When it comes to a sales lead, many businesses make the mistake of treating every individual or business that contacts them as genuine opportunities and then allocates significant time and resources trying to convert them into a sale. However, a vast majority of these leads fail to materialize into sales.
Salespeople know that not all leads created in a marketing campaign are equal. While some prospects might be interested in purchasing immediately, others are just using your business to get information about your products and services while others are simply a bad fit with your business.
Successful entrepreneurs take time to evaluate the quality of leads and embark on refining a good strategy for pursuing the most promising ones.
Today we give you five tips that will help you avoid chasing the wrong sales leads in future.
Create an ideal buyer persona
Having a general idea on what qualities constitute an ideal customer for your business is not enough, you need to have an in-depth understanding of this prospective client. The marketing department of your business should put together a detailed profile of how a prospective client looks like so that you can focus more quickly on the leads that will most likely result to a new client for your business. This also helps you have a better understanding of who you your ideal customer is and what goods or services they need.
Eliminate the lukewarm lead
Prospective clients who contact your business in order to get some free advice are generally unlikely to actually buy from you. While it’s a recommended business gesture to always be friendly with all relations of your business, spending too much time and giving lots of free advice to such look warm leads is not good for your business. It’s advisable you focus on knowing the person better during your initial conversation so you can substantiate whether its one of those looking for free advice or it’s a serious business lead
Ask open-ended questions to qualify leads
Being in business means that you will always find those prospects who come to you with unrealistic demands or want more features than they’re interested in paying for. Having a process in place is key to weeding out such prospects who can be a bother later when you are already in binding business with them. Ask questions and be keen to expound on what you can offer and what you cannot. This will help you streamline your sales conversion process and help you avoid future problems with troublesome clients.
Nurture bad leads and convert them
Occasionally, when a bad sales lead is nurtured, it can blossom into a good sales lead. A big number of possible prospects aren’t willing or able to buy on the first call. When properly nurtured with techniques such as outreach efforts and demonstration s on the value of your products and services, such prospects will likely convert to clients.
Follow up as soon as possible
With so many online inquiries receiving an initial automated reply, it’s altogether possible that good leads will slip through the cracks due to inattention. Look for ways to refine the process so that sales leads are contacted quickly (within 24 hours if possible) so the best prospects don’t get lost in the shuffle.
By regarding each lead as a potential customer, your team will be more focused on avoiding the wrong leads. Converting qualified leads into buying customers will keep the team highly motivated and working hard on future sales opportunities as well.
