How to Avoid Letting Leads Fall Through the Cracks

Leads are the lifeline for many businesses. In a competitive business environment, you can bet that several companies are vying for the same leads. Because of this fact, it’s important to do everything in your power to avoid letting those precious leads fall through the cracks. Here are three tips that can help.

Respond in a Timely Manner

Slow response times are one of the biggest causes of lost leads. Every hour a lead sits without response decreases the chances that the lead will be converted into revenue. In this case, time is money. Cultivate a sense of urgency and accountability within your workplace. Consider putting a service-level agreement, or SLA, in place in order to keep your employees accountable.

While you prioritize fast response times, you should also remember that it will take patience to convert your leads into revenue. Marketing Donut shows that 80% of sales require at least 5 follow-up calls after the initial meeting.  They recommend that you maintain contact with your leads until they have said “no,” or “not yet,” at least 5 times.

Capture Leads After Hours

Since time is money, you should take advantage of every moment by capturing leads even when you have no employees working. One of the best ways to do this is by utilizing technologies such as webchat. Webchat lets customers share information with your company even after hours.

If you don’t have a way for potential leads to leave their questions and information with your company 24/7, you could be losing valuable customers. Try using webchat or another website technology so you don’t lose track of any of your leads that find your business outside normal working hours.

Personalize Your Communication

One of the fastest ways to lose a lead is by generalizing your interactions with potential customers through sending generic communications. It’s essential to remember that every customer is an individual with unique needs who is seeking a specific benefit from a product. Show your customers that you recognize their unique needs by personalizing all your outgoing communications with them. CRM and marketing automation are cost and time-effective ways to segment your email lists so that you’re sending the right emails to the right people.

Retaining and converting leads will cost a significant amount of your time and energy, especially early on. However, your efforts will be worth it as you maximize every lead and grow your business. Remember to respond to leads in a timely manner, capture leads after hours, and personalize your communication; these three tips will be invaluable tools in your lead-gathering efforts.

Want more business advice? Schedule some coaching sessions with me so I can help you to achieve your goals.