Follow-Up Tips and Techniques
It is obvious that successful salespeople are those who do sales follow-up better. Doing follow-up is the most crucial part of the selling process. Better the follow-up is done, the seller better understands how exactly his prospects (customers) experienced about the prodcut he sold to them.
But a successful follow-up depends on what types of techniques and methods the seller has applied while following up. All the sellers may not succeed in following up or may not get the expected results from it.
An effective follow-up requires consistent practices to effectively interact with the customers, for it a salesperson may use different techniques, some techniques are mentioned here.
Follow-Up In Time
One of the finest techniques to do follow-up is getting customers’ feedback in time. But what is the right time to make a first follow-up call to the customer?
It is found that within a period of seven days is the right time for following up. Not before the two days and not after the seven days.
Within just one-to-two days of buying the product, the customers might do not have time to check out, but between 3-7 days they surely have used the product. And, it is the time a seller should make an effort to get to know whether his product met customers’ expectations or not.
Making Calls
Making calls is another best way to make follow-up successful. In fact, more than 60% of follow-ups are done through phone calls.
Making calls saying how are you and how are you are doing and ultimately talking about the experience of the product after a small talk is an effective way to interact with the customer. Since in phone calls, there is two-way interaction the seller can immediately get the answer to his question and might come in a state to make a better decision for the next sales.
Messaging and Emailing
Messaging and emailing best work when you know that your prospect can not give immediate feedback or have no time at present. Sending messages and emails with sincere and understandable language with low-pressure words makes customers feel obliged to make a reply to it.
Ask Question and Listen
It is clear that when you make a call you will ask a question to the customer and after asking it is important to sincerely listen to the words of the customer. The words of the customer are for what you step in the follow-up call.
While listening to customers’ words they might have some unsolved queries and it can be solved when listening and responding effectively. Because customers want to feel that you care about them, you make efforts to solve their problems.
Act On Commitment
Customers blindly believe in you when you do what you are committed to doing. Suppose, you had decided to provide after-sales service to the customer when signing out and closing a sale. And, now the sale has successfully closed. It is time to act on your commitment.
Acting on commitment shows that you are sincere about words, you work on your words, it makes feel customer that they can believe in you.
Make An Appointment
Further, to know the satisfaction of the customer the seller can also opt for a meeting with the customer. In such a meeting the seller is likely to get real-time feedback and possible he can also solve it if any complaints & grievances arise at the same time, and the customer can also get immediate relief on his query.
To make an appointment the seller may ask for a small meeting whether it is in a coffee shop, office, or any place the customer feels comfortable.
Avoid Fear
A successful seller is not afraid of doing follow-ups. Just opposite of it, most of the salespeople or raw salespeople are afraid that they may disturb the customer or even lose potential clients if they feel annoying.
In fact, losing potential clients is when you do not do a follow-up. When it is done and the customer’s all the queries are solved as they become satisfied they themselves are the means to bring new (potential clients).
Talk of Next Steps
In the first follow-up call, you will ask about the close of the recent sale. After finishing it, it is also necessary to talk about the next steps you are going to do either for the customer or on the prodcut.
You should tell the customer how your new product or offer will meet his needs, how he will be benefited, etc. Make them informed about the upcoming events that the customers would love to participate in.
Talk With Respect
Customers are not the subject to withdraw your anger on them. They are the main part of your sales journey to make you a successful salesperson. As it is obvious everyone wants to be respected, you must talk to the customers with honesty and respect. They should be felt they are respected.
Provide Value
Remember that following up is not about you or even your product it is about the customer. The customers should feel you have value for them.
Simply remembering previous conversation points the customer had expressed and bringing them to present conversation, the customer feels you have a sincere concern about him. He may also feel you just do not have a profit motive, you are committed to solving the problem.
Refer Them To A New Place
This new place is not the store of the competitors. It is a place that you have in your company to explore more about your prodcut. A new website may be.
Get updated about our products features, benefits, etc. writing like that and giving a link to the website is also one of the great techniques for effective follow-up. In addition, you can also inform the customer about the upcoming seminars.
Sends Personalized Emails
You can also send personalized emails to the customers. Such personalized emails are the best work for the individual customer. Since you have made different types of customers, you also know the needs, desire, capacity to pay, spending habits, etc. of the customers.
In that course, sending personalized email to a specific customer considering the products in his best interests, in such case, the customers are more likely to make a purchase because you have presented actually what they have desired.
Wish Them in Special Day
My bank every year wishes me on my birthday. It makes me feel that I am remembered, I am valued. From here, I believed that wishing customers on their special days is also one of the best ways to do a follow-up. The special day may be the birthday of the customer, his anniversary, special festival, son’s-daughter’s birthday, job promotion day, etc.
Stay Reachable
In today’s day, you are not the only one doing the follow-up, customers are also actively doing their follow-ups. Meaning that they are also by themselves trying to share experiences about the product they had brought to use.
It reduces the efforts of the seller but he has to be reachable by the customers. If the calls are made he should pick up the phone and if they want a meeting he should also step in it, and so forth.
Be Consistent
Don’t be upset when you did not get a response after the first follow-up call, message, or email. Wait for 2-3 days, still did not get a response, don’t give up. Again send the second email.
Make sure that you have positively with a good attitude stayed on your track even after not getting a response. Have patience for a while, sometimes it will take time to get responses. Becoming a success in doing follow-up takes time, patience, and consistency.
But waiting long does not work always, might some customers are not just a part of the follow-up.
Never Stop Follow Up
Follow-up is a continual activity its existence remains until you go off from the sales activity. The best way to become a failure at follow-up is not doing follow-ups.
Not doing follow-up is like losing future sales and future customers thus follow-up should not be stopped as it is only the best means to understand the performance of the product sold and through the feedback of different customers the products are further improved to meet the new needs of the customers.
This is the last of the techniques to do a follow-up we have discussed so far and at last, I just want to say that the best way to do a follow-up is just to start doing the follow-up and never stop it doing.