How to follow up effectively

What is the key to effective follow up? -Thomas

This is too easy. The key to effective follow up is... follow up! I'm not kidding. If you will just follow up you'll be doing more than most and that will put you in a better position to land the deal. -Houston

Phone. Email. Letter. Fax. ANYTHING!

JUST DO IT!

I think that phone is best. So is email. Do what your client does most. -ginac84

The key is timely and relavant contact that furthers the sales relationship. thmbp2; -Liberty

Agreed

Where I used to contact customers when daily sales were low, I'm now setting appointments for timely follow-up calls. It seems to be working effectively so far.

I guess be genuine with your approach. If you say you are calling at a certain time, make sure to follow it up and be true to your word. -MrCharisma

I thought there would be more to it than what everyone is saying. Assuming that I am following up with people are there any guidelines for effective follow up? -Thomas

Houston is right - just do it! Profound and powerful.

In my business there is prospect follow-up, new customer and new distributor follow-up. Each has a different purpose and I set each up ahead of time by arranging a time to follow-up. Success in my business is dependent upon follow-up and without doing it I would be DOA.

MitchM -MitchM

The more I ask the more I see how much I'm doing right. bdybldr; -Thomas

Sure there are guidelines. 1. Always have some new information to offer when you follow up - another reason to consider your product or service, a bit of news about your industry or a company in the prospect's industry. 2. Always be polite and professional. 3. leave a voice mail message - slowly repeat your name, company and phone number 4. keep a log of your follow up calls so you can refer back to them - "I called you back on (date)". 5. after several attempts, if the preopsect has "Gone Dark", try something else, like a letter or card, an email, or try reaching someone else at the account to find out what's going on. -degiulio

I agree with degiulio. There's certainly an art to following up - not just an action.

To continue his last thought - repeating the same results over and over again expecting a different result is the definition of insanity!

Follow up by voicemail, then again. If you don't get a response, try something new.

Maybe send an email indicating you've called and haven't heard back - you know they're busy, would scheduling something on their calendar make more sense?

If it's a big company, I've also tried going through their admin instead of direct. Either they'll help you get on their calendar, or they may be more direct that you're wasting your time.

Either way, try different things and see what works for you. As others have indicated, the fact that you're following up already puts you ahead of the game.

Best,
Stephen -sfrenkel

I agree with everything that has been said above. One thing on leaving messages that I have found very effective, is don't give them any information, just get their attention and curiousity so they call you back. I love to use something along the following:

"Good morning/afternoon/evening Mr. Customer. It's John from Clark Chevrolet. I was going over some of the information I gathered the last time we talked, and I believe I have found a.) something to similiar to what you are looking for or b.) a way to get pretty close to what you were looking for. If you would give me a call back as soon as you can. You can reach me directly on my cell at 905-7250. Talk to you soon.

This get's their attention about 75% of the time and usually get a call back. -jrboyd

Position yourself in the sales process different from the start so you are not chasing the prospect all the time. That is no fun for the sales person or the prospect. Having to persuade, push, and "close" are sales skills that are still around from sales training in the 1950's...times have changed and there are ways to be more effective, in a more natural, genuine way...

Coach Jeremy -salescoach

Follow up works. Perfect follow up works perfectly.

That's a mantra for any sales organization that I have directed.

The key to perfect follow up--the only key--is to make all follow up "promise generated."

There are four reasons for that.

One is that it makes the follow up a Purposeful Call.

The second reason is that it makes the follow up an expected, permission based, contact.

The third reason is that it demonstrates a promise kept (often with additional pertinent information).

Lastly, and most important, it continues and RENEWS the sales process and selling effort. -Ace Coldiron

I must have been trained well thirteen years in my current carreer if Ace is right about what he's just posted and he is right about that. Follow-up is keeping a promise with mutual agreement.

And all the reasons Ace gives are 100% right on the mark.

With every sale we set up a follow-up procedure on the spot and most of the time there has to be agreement to it for us to complete the sale - it's that important to us.

We tell the customer why and how it works and make sure we have follow-up times, etc.

MitchM -MitchM

I am a Business Development Coordinator in a bank and I use to coach our sales force how to follow up on customers & sales leads. The process that we agreed on & put in place is a number of contacts (e.g phone calls, emails.. letters...) that should be entertained by each customer portfolio manager with their customers in a certain period of time. The follow up is 2 fold: follow up with customers for selling banking products and follow up by the direct Manager of the contacts entertained by each customer portfolio manager, thus effort in follow up of each employee & feedback is monitored closely.
I would like to get your feedback on this concept of follow up as this is a new process that has been implemented one month ago and I cannot now perform an analysis of this process.
Thks in advance for your comments.

Jean Lou -Jeanlou

Follow up is a form of RE-engagement. To sidestep that factor is to abandon the vital dynamic that creates sales. In order to effectively follow up, anticipation in the form of a promise, and demonstration of a promise kept, must be in place. That is STRATEGY btw. Otherwise the salesperson is simply stepping back to square one--and square one puts you back into the frustrating numbers game.

In simple terms you set the stage for the next engagement in the current engagement. PROMISE-GENERATED. -Gary A Boye

I was un aware of the importance FOLLOW UP has, this thread has opend my eyes n I am so impressed with the information I received in my mind... thnx to all -aftabjan