As a sales representative, you’ve worked long and hard to
develop a substantial list of leads. Now that you have these leads, you need to
effectively handle them so that they don’t fall through the cracks at any point
in your sales funnel. Some of the most challenging responsibilities that sales
reps face are converting leads into prospective customers and growing the
interest of prospects to guide through the funnel. Here are three tips to help
you address these challenges and make the most of your sales efforts:
- Prioritize quality leads
What do you do with the giant list of leads you’ve garnered?
You’re a busy person, and it’s a fool’s errand to attempt to convert all of
your leads into prospects on the same timeline. Not everyone will be equally as
interested in your company’s product or service. Narrow your focus. Concentrate
on the most qualified leads. Use a system of prioritization to know which leads
are ripe for the picking. A great way to do this is through lead scoring. Lead
scoring gives numerical point values to different lead activities, such as
viewing webpages, attending events or downloading content. A higher score means
higher lead priority. Using lead scoring also helps sales reps estimate the
percent chance that the deal will close or what the next best steps are. Proper
prioritization of leads enables sales reps to give the most attention to leads
that are most likely to become customers.
- Respond quickly
The next hurdle is responding to priority leads. In order to
optimize the conversion rate for a lead, you need to respond extremely quickly.
According to a study by Velocify, calling the prospect within one minute
of lead generation can increase your likelihood of conversion by 391%. Though a
quick response will not guarantee that you get in contact with your prospect,
it greatly improves your chances and encourages positive reaction. A fast
response can help your prospect build trust in you, and that trust can be the
gateway to a shorter sales cycle.
- Personalize emails
This may seem slightly counterintuitive because writing
emails to each prospect can be time-intensive. However, it’s worth the time
investment. According to research by The Aberdeen Group, 45% of best-in-class
prioritize improving the personalization of sales conversations. The reason
personalizing emails is so successful is that it provides a way for you to
stand out from the clutter. But how can you find out more about your prospect
to customize your outreach? Social media profiles, such those on LinkedIn and
Twitter, can be great places to start your information search. You can easily
find information such as your prospect’s alma mater, current and previous
employment, and interests—get creative! These brief insights can provide you
with several ways to connect to a prospect on a more personal level by drawing
on things that matter to them. There are also many resources to help you
automate your email outreach while still being personable; email templates are
a good place to start.
Managing your giant list of prospects, all of whom are at
different levels of engagement and interest, can be a daunting task. These tips
will help you focus your efforts on the leads most likely to convert and help
you more effectively engage prospects in conversation, and ultimately improve
your conversion rates and shorten your sales cycle.
Article From: seismic.com
