Remember those crazy-busy independent customers who come to you on their terms - and only after they've checked you out socially? They engage much later in the sales cycle. And just when you are ready to close the lead, you leak the "going, going, gone" message to them . . . and suddenly they wake up and respond, "Wait, wait! Don't go!"
This phenomenon is very curious. In fact, it is counterintuitive to everything we know about Customer 2.0. How could they be sending off these "Don't bug me and stay out of my way" messages, while simultaneously asking you to keep your sales lifeline open?
Frustrating, but true. And here's why:
Independent customers lose track of time. You may have engaged with them, through demos and presentations or conversations about 5 months ago, but they've lost track of that time and the lead life has lost some fuel. Reviving old leads is one of the most efficient sales efforts you can make.
Crazy-busy customers crave deadlines. No matter how hectic things get for prospects, the best way to capture cooperation and get response is to create a deadline. When they are threatened with a lead being closed, they will respond.
Social customers want to belong. When you tell them they are going to be "removed" or "eliminated" from something, they panic. They still want to belong and be part of the club!
They travel light but still want company. The customers that ask for very little are actually the ones who need the most. They just want you to make the moves in the budding relationship. We naturally focus on the ones that are screaming loudest, but we need to reach out to the ones who are quiet.
They lose interest in the beginning of the sales cycle but not at the end. Most customers are bombarded early in the sales cycle with introductory voice mail scripts and email templates. These early 1st, 2nd and 3rd attempts focus on the beginning but not the later attempts such as the 4th-7th attempt. Research shows that salespeople give up doing the research after the 4th attempt.
They have short fuses and short memories. We know they get "mad as hell." But over time, they forget what they were mad about!
If you are convinced your customer is motivated by fear, add this smart email template to your tool of tricks.
Subject Line- It's not too late for {name of your company]
Hello {!Lead.FirstName},
I have been reaching out to you for an update on your evaluation of [your product name]. I have not heard back from you, as you are most likely quite busy. Unless I hear from you, I will assume you have decided not to proceed with [name of your company].
Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for {Name of their Company} or, if you feel that a different person within your organization might be a better fit for evaluating our services. You can also view a quick walk-through of our solution at [your company URL].
Thank you for your time, and I do hope to hear from you.
Sincerely,
«Signature»
Join Josiane Feigon and The Customer Collective, The Social Customeemr's sister website, on Wednesday, Sept. 14, for a free webinar that will share ideas on connecting with the crazy-busy customer who disdains the same-old sales tactics of yesteryear.