Don’t Let Your Hot Leads Cool Off
Every day in sales and business is critical. That lead you
receive today, could very well be in the hands of your
competition tomorrow.
That is why I can’t stress enough the importance of taking full
advantage of your leads once you receive them.
Leads are not meant to sit around pinned onto bulletin boards,
or placed in a tickler file. They are meant to be acted on.
The thought process of the customer is to shop around for a
product or service, so they have put the word on the street that
they are on the market for a particular product.
If someone within your professional circle gives you a qualified
lead, it is highly reasonable that the customer on this lead has
made several people aware of their interests in a product or
service. Which would mean that their name and phone number is
being passed around in more than one professional circle.
The timing on a lead is so important, the moment you receive the
lead, pick up the phone and make contact with that person.
By not acting on a lead, you have two things working against
you. One, you are allowing for your competition to get the jump
on you. And two, you are giving your potential customer an
opportunity to seek out somebody else to provide them with the
product or service they are looking for.
I once worked with a guy when I was in the banking industry. He
belonged to a few networking groups, and when he received a lead
at one of his weekly meetings, he would come back to the office,
pin the lead onto his calendar and let it sit there for three to
five days.
When he finally got around to calling the name on the lead, he
always received the same response. The customers would inform
him that they were no longer interested, because they were
working with someone else.
He would than hang up the phone and complain that he had the
worst luck when it came to leads.
I think the message here is clear. This is an example of what
not to do with your leads.
By letting a hot lead sit around and cool off, you are
guaranteed to lose that customer.
Keep in mind, when someone gives you a lead, that someone is
most likely giving your potential customer feed back. So that
potential customer will have your name, and know when the lead
was given to you.
I don’t think your customer would appreciate a phone call three
to five days after you have received their information. Even if
they are still on the market for your product, you will not be
off to a good start.
Leads were meant to be acted on. So the next time you receive
one, don’t hesitate, stop what you are doing, and contact that
person. Good luck.
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