Have you set intentions for your business this year? Here’s a simple yet powerful one to consider:
Follow-up!
We all know what it means! It’s a simple act of continuing or repeating something that has already started. It’s also the most important activity of a sales cycle.
I’ve come across numerous stories from many small business owners who consistently follow up for years with a large potential client, eventually converting them into a customer. It takes patience, grit, and staying consistent with follow-ups.
Surprisingly, most of us rarely prioritize or place enough value on follow-ups. We forget to do them, allowing them to fall by the wayside as we get overwhelmed by other activities. Imagine the difference it could make if you planned simple follow-ups with those you meet at conferences or outside of work. Or quick reminders to your team on pending discussions or tasks.
How should you approach the art of following up without sounding intrusive or offending? Here are my 5 key recommendations:
- Choose appropriate timing – Be mindful of this critical component in your follow-up.
- Provide context – Share a brief recap of the previous conversation.
- Keep it concise – Keep your communication on point – no one reads long-winded emails anymore.
- Create value – Include additional information or a solution that’s meaningful to them.
- Offer an opt-out – Give them the option to decline or postpone the conversation.
The good news is that Marketing Technology can assist you in setting up “Task reminders” to stay on top of things. You can plan an automated email campaign that is personalized and mindful. Check the progress of your prospects on a single dashboard that stores all contact activity.
If you’ve not had a game plan for follow-ups until now, you should include this for your 2024 lead generation cycle. We recently launched marketing technology services to assist businesses in setting up their Follow-ups so they can easily stay on top of things – learn more at MarTech@PDS.
