Teresa Caro
Caro Consulting
What happened to the list of those who downloaded your whitepaper last month? What about the responses to your webcast invitation? Is your company always focused on next month's numbers and hunting for those ready to sign a contract? With a short-term approach, you are generating leads in hopes of finding that golden nugget. By the time you have found the one ready to buy, he is down the path with another company and is merely confirming facts. Most likely, you have missed your opportunity.
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When you are always looking forward it is easy to leave the slow movers behind—causing them to look elsewhere.
Last month, we talked about segmenting your leads. Now what do you do with the leads not ready to buy? How do you nurture them, keep them warm, and get them to raise their hand when they are ready to buy?
So, what are the stages in the buy-cycle?
- Interest
- Consideration
- Evaluation
- Purchase
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Fact: 10-20% of those in the Interest & Consideration stages wants to speak with someone directly—compared to over 60% in the Evaluation stage.
Source: Caro Consulting research study 2004
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The best lead generation companies create an ongoing relationship with prospects throughout the buy-cycle. Prospects receive the information they need, when they need it, and in the format they prefer it. A long-term communication strategy keeps prospects coming back and eventually generates a sale.
Do not force yourself on your leads. Most companies do not have the brand awareness enjoyed by some companies. First prospects need to know who you are. Then they need to feel comfortable with what you offer.
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Fact: 90% of opportunities are lost if not contacted in 72 hours.
Source: Grey Direct, DMB Conference 2004
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Simple Steps to Follow
Here is a simple example—of course the steps vary from company to company based on survey results and the information needed.
- Don't Guess. Instead understand where they are in the buy-cycle, what they need, and how they want to receive this information. A simple survey of your database can provide the guidance needed. Try using
Survey Monkey or
Zoomerang. For new leads, add a couple of questions to your lead generation forms.
- Newsletter. Those early in the buy-cycle do not want to respond to your direct mail campaign for a free demo. But, they may sign up for your newsletter full of valuable industry information. Providing an email address is a small commitment to make.
- Webinar. A week later, that same newsletter can promote a webcast or a whitepaper. This is a great way to get to know you better and allows you to obtain even more information: a name, title, company information, and some questions about what they would like learn from the webcast.
- Free Demo. The newsletter, whitepaper, and webcast all provide an email form and a phone number to contact your company for a demo. The email form is another great opportunity to collect more data.
- Go for the Close.
How much time did your sales team spend on this process? None. The newsletter is created by marketing each month; the whitepaper is written once and posted on the site; the webcast is prerecorded. Most importantly, the campaign is automated.
You Need to Date Before You Can Marry
Trying to find the right man (or woman) is a perfect analogy. Imagine if you will, you are looking around, checking out your options, but not yet ready to commit to a conversation let alone make a long-term commitment. One of your potential options comes right up to you and strikes up a conversation. Unless, the guy/gal is impossible to resist, you would think he/she was desperate, right? What if that same person got down on one knee and proposed? You would go running in the opposite direction...
It is the same for prospective customers. Approach them too quickly and you make them feel uncomfortable—start making offers of commitment and you send them running.
First, get the word out that you are a good guy or gal = company advertising
Second, send them a note telling them a little about yourself and include something of value = company newsletter, whitepaper, webinar
Next, ask for a first date = free demo, free consultation
DO NOT let me lead you to believe that you need to wait until they come to you. There is no question it is up to you to show value and create a sense of urgency that they will miss out if they do not buy soon. Nice guys/gals do finish last. So get out there and close some business.
Need help?
Have all the pieces, but cannot find the time to pull them all together? Send me an email or give me a call at 678-471-4472 and let Caro Consulting help you out.
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