Per Week!
