Close: Convert Leads to Sales
After you’ve followed the “content is king” advice in order to increase your lead traffic, the next step is to convert leads to sales. This by itself isn’t enough, however. It’s also vital to follow up with your existing leads, which will allow you to close even more sales.
Have a Plan
First, work out a plan for effective, consistent follow-up with your leads. This can be as simple as setting aside a certain amount of time to answer emails, respond to queries and other tasks, or a more complex plan involving automated emails or newsletters can be put into effect. Whichever system will work best with your company is fine, as long as at the core of that system lies a true commitment to following up with your leads. No one wants to feel forgotten, and a customer who does feel that way is not going to stick around.
Improve Response Time
We live in a world of immediacy, and this mindset definitely crosses over into leads. If emails and queries aren’t returned almost instantly, potential buyers may forget you exist. The days of waiting a few days or weeks to return calls and emails are a thing of the past. Customers want answers, and they want them now. Ensuring your content is king has gotten you several juicy leads. Don’t lose them by delaying communication responses to their questions or problems.
You’re not the only player on this field. Very often, the company with the fastest response time will convert leads into sales. When clients don’t get an answer early enough, they don’t wait around; they simply move on to the next potential provider on their list. Make sure your response time is fast enough that you’re not losing customers in the virtual waiting room.
Stagger Your Efforts
Not everyone is productive during the same times you are. By returning calls to a prospect at the same time every day, you’re limiting your chances of making contact with him. Emails may offer a lot more flexibility in communication, as this allows your leads to read and communicate at their convenience. Changing up your times of attempted contact is particularly important when it comes to international customers in widely different time zones.
Long Term Success
You’ve built your engaging content and landed your leads … don’t lose them by failing to follow up. In order to convert leads, set up an effective, rapid response system to makes sure your customer, not just content, is king too.