The fortune is in the follow up.
If you’re in business, you’ve heard this old adage, and if you’ve ever been following up with a prospect, you’ve likely stopped following up too soon!
I used to stop following up early in the process until I got a rude awakening. Once I went to check in on a prospect about a month after I was supposed to. When I finally called her, she had just hired someone else.
Can you say OUCH?!
After that, I made a vow to myself. I wasn’t going to look for new prospects if I wasn’t going to do my due diligence and follow up with them. Trust me, I am now the follow up queen!
Here’s another quick story, I once followed up with a prospect for a full year, every few weeks. My colleagues thought I was crazy, but I built a strong relationship which today has generated more than $80,000 from one client. It’s revenue I wouldn’t have if I stopped following up.
At this point in my career, I’ve worked directly with about 10,000 business owners and I have to be honest, I get this question all the time. As a result of getting the question again, I went into my archives and found a video I recorded in 2012 where I answered this very question. Check out my video:
For the most part, what I said in 2012 is still true today. You have to follow up; and to ensure you stick with it, you should vary your follow up attempts. Here are some of my favorite the follow up sequences:
1. Make a phone call, ideally within 24-48 hours after meeting them.
2. Mail a handwritten note – to be sent right after I leave a message. In my handwritten note, I do something memorable that warrants a call back.
3. Send an Email to follow up and check in.
4. Send them a relevant blog post, special report, white paper, etc.
5. Connect with them on LinkedIn.
6. Make another phone call.
7. Send them something else via mail. (I like to send one of my books.)
8. Make another phone call.
9. Make another phone call.
10. Send a follow up email.
11. Make another phone call.
12. Make another phone call.
As you can see, I like the phone and it helps me to stand out because most people do not like the phone. The phone is your friend and it’s my favorite “Old School” marketing strategy. When I take the time to talk to my prospects, I build relationships and I keep clients for life.
Since I recorded the video, I have learned some very interesting statistics about follow up. According to www.followupsuccess.com,
- 48% of sales people never follow up with a prospect
- 25% of sales people make a second contact and stop
- 12% of sales people make more than three contacts
Yet….
- 2% of sales are made on the first contact
- 3% of sales are made on the second contact
- 5% of sales are made on the third contact
- 10% of sales are made on the fourth contact
- 80% of sales are made on the fifth to twelfth contact
So, how many times should you follow up with a prospect?
8 to 12 times or until they say yes. Whichever comes first.
It will take discipline and the creation of a follow up system to keep you on track, but it will be well worth it. Well, it will be if you want to keep growing your business by getting new clients.
Now I want to hear from you: What’s your two cents? What value can you add to this post?
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©2016 by Darnyelle A. Jervey. All Rights Reserved. Darnyelle A. Jervey, MBA, The Incredible Factor Business Optimization Coach and Mentor, is the founder of Incredible One Enterprises®, Incredible Factor University® and the Leverage Your Incredible Factor System®, a proven step-by-step program so you experience financial and spiritual abundance in your life because of your business. For more information and a FREE audio CD “7 Critical Mistakes Even Smart Entrepreneurs Must Avoid for Clients, Connection and Cash Flow!” just fill out the form below.
