Suppose you have performed thorough research on a prospect. You are now ready to call with them and discuss how your solutions can resolve their pain points.
Let’s pause here for one moment.
Getting in sales calls with a prospect on the very first attempt may not always be that easy. There are tons of other competitors trying to connect with the same prospect. The biggest challenge here is to set that one appointment with the prospect!
But does that mean you won’t even try? Not really!
Sales reps should always keep following up with the prospects and look for ways to connect with them. But remember that there is a thin line between persistence and forced interaction. Even one wrong step toward the sales follow-up approach could make or break all your chances of connecting with a prospect.
But don’t you worry! This article will tell you some tried and tested tips to follow up with the prospects without annoying them.
So, let’s dive in!
1# Use a multi-channel marketing and follow-up automation platform
Instead of following up with the prospects manually, sales reps can always go for multi-channel marketing automation tools like FlowUp. It is a cross-platform tool that can follow up with prospects in a sophisticated manner without pushing them in any way.
FlowUp can ease your sales follow-ups in the following manner:
- Send pre-recorded voicemails and deliver them directly to the prospect’s inboxes in a ringless, silent matter.
- Engage with your audiences on a broader level with automated voice announcements through telephone broadcast.
- Automate text messages to drive revenue growth. SMSes can allow you to connect with prospects and inform them about your solutions without any forceful communication.
- Automate your email marketing campaigns and build relevant communication with timed triggers, proper email sequences, and more.
This is not all! FlowUp has more to offer for making your marketing efforts seamless and persistent. Click here to know more.
2# Go beyond the Formal channels
Sales reps tend to select phone and email as the universal channels to follow up with the prospects. These have been the most trusted channels and they work in most of the scenarios. But there is no hard-and-fast rule that reps cannot connect with the prospects through other channels.
You can always go for the less formal channels where the nurturing relationship with prospects is easier. Here are a few:
LinkedIn is a professional networking platform with more than 690 million global user bases. Most B2B decision-makers are active on LinkedIn, and you’ll likely find your prospect there too.
If you start communicating with a prospect through calls or emails, all your calls will likely go straight to voicemail. But if you send a connection request to the prospect on LinkedIn, interact with them over messages and posts to build a rapport, and finally, approach them to connect over a call with you, the chances of getting a positive response will be way higher.
Referrals
What if a prospect is not getting back to you after endless calls and emails?
Suppose, they are not active on LinkedIn or any other social media! What do you do then?
Continuing the calls and emails is not a good idea here! You don’t want to annoy them and decrease your chances of getting into a call.
So, what’s the way out here?
Well, a great strategy that worked for me in most cases is to get in touch with the sales team. You can easily find the contact details of the salespeople as it is generally there on the website itself. The sales team can also help with several insights on the organization like who the key decision-makers are, the pain points, who is responsible for which job, and so on.
If you can communicate with the salespeople and get a referral from them, or ask them to introduce you to the respective team leaders, it gets easier to reach your target prospect. Also, when someone from the internal team introduces a sales rep to the prospect, there are fewer possibilities of annoying them.
3# You must know when to stop!
I know how important it is for reps to convert prospects into customers. But there is a certain point where you need to stop following up on every deal. If the prospect is not responding even after 2-3 emails and voicemails, it is probably best to stop right there.
Also, make sure that you are not sending these follow-up emails every day. There must be a breathing space between any two follow-ups. So, wait for at least 3 days after sending the first email.
You need to provide this gap to the prospects as they need to evaluate your solutions and make a decision. Frequent following up can become annoying and ruin your chances of collaboration.
If you continue to “follow up” beyond this point, it will only become annoying for the prospect. Also, if you stick to a single prospect, it will lower your chances of connecting with the prospects who intend to invest in your products.
Also read: Close More Sales with Reach Leads at the Best Times on the Best Channels
But how do you inform the prospect about this?
You can send a parting away mail to the prospect mentioning how you have tried several times to connect with them and that you won’t make any further attempts. Here is a template that you can use:
Here is a template that you can use:
B2B professionals are busy, and they often miss out on your emails. If they are interested in your solutions and feel that your product is the right fit, they can always contact you after sending this email.
If you still don’t hear back, no worries! Prepare for the next sales call.
Final Words
Sales reps often get overwhelmed and make the mistake of forceful follow-ups. What they should understand is that if a prospect is interested in your products, they’ll get back to you, sooner or later.
Standing out from the extreme competition is important. But you can’t make a difference by being aggressive. Stay motivated and follow up only when required. We hope these tips can help you refine your approach to following up on sales calls. To get more insight on following up with your prospects without annoying them with a smart Follow-up automation tool FlowUp, connect with us at help@flowup.com and schedule your demo now!