You spent time and resources to create a lead generation campaign and it worked great! You’re collecting a lot of leads. But, are you wasting them? In this post, we’ve put together a list of 5 common ways businesses waste their marketing leads.
If you’re doing any of these things, you might be wasting your leads.
1. Taking too long to respond.
Leads can go cold very quickly. Software company InsideSales.com says following up on web leads within 5 minutes makes them 9 times more likely to convert. A prospect’s level of interest begins to drop off after just one hour. When compared to companies that wait 24 hours or longer, those who acted quickly are 60 times more likely to qualify the lead. Sales software company CrankWheel notes that, particularly for leads received via the internet, it’s likely your customer has already done some research and they’re ready for you to provide them with a solution.
2. Not addressing the customer’s question.
Using a template email to respond to a lead is a good way to lose the lead if your prepared response doesn’t address the customer’s needs. Driven Data Consulting, which specializes in providing marketing resources for auto dealerships, reports that ignoring the customer’s questions is an issue in 20% of the lead responses they score. In addition to the lack of personalization in the response, this type of canned email overlooks vital information about the lead. When they ask a question, it is a clear indication of their buying criteria and what they care about. Using templates can save you time (which you probably don’t have a lot of), but be sure to adjust your messaging to address their unique needs.
3. Failing to call leads quickly.
As noted above, following up on leads quickly increases the chances of qualifying them by orders of magnitude as compared to those leads that weren’t followed up with within the first 24 hours. In addition, a call versus an email can make all the difference. People receive dozens or even hundreds of emails every day. They’re easy to overlook and they don’t feel as personal as a phone call. Try calling instead of emailing your leads and see if you notice a difference.
4. Not including a strong CTA in your response.
Emails should always include a clear call to action, but phone calls should include one, as well. People are busy and distracted, so every email or call to a prospect should end with a next step, whether it’s setting an appointment, arranging for a demo, or making a plan to get buy-in from other stakeholders.
5. Failing to follow up with old leads.
Re-engaging with old leads who did not respond to initial contact can be an effective way to avoid wasting your leads and a good way to refill your sales pipeline. According to a Hubspot article, it is rare that a lead responds to initial contact and it can take 3-7 attempts to connect with them, so keep at it!
Don’t Waste Your Leads!
It’s important to develop a lead strategy to ensure that no leads are wasted. First, identify the problem. Analyze how your sales team is responding to leads and how leads are being wasted. Next, decide on the focus for your plan, including how you will segment leads and assign tasks. Assign employees to these tasks and have a strategy for tracking lead response. Of course, no plan will be successful if it isn’t followed, so it’s important to assign someone to oversee and be accountable for the plan.
Acquiring leads is important, but it’s what you do with them that actually counts and leads to more business. Don’t leave potential sales on the table by failing to follow up on leads in a timely and effective way.
