B2B Leads Slipping through your Fingers?
You might have heard someone say before “If the prospect is really interested, they’ll call me back” followed by a tickle of frustrations that B2B Leads seem to not be converting. It doesn’t have to be that way. Understanding some basic concepts in B2B Sales methodology can take your results light-years. Fortunately, we’ve taken the time to lay out some fundamental (yet powerful) steps to unlocking the door.
Make Contact Right Away. So you’ve scored a lead. What next? Your first step is to call the prospect immediately. After all, 95% of sales will result from a phone conversation, not a text or email. That’s where you want to be.
Prospect didn’t Answer? That’s fine. In this day and age, any relevant decision maker most likely has a full plate. If they’re not available, don’t sweat it. Persistence will pay off. We like to call back right away (in case they screened an unfamiliar phone number).
Still didn’t connect? Time to shoot off a quick email, but remember – short and sweet. We’re not writing an email to sell them on all our products/features, the only goal is to get them on the phone. Briefly recap why they got in touch and clearly offer 2-3 times for them to connect.
Does the job end there? Most certainly not. For the remainder of Day 1, we recommend 3 more calls attempts. Sound heavy-handed? It might, but remember, a decision maker is almost sure to be busy. We want to hit them at a moment they aren’t bombarded by a dozen things. That’s why timing in the B2B Sales game is everything.
What can I expect after Day 1? A 60-65% contact rate is a reasonable expectation.
So what next? As we said, timing is everything. Sometimes prospects have a number of commitments and priorities that render them unreachable through an entire day. That shouldn’t discourage you or your sales team.
We recommend 2-3 calls a day for 4 more days (plus a tracked follow-up email each day). Again, our goal here is to time our contact attempts with a moment our prospect has a moment to breathe. We can’t tell you how many prospects on the 6th attempt have told us something along the lines of “Thanks so much for following up, have been super busy, let’s talk”. Follow up is everything.
Do this and you should expect at least a 90-95% contact rate. This is what great B2B Sales teams are doing. Remember, just because a prospect is interested in what you’re selling doesn’t mean they’re waiting for your call as first priority above all their other meetings and activities. These people are busy. The more touches, the better. A 20-touch schedule should be standard at any B2B Sales organization.
Most of all, be sure your prospects are well organized. We like CRM softwares such as SalesForce or PipeDrive. What gets measured gets managed. Make sure there’s full visibility into each contact attempt registered.
Getting contact is half the battle in B2B sales. There’s right and wrong ways to go about it. Armed with this information, you’ll have won the first half of that battle.
