Enterprise Lead Generation, Lead Nurturing, Lead Management, Marketing Automation

Home > Resources > Articles

Preventing And Reviving The Silent Prospect
By Tim Adams

Featured in RainToday.com Here

We've all been there before. You've succeeded in pitching your solution to an ideal prospect. They seemed genuinely interested and even requested a proposal. Now, they won't answer your calls, return your voicemails, or reply to your emails. They have gone silent.

If you have been frustrated by such an experience, I guarantee that you are not alone.

The Mindset Of The Silent Prospect

First, we should try to understand the mind of an unresponsive prospect. As frustrated as they make you, you have probably been responsible for causing another service provider the same headache.

You got your quote, learned about the service, and, for whatever reason, you just ignored the follow-up calls. It could be that you zoned in on another solution more appealing in either features or price. Or maybe you just can't bear to break the bad news to the provider who seemed so genuine on that last 30-minute conference call. It could also be that you are not yet ready to buy, and, being as busy as you are, you figure the provider will just figure it out and move on.

When it comes to complex sales, there are many potential reasons for unreturned phone calls. Don't forget you are dealing with decisions requiring multiple buy-in from various people. Some could be on vacation, some will have their preferred providers, and others may not share the same level of “pain” as their colleagues.

Your contact may be trying his or her hardest to get buy-in for your service, and doesn't feel the need to update all six providers with up-to-the-minute status reports. This is where you, as the selling professional, can begin to reduce the frustrations caused by silent prospects.

Reducing Occurrences Of Silent Prospects

1) Understand The Buying Process - Not Just The Pain

We can spend so much time selling our solution and listening to the prospect's pain, that we sometimes ignore the larger, equally important buying process, including:

~ Who is involved in this decision?

~ Does everyone share this pain equally?

~ Is there an incumbent provider?

~ How many providers are they talking to?

~ Are their solutions similar?

~ What is the target date for implementation?

All of these questions can help you better understand the motives and process driving the project. It will also help you earn credibility, which takes us to Step 2.

2) Build Rapport - It Fosters Credibility

There are many schools of thought on building rapport over telephone meetings. What I encourage you to do is be prepared to listen. Don't get overzealous about your solution. Let the prospect vent a bit, if needed, about their current situation.

Be ready, at the right time, to talk about how you have cured similar problems with some of your clients. Be brief and to the point. I can tell from experience when I have a good call. They are the calls where the prospect does 70% or more of the talking. If this is hard for you to do, try taking a service-orientated mindset vs. a “salesperson's”.

When you invest your time and energy into someone, it creates a bond. The stronger this bond, the less likely they are to completely blow you off.

3) Close The Call With Next Steps

If you decide to implement only one of these tactics, this one will have the most impact in reducing the amount of silent prospects. Do not end the call with, “I will follow up sometime next week”. Do not let the prospect end the call with, “I'll get back to you”.

If you have done your job well to this point, and there is a genuine fit between the prospect's needs and your solution, it is imperative that you close the call with scheduled next steps. Ask the prospect what their next action is internally. Then, get on their calendar as a follow up. I repeat, do not hang up the phone until a meeting has been scheduled in your prospect's calendar.

If they are hesitant to accept, try saying something like, “I know you keep a busy schedule. I don't want to waste your time having us play phone tag”. For the meeting, ask the client to call you. People are more likely to execute a call they are tasked with making.

What To Do With Your Current Silent Prospects

Now that you are set with your strategy on reducing future silent prospects, let's look at a couple of things you can do to revive existing cases.

Give Them Space

That's right. Just back off. Most likely, your point of contact is busy with multiple projects. You can seem overly anxious and flat-out annoying when you push too hard. If they haven't responded to two or three contact attempts, give them a few weeks before trying again. When the client is ready, and if they are interested in your solution, they will call you.

Fax A Note

If you still don't hear from your prospect, and a landmark date has passed, type up a letter to fax them. People always read personally addressed faxes (I am not talking about the obvious spam offerings for 15-day cruises at $99).

In your fax, state that you understand the prospect is very busy. Let them know you are genuinely interested in whether or not the prospect has found a solution to their problems, and if they have chosen another provider, you would simply like to update your records. Sign the fax personally, and remember to include your direct line and email address.
If you implement the aforementioned strategies, hopefully you will rarely need to fax your prospects. These steps have worked well for my lead generation programs. So I advise with confidence, follow them to keep your prospects talking.