Rewarding top sales members with a brand new car was enough motivation to get sales professionals to jump in their vehicles, driving to visit one potential lead after another, for hours a day. In this case, the main goal was to close as many sales as possible, without the benefit of using appointment setting services. Sales professionals who brought the most money into the company didn’t necessarily know the clients they sold products or services to.
Online content, greater access to marketing materials and a stronger global economy are changing that. Clients are inundated with sales material to the point that they can spot a sales attempt from a mile away. Today, successful sales efforts are more about the client. In fact, “the goal is not so much to sell anything just for the sake of making a sale. The goal is to book sales that truly help satisfy a customer, and that create a mutually-beneficial, long-term relationship,” according to Inc.
But, first you have to introduce your products or services to potential sales leads. That critical point about selling is likely unchangeable. You can, however, change how you introduce your products or services to clients. Manually calling or visiting potential leads gives you more control of the sales process, but it’s also time consuming.
Appointment setting services through companies like Intelliverse can help you introduce hundreds of potential leads a day to your products or services. For example, when someone appointment setting services call potential leads, they set up appointments between the prospects and a member of your sales team. This gives your sales team more time to focus on the needs of the leads. It also gives your sales team more time to engage in conversation, including asking the right questions, to close the sale.
Jeff Thull shares in Inc. that, “It is important to understand the decisions a customer needs to make as they progress from not having your solution to acquiring and using your solution.” Training and resources like appointment setting services do the work that driving from one lead to another once did. You’re going to need that edge if you plan on staying competitive in the growing offline and online business world.
This means using appointment setting services to respond to online inquiries that potential leads send to your company. Harvard Business Review conducted a study and found that 23% of businesses didn’t respond to online inquiries at all. Only 37% of businesses responded to online inquiries within an hour. These are lost opportunities.
If you’re already contacting dozens of potential leads a day, 100s if you operate a medium-sized to large company, you’re leaping over a big first hurdle. To keep moving forward to close more sales before it’s too late, research additional potential sales leads. Do this before contacting these new leads. Ensure that the leads match your company profile.
You’re going to need to continue determining if new leads match your company profile for the first one to two meetings you have with prospects. Peter Handal says that, “You have to listen very carefully to what the customer or potential customer is saying so that it gives you signals for how to create a win-win.”
Sources:
http://www.intelliverse.com
http://hbr.org/2011/03/the-short-life-of-online-sales-leads/
http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/05/closing-the-sale.html