Are you looking for a simple prospect follow-up system for your own business?
If so, you are in the right place.
My name is Chuck Holmes.
I am a Certified Business Coach and I specialize in MARKETING.
I know I can help you develop a prospect follow-up system for your business.
If nothing else, I can at least provide some simple ideas to help you get a system in place, or refine your current system.
Whether you own a home business, a network marketing business, or a traditional business you must quickly realize that the money is in the follow up.
Most prospects need at least five to twenty follow-ups before they will make a purchase from you.
And most businesses SUCK at following up.
Most businesses and most salespeople don’t follow up more than once or twice.
That is a fact.
As a result, they leave a lot of money on the table.
They miss out on a lot of sales.
Talking to your prospect once or twice and then forgetting about them is a recipe for failure.
To keep things simple, and be more effective, you need a simple prospect follow-up system.
You need something that is simple, affordable, practical and EFFECTIVE.
This system might vary slightly from industry-to-industry, or business-to-business.
I’m a bit old school, so I tend to keep my system simple and low budget.
That being said, there are many CRM programs out there that make this a lot easier for you. Some examples include ACT® and Infusion Soft®.
These systems can automate things for you and streamline your follow-up process.
These automated systems are good for some people.
There are also other simpler, more affordable options.
And, there are options to outsource everything to a third-party vendor.
This article is designed to simply share what I do to follow-up with people.
Take the parts of my prospect follow-up system that you like, and make any adjustments as needed.
EXAMPLE PROSPECT FOLLOW UP SYSTEM
This is the system (or process) I use for most of my prospects. It does vary slightly once in a while, but not much.
Step # 1: Generate a Lead
This is whatever you do to generate a lead. It could be doing live events, buying leads, prospecting someone, or through advertising. This is an art-form within itself.
Step # 2: Initial Contact
This is the first time you meet with your prospect to figure out what their needs are. Some people call it a needs analysis. It could be done in person (ideal), by phone or by SKYPE. The purpose of this contact is to get to know them and to pre-qualify them to see if they are an ideal customer, or good fit for what you do. If they are, your job is to SET AN APPOINTMENT for a presentation. This step is normally done within 1 to 7 days of generating the lead.
Step # 3: Handwritten Note
Once you have done your initial contact, you should send a handwritten note in the mail within 24 hours. That is the ideal situation. It gives the personal touch and shows that you are willing to do what most people won’t do. Don’t be lazy and send a thank you email UNLESS you have no way to get the person’s mailing address.
Step # 4: Business/Product Presentation
This step is normally done within 1 to 14 days after you did your initial contact. At this point, you know the person’s needs and you can do a complete presentation. Ask for the sale at the end of the presentation, but realize most people will not buy right away. Ideally, you want to meet in person for your presentation, but you can also use a webinar, conference call, or SKYPE.
Step # 5: Follow Up
After the presentation, if they did not buy yet, you need to follow up with them within 48 hours. At this point, your job is to move them to the next exposure. You might mail them a postcard, email them a catalog, set up a time for a three-way call, answer any additional questions, share a testimonial, etc. Remember, the only purpose of a follow-up is to collect a decision and/or move them to the next exposure.
Step # 6: Follow Up Newsletter
If they haven’t bought after your previous follow-up, send them a copy of your newsletter. This can be done via email or mail. Your newsletter should be educational in nature and provide value. It should talk about your products or services, but it should also include something fun and interesting (non-business related). This should be done within 5-10 days after the previous follow-up.
Step # 7: Follow Up Postcard
Within about 10-days after the previous contact, send them a postcard in the mail. It can offer a coupon or special offer to entice them to buy from you. It should have a short-time limited offer that encourages them to act quickly.
Step # 8: Follow Up Call
Within about 7-14 days after mailing the postcard you should follow up with your prospect by phone. Give them a call and ask them to buy. Ask them if they got your newsletter and postcard. See what questions they have and try to close the sale if possible.
Step # 9: Add Them to Your Drip System
The last step in the process, as I see it, is to add them to your drip system. Ideally, this is your auto-responder. This can send them an email message every 7-10 days, or at a minimum, once a month. The emails should PROVIDE VALUE, and not just be a sales pitch. I believe you should keep them in your drip system until they unsubscribe, buy or die, but that is just my preference.
Step # 10: Keep Generating Leads
This is quite perhaps the most important step in this example prospect follow up system. Once everything in set up for your prospect follow up system, it’s very important to keep generating leads and never stop. Remember, it’s a number’s game.
Key Takeaway
I personally believe it makes sense to use multiple follow-up methods.
I like to use a combination of phone, email and direct mail.
Whenever you can add the personal touch, the better.
Many emails don’t get delivered, open or read.
I have found that meeting in person is the best, followed by phone, followed by direct mail, followed by email.
Example Follow-Up Sequence
- Day 1: Meet new prospect and sent handwritten note
- Day 3: Call to set up an appointment (needs analysis)
- Day 7: Complete presentation and send handwritten note
- Day 10: Follow-up phone call
- Day 14: Follow-up email
- Day 17: Send newsletter by mail
- Day 24: Send postcard with coupon on limited time offer
- Day 27: Call prospect
- Day 30: Add to drip campaign
Other Posts You Might Enjoy
- Mastering the Follow Up Process
- How to Follow Up with Your Prospects
- How to Close Prospects
- Top 48 Selling Tips
- How to Achieve MLM Success
Final Thoughts
There you have it folks. This is my example prospect follow-up system I use for my network marketing business.
You could use this exact same process, or a similar process, for your own business.
If you are a business owner yourself, I would LOVE to hear what type of prospect follow up system you use in your own business.
Just leave a comment below to share your thoughts.
Chuck Holmes
20+ Year Network Marketing Professional
Top Earner & Top Recruiter
Email: mrchuckholmes@gmail.com
P.S. Learn how to grow a successful network marketing business. Secret tips, training, and practical ideas. Free training delivered by email.
Chuck, thank you for this excellent post. I am a busy person and I often neglect following up with potential customers and prospects. I like what you said about using a freelance assistant to possibly handle some of these tasks.
The money is being left in the wind if we do not follow up. I know that as a consumer, I often wait and research other alternatives, but when a salesperson follows up it does help me jump back on board their product.
I do also believe that automated processes may seem expensive, but they can also be a great tool to help us stay on the follow-up program.
Most people I recruit and most of my customers take anywhere from 10 to 100 follow ups before they ever buy from me.
If I didn’t follow up I would miss out on most of those sales.
Good thing my autoresponder does it for me naturally.