How often should you follow up with online prospects without being annoying?

Being able to put yourself in your customers' shoes and know what their experience is like for them to be a ready for your solution is key. Finding the right person is part of the process, but identifying with them enough to have them open up to you about the pain point they are experiencing is key. If your prospects view you as someone that understands their day-to-day activities, and more importantly their struggles, they are more likely to view you as a trusted guide to help them solve their problems. Take some time to understand their roles and responsibilities, and dig down to find the questions that strike at the heart of the shortcoming your solution addresses. This will make your pipeline better qualified!

When you’re prospecting, you may not know their preferred method of communication. Some people are “texters”. Some people enjoy email. Some people enjoy long conversations over the phone. Your job in sales is to communicate with them in a way that they appreciate. A lot of times, it means a multi prong approach until you find your sweet spot with that particular client.

Data, data, data! Sales can sometimes be one big experiment, and how can you accurately adjust your results if you don't know how you are achieving a positive outcome? If you are getting most of your responses on the third follow-up or more, you might try following up at least four times to see an increase in responses. If your customers are responding better to shorter messages, try decreases your message size. It's all about the data in the end.

Providing value can be as simple as offering encouraging, or positive thoughts. I know a lot of clients aren’t ready to make a purchase yet, but they find value in speaking with me because I’m kind to them, and I make their day more pleasant.

It's okay to call it quits! Even if you have honed in on the right buyer persona, someone else may be the right fit. Refocus your efforts on the next prospect that might be more interested and engaged in what you offer instead of chasing a dead end relentlessly. Ultimately, the key is to respect the prospect's time and preferences while maintaining a consistent level of communication.

If you have a lot of people that are opting out of your emails, it’s probably because you’re not providing value. People won’t opt out if they see value, and what they’re continuing to get, whether in text, call, or email solicitation.

Go until you get a no. Be diligent. Persevere. If you consistently provide value, then you’ll get the sale if they have any interest at all. There are so many sales people out there that don’t work hard and give up way too easily. It may be a year, but they’ll buy from you if you’re the only person that follows up with them and offers value consistently.