One of the first things instilled in me when I started in sales was that I had to keep in contact with my current clients. The reasoning behind this was simple in that I had already done the hard part, which was to sell myself. When a client buys from you, that means they like and trust you, thus creating more sales down the road.
Unfortunately, there are many sales professionals out there who don't quite grasp the concept. Depending on your industry you can continue to sell to your previous clients. In the insurance business, I've been told that a current client may purchase a minimum of four more times over their lifetime. And all you have to do is follow up with them with a very gentle drip system.
There are some great ways to do this and most are very simple. The simplest is to utilize your Google calendar for reminders to pick up the phone and touch base. Just set a reminder to call on the client's birthday (just to say "Happy Birthday") and anniversary date of their purchase.
When you make that call, don't try to sell them anything unless you have a new product that you think they may be interested. Instead, just say that you appreciate their business and ask how they are doing. I've told the story in a previous post about the time I reached out to a "confirmed bachelor" just to check in and found out that his life had been turned upside down. His brother has passed away and he was now responsible for his "special needs" nephew. That opened up a whole new conversation with the guy which resulted in extra sales.
Another great Google tool is called "Google Alerts". This keeps you up to date on any news announcements regarding people or topics. There is no limit of entries but you want to be specific as to who or what you enter, as you will begin receiving email notices whenever one of your entries triggers results of content changes.
Say you have a new client, Barb Customer. All you do is enter her name (don't forget to use quotation marks) and any time a news item shows up with Barb's name, you will be notified. This is convenient when Barb is awarded a trophy for her work. If you are alerted to this great piece of news you can call her to congratulate her.
On the other hand, if someone has a common name, like Mary Smith, you'll be inundated with emails about every Mary Smith out there.
I have a client who works for a state agency and is sometimes quoted for official statements. Google Alerts sends me an email every time, so I don't call him for each statement. Use good judgement.
Probably my favorite way to keep in contact with my clients is a with an email containing an article that may be of interest to them. As I am a news junkie, I try to find out what my clients' interests are and keep my eyes open for such posts or news items. Using Sniply, I will email the article in a link and a note that just says something like "thought you might find this interesting". Don't overdo it, because you don't want t be a pest, but it can keep you top of mind, which is always a good thing.
If you have any other tools that work for you, let us know and drop a note in the comments section. Happy selling and please stay healthy!
Chris Castanes is a professional speaker who helps sales people succeed through workshops and humorous presentations. He's also the author of "You're Going To Be Great At This!", a humorous look at sales. For booking information, click here. He's also the president of Surf Financial Brokers selling life and disability insurance in several states.
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