Now that you’ve got some ideas on how to attract more leads to build your business, we’ve got to talk about how to make the most of those leads! You’ve got names. You’ve got numbers. You’ve got contact information. Now what? How do we get from contact information to making the sale?
Not so fast! Too many people make this same jump: “I’ve got contacts, now it’s time to close the sale.” While that is ultimately the end goal, moving right from making a connection to making a sale jumps over the important step of warming up those leads. You could skip the warming up step, but the chances of long-term success (increasing your business income) are much lower than they would be if you take some time at this point to warm those leads up.
The Benefit Of Warming Up Leads
What do I mean when I say “warm up the leads”? It’s really all about relationship building. You wouldn’t be very amenable if a business got your contact information and then the first thing they did with that information is try to sell you something, would you? I hate it when that happens to me. I feel like I’m a means to an end. A nameless face. A number. It’s pretty much a guaranteed way for me to turn my back on the business and block their email address.
By contrast, when a business takes the time to get to know me or to share information about their business with me without the hard sell, I’m okay with it. I’m more willing to listen if only for the fact that it’s kind of novel; I’m curious to see where it all will lead and if/when the sales pitch will hit. I’m always pleasantly surprised when the sales pitch doesn’t come.
3 Ways To Warm Up Leads
As I mentioned above, warming up leads is the first step in building a (mutually beneficial) relationship with a prospect. Here are three ways to get started:
- Follow Up. If you got your lead as a result of speaking at an event or meeting the prospect in person, they’re already pretty warm. Your best approach is to come up with a reason to follow up with them. Send them a survey, asking for feedback on the presentation or event at which you met them or their pain points. Or you could send them a freebie of some kind – a free download, a discount to your next event, a coupon code, etc. Something that they can use and within a set period of time. Then, after that timeframe or event has passed, follow up with them to see if the gift was valuable.
- Help Them Get To Know You. If you have cold leads, you can warm them up by helping them get to know you and your business. Start out with an introductory email where you share with them all the ways they can learn more about your business – your website, your social media channels, your storefronts, upcoming events, etc. Send them multiple free downloads, videos, and consistent emails. I highly recommend a private Facebook group for a little more intimacy.
- Offer Freebies. What better way for a prospect to get to know you and your business than to give them a little taste of it for free? Consider what freebies you can offer based on your business’ product or service. Then offer it! For my business for example, two freebies that I have had a lot of success with is free content marketing strategy sessions and discovery calls. It’s similar to how attorneys offer free consultations; it’s a way for a prospect to get to know you and begin to decide if they’re going to end up doing business with you.
Learn More About Warming Up Leads With The Marketing Shop’s Exclusive Jumpstart Program!
Are you ready to grow your business right now? Join fellow entrepreneurs and meet people who are in similar situations, learn tips and tricks that have proven to be effective for small business owners and discover more ways to increase your revenue with The Marketing Shop’s Jumpstart Your Revenue in 90 Days program!
Contact The Marketing Shop online to learn more about the Jumpstart program or our other services!