Follow up is a critical element in building your business. To make the best use of your own time, develop a reminder system that helps you follow through. You never want potential business partners to fall between the cracks.
Simple systems work best. Obtain a Contact Manager or use a simple form for each prospect to assist you in keeping current notes of information at a glance in contact with your prospects. Most email programs have some kind of contact manager built in and you can also buy or download a simple
contact manager.
I know not everyone is a computer savvy person, some people just like to keep track on paper, using either a form or notebook for each person, every time you make contact with that person you have all their information at a glance keeping you on track with that individual.
Take the time to make notes after each call; it will help you to zero in on their needs quickly. Even though it seems time consuming, the details you’ll gather will help you become more proficient at the process and greatly enhance the level of your skill and organization you will achieve with consistency. Here are some basics to write down:
• Anything personal you learn – family situation, current employment, etc.
– What’s got them looking for a business?
– What information you sent them and when?
– Any commitments you made to follow up?
Phone Tips:
The phone call is a critical part of working with leads. This is where you start to build a relationship and get a sense of one another. It is very important to be friendly (be yourself), but businesslike and to the point. This is an interview of sorting process and you need to determine right away if this person is ready or able to start a business and if they are interested in what you have to offer. Your time is very valuable and you’ll be making many calls each week, so you need to spend your time with the right people. Be careful about your time. I’ve had many experiences connecting with prospects that proved to be a waste of time, because they did not want the type of business you are offering or weren’t willing to apply themselves to the process or commit the funds to getting started.
Having a great conversation only means that you connected with that individual, finding out if they also like what you have to offer them in the type of business you’re in. On the phone, your voice is your ‘body language’; it’s all people have to go by. So, follow some simple proven rules – stand up if you can, you sound more confident and energized. Take a deep breath and don’t rush and really listen and learn how to ask questions (check out the script on my site for the process interview). Be real, be authentic, just be you talking to another person, the more relaxed you are, the more relaxed they’ll be.
Think of it like interviewing potential candidates for a very serious and lucrative position. Always keep that mindset – it may take time to really feel that way – but the sooner you start to think like the CEO of your business, the more successful you’ll be. Stay in control and remember you’re the one with something great to offer and you’re just making an initial call to see if you MIGHT have a fit.
Always remember that the initial phone call is to connect and make a great first impression, NOT to explain your whole business right then and there. It’s much better to allow each person to go and view the professional Online presentation, where they can get all the information that they will need to make an intelligent decision on whether it is right for them. Besides, most businesses are difficult to explain quickly and easily, that’s the job of your Online Presentation!
How many times should you call a contact?
We recommend calling a person three times and each time leaving a proper voice message while the system auto responder will keep on sending them seven emails spread out over a two week period promoting for them to take the next step and make contact with you for their initial interview getting in touch. Some may not respond depending on their interest.
I’ve had many experiences not connecting with someone by phone the first week, keep on trying the get in contact with the prospect for a couple of weeks as they may have filled out the form and then ended up going on a trip or assisting a family member and being distracted from following through with making contact with you about the business they inquired about.
I have the email auto-responder system “dripping” on them through an email campaign and then. Timing is everything, and keeping in touch makes an impression if you keep the emails short, to the point, worthwhile and not too frequent.
Remember, recruiting is a numbers game and you want to move on and find the interested people. The more people you contact, the faster your business will grow. Remember the CEO mentality. Would you spend the time to chase them down? If that is required would they be the type of person that would make a valuable contribution to your business network? Take the business approach attitude and you’ll be better at sorting right from the get-go.