1) Responding on time
The best time to convert a lead into a sale is as soon as possible (assuming that a lead has been properly qualified). In more complex sales situations or when dealing with large organisations, sales cannot necessarily be closed in days, but quick response times (e.g 4-hours) to initial calls and subsequent followup enquiries create an excellent impression and are unlikely to be matched by competitors.
Prompt response is applicable not only for more complex products and transactions; it is also an influential strategy in convincing even smaller groups of traders to make purchases.
2) Routine communication to relay significant information
Being in regular contact with the customers to provide important information and updates is indispensable. Updating methods may include newsletters, white papers, technical updates, audio interviews or video presentations, or invitations to events. The main purpose is to keep in touch to prospects as a way of nurturing leads.
3) Strategic conversion process
Superior tactics are your best advantage when trying to generate regular clients from your leads. The 80/20 theory will produce positive results when endeavouring to convert visitors to clients.
One client was who was selling six and seven figure software systems for an international software company in a past career made the very interesting discovery that ALL new clients had at some point attended a 2-hour evening workshop. Getting bums on seats in those seminars thus became the focus of lead generation activities, yielding exponential results.
What makes your conversion procedures significant and productive? What else is lacking in your methods to further increase your sales? What can you do to avoid fruitless performances?
4) Multiple manners to contact customers.
Once you identified that leads are qualified to become regular customers, create more ways of communicating with them. Rise above the existing practices such as sending newsletters; try adding phone calls, postal mailings, webinars and meetings.
Although newsletter lists and autoresponders provide huge automation benefits, they do have limitations - not the least of which is the sheer volume of emails that are competing for your prospects' inboxes and mental bandwidth.
Take into account the important word - VALUE. DM communications that seem skillful are sometimes still lacking. Esteem your customers highly by giving them important attention and meaningful information that they might need regarding the business.
5) Approach them with different VAK learning techniques
All individuals gather information through their unique Visual-Auditory-Kinesthetic (VAK) facilities.
Most of us are visual - we learn things by visual perception.
Some of us are auditory - we learn best by listening to sounds.
Some are kinesthetic - we learn best by doing actions or tasks.
Modify your ways of communication to customers by using different learning styles appropriate for each of them to strengthen your efficiency of generating leads.
Use diagrams, charts, powerpoints and video to appeal to Visual types.
For auditory facilities, use audio programs, videos with audios, and live presentations.
Use interactive webinars, surveys and live workshops to appeal to Kinaesthetic types.
Before, I used printed handouts for my lead nurturing activities. During those times, I became productive with these old formats, but now I am using the modern ways of giving information to customers such as audio and video technology.
Where to start
In a sense, "lead nurturing" covers a good proportion of the entire sales and marketing process. If you know you could be nurturing leads a lot more effectively, but are not quite sure where to start, here are some ideas:
1) Are you using a combination of sales and marketing forces as your operative CRM system?
If your system is lacking an essential CRM system, your nurturing procedures will not be effectively carried out by the sales and marketing team. Most of the industrial-strength CRM that suit the needs and sizes of any organisations are offered by established organisations such as Salesforce.com.
2) Have you organised your "closed loop tracking"?
Can you trace the development of your marketing system from the lead nurturing to point of sale to the lifetime satisfaction of customers? The improvement and advancement of your marketing structures depends on the size of the organisation. Closed-loop tracking of an organisation is an important tool to generate leads and convert them into sales.
3) Are you using a comprehensible lead classification for the entire organisation?
Unqualified leads frustrate salespeople and waste your time, money and energy. Defining exactly what a qualified lead looks like is a great first step toward knowing exactly whom you should be nurturing.
4) Have you acknowledged your powers in getting things done?
Once you are able to direct your lead generation procedures; a seminar, an onsite demonstration, a product trial, you can concentrate more on the high-yielding activities.
5) Do you have all your prospects' contact details?
As an organised team, you should keep records of the important information and details pertaining to your customers, especially their email address, postal address, telephone numbers, and other contact details that may be useful in generating leads at this moment or in the near future. Some experts such as telemarketers can be of good help.
6) Do you have a documented lead nurturing system?
Even if your sales nurturing system is one 6-monthly followup call, that's a starting point. Which one or two things could you do to add the most value to the customer experience?
Here are some suggestions:
* Convey some updates through emails and printed papers.
* Forward a video stream of a pertinent presentation done by your successful team.
* Carry out an assessment of the business and give an account of details.
* Hold an event or seminar.
7) If you do have a documented followup system, are your salespeople following it?
Complying with the existing policies pertaining to lead nurturing is a major factor of a successful industry, but it must be an effective system for the sales force to stick to it.
The best time to convert a lead into a sale is as soon as possible (assuming that a lead has been properly qualified). In more complex sales situations or when dealing with large organisations, sales cannot necessarily be closed in days, but quick response times (e.g 4-hours) to initial calls and subsequent followup enquiries create an excellent impression and are unlikely to be matched by competitors.
Prompt response is applicable not only for more complex products and transactions; it is also an influential strategy in convincing even smaller groups of traders to make purchases.
2) Routine communication to relay significant information
Being in regular contact with the customers to provide important information and updates is indispensable. Updating methods may include newsletters, white papers, technical updates, audio interviews or video presentations, or invitations to events. The main purpose is to keep in touch to prospects as a way of nurturing leads.
3) Strategic conversion process
Superior tactics are your best advantage when trying to generate regular clients from your leads. The 80/20 theory will produce positive results when endeavouring to convert visitors to clients.
One client was who was selling six and seven figure software systems for an international software company in a past career made the very interesting discovery that ALL new clients had at some point attended a 2-hour evening workshop. Getting bums on seats in those seminars thus became the focus of lead generation activities, yielding exponential results.
What makes your conversion procedures significant and productive? What else is lacking in your methods to further increase your sales? What can you do to avoid fruitless performances?
4) Multiple manners to contact customers.
Once you identified that leads are qualified to become regular customers, create more ways of communicating with them. Rise above the existing practices such as sending newsletters; try adding phone calls, postal mailings, webinars and meetings.
Although newsletter lists and autoresponders provide huge automation benefits, they do have limitations - not the least of which is the sheer volume of emails that are competing for your prospects' inboxes and mental bandwidth.
Take into account the important word - VALUE. DM communications that seem skillful are sometimes still lacking. Esteem your customers highly by giving them important attention and meaningful information that they might need regarding the business.
5) Approach them with different VAK learning techniques
All individuals gather information through their unique Visual-Auditory-Kinesthetic (VAK) facilities.
Most of us are visual - we learn things by visual perception.
Some of us are auditory - we learn best by listening to sounds.
Some are kinesthetic - we learn best by doing actions or tasks.
Modify your ways of communication to customers by using different learning styles appropriate for each of them to strengthen your efficiency of generating leads.
Use diagrams, charts, powerpoints and video to appeal to Visual types.
For auditory facilities, use audio programs, videos with audios, and live presentations.
Use interactive webinars, surveys and live workshops to appeal to Kinaesthetic types.
Before, I used printed handouts for my lead nurturing activities. During those times, I became productive with these old formats, but now I am using the modern ways of giving information to customers such as audio and video technology.
Where to start
In a sense, "lead nurturing" covers a good proportion of the entire sales and marketing process. If you know you could be nurturing leads a lot more effectively, but are not quite sure where to start, here are some ideas:
1) Are you using a combination of sales and marketing forces as your operative CRM system?
If your system is lacking an essential CRM system, your nurturing procedures will not be effectively carried out by the sales and marketing team. Most of the industrial-strength CRM that suit the needs and sizes of any organisations are offered by established organisations such as Salesforce.com.
2) Have you organised your "closed loop tracking"?
Can you trace the development of your marketing system from the lead nurturing to point of sale to the lifetime satisfaction of customers? The improvement and advancement of your marketing structures depends on the size of the organisation. Closed-loop tracking of an organisation is an important tool to generate leads and convert them into sales.
3) Are you using a comprehensible lead classification for the entire organisation?
Unqualified leads frustrate salespeople and waste your time, money and energy. Defining exactly what a qualified lead looks like is a great first step toward knowing exactly whom you should be nurturing.
4) Have you acknowledged your powers in getting things done?
Once you are able to direct your lead generation procedures; a seminar, an onsite demonstration, a product trial, you can concentrate more on the high-yielding activities.
5) Do you have all your prospects' contact details?
As an organised team, you should keep records of the important information and details pertaining to your customers, especially their email address, postal address, telephone numbers, and other contact details that may be useful in generating leads at this moment or in the near future. Some experts such as telemarketers can be of good help.
6) Do you have a documented lead nurturing system?
Even if your sales nurturing system is one 6-monthly followup call, that's a starting point. Which one or two things could you do to add the most value to the customer experience?
Here are some suggestions:
* Convey some updates through emails and printed papers.
* Forward a video stream of a pertinent presentation done by your successful team.
* Carry out an assessment of the business and give an account of details.
* Hold an event or seminar.
7) If you do have a documented followup system, are your salespeople following it?
Complying with the existing policies pertaining to lead nurturing is a major factor of a successful industry, but it must be an effective system for the sales force to stick to it.
About the Author:
Author: David B. Ascot can assist your business' sales lead generation strategy and yield you the leverage you are looking for via your online lead generation.
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