How to Close More Sales with Follow-Ups

Hello and welcome. My name is Tavishima Ayede. I'm the host of the podcast and I'm making today's recording at home. So there will be some noise in the background. Apart from that, I have a cold so there might be some sniffling. Now if you'd love to connect, you can call, send a text message or a WhatsApp message on 08064662140. Now today on the podcast, we're going to be looking at minutes of an old meeting that I had with my Three Musketeers.

You've been listening to the podcast for the last month and of course you're already familiar with, you know, my guys Rudolph, El, Elise and Cheryl. They are a sales team for a client of mine who deals in solar. And I look over sometimes I go over some of the old meetings that I had with them because there's valuable stuff that we discussed over there that it would only make sense for me to come and share over here on the podcast because there are people who are making some of these mistakes, you know, live and direct as we run our businesses.

So there's one of the old meetings where we did where we spoke about value added follow through. Well, although in Niger we say follow up. So let me just use the word follow up, but for some of our sales professionals who prefer to say follow through and I'll explain why in a minute. So excuse me. So in this part of the world now in Niger, we have one very careless or blind way of doing follow up in quote. You know where you say, I just say I agree to you.

How is the family? Long time happy new month. What again? You know what, I can pointless follow up now. In a way it's better than nothing, but still it can be annoying when you're on the receiving end as a customer and there's some of us that have been through it. You know, you're trying to buy something and so you're in touch with somebody as a vendor and then the person you know just keeps blowing up your phone. Happy new month.

Happy new week. Happy new Sunday, happy Wednesday, happy Tuesday. So the spirit behind it is good because if you spoke to somebody January 1st and the next time you're scheduled to talk to the person is January 30th. It doesn't make sense to leave that gap in between January 1st and January 30th empty. Because if you do, you will be starting afresh most of the times when you reach out to that potential customer. Again, sorry about that.

So we now have to look for ways of keeping in touch in between January 1st and January 30th. But we have to do it in a way that adds value to that other person or else you're on the risk of becoming an irritant. So that's one of the things that we looked at in one of our meetings. Now luckily the company, it's all a company that employs them has a website and they also have a content marketing strategy. So because of that, they have blog posts on all kinds of things that are up on the website.

Now the sales team, what they like to do is in between they send somebody a company brochure or a company profile and you know that's OK. But one thing you have to understand is in the minds of our customers, company brochure, company profile and air flyer, all of them are the same. So chances are very few people are sending out company brochure. Sorry, very few customers are reading your company brochure and company profile and anything is this like for this company,

they have two of those assets. There's the company brochure and then there's the company, the brochure and the what again, and the profile, the brochure and the profile. Those are only two. So if you send somebody the brochure after two weeks, you send a profile after two weeks, let's say they wait in six weeks, the remaining two or three weeks, why are you going to send again the out of ideas. So that is why if you have a company website and you if the company you work for has a website and they have been updating this thing every single week, you have a huge plethora of resources that you can reach into and be sending.

So like for the company on the company website, they have all kinds of posts there. You know, factors to look at before you decide on the solar system, how to take care of a solar system, things to consider before installing solar, what else, how to efficiently use the power in your batteries. Like, you know, all kinds of articles. So those sorts of things are value added way ways of staying in touch with someone to say,

you know, hello, Sir. Looking forward to our meeting on January 30th. But in the meantime, I came across this article on our website because we discussed this and this the last time we spoke on January 1st. I'm sending it to you because I think it will be a valuable resource, especially if you look at this section of the article where I talk about this, this, this, this, this, which is what you and I discussed the last time.

Enjoy the rest of your day, Sir. Looking forward to our meeting on January 30th. Send. So you see that kind of follow up in quote or follow through as I prefer to say. You said that now that thing is now more value add. You're not being an irritant. It is not happy Monday, happy Sunday, happy new month. And then you send Bible passage and then what? Again, you know, this one is different. Even if the person doesn't read it like you're still top of mind.

Message will come. You see the name, you see, the article is kind of relevant because it's something that the guy brought up himself during the last conversation. So you can see that is a nice way you stay top of mind. So forgive me. And that is how we that is how we now bridge the gap whenever there's that spread. Like you guys spoke January 1st and you know, the guy says, you know what, Gimme Telana kind January 30th.

Let's talk again. That's how you bridge the gap between January 1st and January 30th without being an irritant. So that's one of the things we discussed. OK, so unfortunately for the sales team, the way the website was set up was you can only access the last 6 blog posts. So I'm speaking to their auger. You see how we can loosen that up so that they can have access to the hundreds and hundreds of blog posts that are there Because man, it's a treasure trove.

If your company has a website with a blog and you guys have been blogging one post every week, unless the company is like 5 years old, that is plenty premium resource that you can be sending as a way to do value added follow up or follow through. And then plus it sets you apart as like the thing just makes you you understand that you appear more professional. Like commodities are correct outfit. This is correct business.

So that's the whole idea. So yeah, that's it then. OK, Yeah, then in that particular meeting we also looked at some pending cases. In fact, it ties into what we're talking about today. The proposal was sent out July 21st. You know, one month storm pass. The guy is not answering the guy. No, the ghost and unfortunately no value added follow through was done in between. So we looked at the CRM and we had a conversation with the team member in question.

See, this is the reason why having ACRM is important. So excuse me, the CRM is a customer relationship management tool. So basically it's just any tool that you have in your business where you have a record of who have I been talking to? What conversation did we have? When last did we talk? What did we discuss the last time that we spoke? Based on our last discussion, what are we supposed to do next? What stage of the relationship are we in?

How are we going to move this thing forward towards a close? So it's important that you have some kind of CRM whenever you're running your business. So the company question they use Begin. For me, I use Zoho. I've spoken a lot about Odo because ODO is African and ODO is is free. So there are lots of tools, but then I've also spoken a lot about how like, even if you say you don't want to download audio, you don't want to use,

oh, you don't want to use Begin, you don't want to use HubSpot, you don't want to pay for nothing. Even Google Calendar on your phone, you can use because you can have a file, an entry on your calendar. Let's say the customer's name is Madam or getting B. You can have a file on the calendar, the title is Madam or getting B. And then on that in the notes section, you have some small details, you know, Madam or getting be referred to me by Madam Susanna discuss this also.

So so discuss that. And so so so you know, blah, blah, blah, just put everything down there in the note. And so every single time you talk to Madam or getting be sorry. So every single time you talk to Madam or getting be what you now do is let's say you have the conversation July 21st and you think it's a good idea for people to talk again August 1st. As soon as you finish this conversation today, July 21st, you just go to Google Calendar.

You enter the note spoke to Madam Ogdenbe called her 10 AM. We discussed this. We agreed on this. Next line of action is this, you know, change the date from today, July 21st, you know, change it to August 1st. You now put a set reminder 24 hours so that the day before your phone whooping in. When you look, you'll see that oh, I'm supposed to call Madam or getting B tomorrow. So you can see that this thing is kind of functioning as a CRM

tool. The only problem is just that when you want to, if you want to find customer information, it will be hard because you have to remember how did you store Madam or getting BS info or Google Calendar and stuff like that. You know, so it's not perfect, in fact, no system is perfect. But The thing is, it's better than nothing. It is nice to have a place that you can refer to once in a while that will remind you, OK, my conversation with Chief so, so,

so, and so or with Madam, so, so, so and so. Excuse me, where is that conversation? Where are we? Where are we heading? Am I supposed to have done something? Are they supposed to do something for me to move this deal forward? So This is why it's good to have a CRM because in this case, there was a place where me as a sales trainer, I can enter inside and say, well, let me see, when last did you holler this person? What did you guys discuss?

So you can see that with the CRM during team training sessions, all of us as a team, we can sit down and analyze and say, oh, I had this case that our brother pursued like this. If you say that you, how you, how you pursue it, is there something that could be done better? So these are some of the benefits. So, so we looked in this area now and then we discussed and then we realized that the customer has said a couple of things in the past that we could hold on to.

There are many other things, but these are just the ones I decided to just grab. I said, OK, we can hold this one. So one, the customer at some point say casual that you know what, maybe on that kind of first week of August, I'm trying to gather myself. That's what the customer said. But of course, you know, the salesperson didn't ask. What does that mean? Well, you know, you should try and find ways of gather because like for me, the way I handed,

if somebody says I'm trying to gather myself, listen, on our first week of August, I'll just say casual and I'm like, correct container, don't hand that be, you know, person will laugh it up. Say hi container. How it means that money is coming in now saying I'm working on one or two things. Of course, I can't push through more crush more than that in that kind of circumstance, but because of the way that I just playfully followed up on that something, I now have a sense that OK be like say some correct money is landing around that time.

I'll make a mental note. I also make a note on my calendar in my CRM on my phone. So that's one thing that the guy said that we can hold on to. Then another time the guy was mentioned casual that OK, and I don't worry, people are already on my To Do List. But of course, you know, the sales member didn't ask. What does that mean? Because me, I'll ask To Do List. That's good. So it means that you're ready to take action soon, Abby, because if somebody says you're my To Do List, what I'm trying to figure out is OK To Do List, that means you're ready to go.

Like excuse me, you're ready to go. Like especially since guy said he's expecting something first week of August. So, OK, so that means like that first week of August, that means you'll be ready to make deposit now, Abby. But of course, remember, casual, conversational, friendly rapport, keep it like you're not an interrogator. So that's the second thing. Now another thing, the guy said he was looking forward to concrete discussions.

Of course, the sales, sales guiding, ask what that means, but something you can ask concrete discussions. OK, me too. I'm looking forward to concrete discussion. But this one, I say concrete discussion. Is it that you want us to start earning out the proposal around that date or you want to sign the contract by that date, by XYZ date? You know, but remember, conversational, you know, casual, keep it loose. If you're too strong and too formal, you sound like, excuse me, you sound like, you know,

money, money, money. That's all you want. You just care about the money. So even though we didn't know exactly what those meant, at least we had three things. Number one, I'm trying to gather myself around that kind. First week in August. That's one statement #2 you guys are on my To Do List #3 I'm looking forward to concrete discussions. So with that, I said, OK, you know what? Since this guy don't go stars for one month, this is what we'll do.

We'll craft a message and see how we can get this thing going again. So we craft a message, we put a call to action or put a question like that message because questions beg a response. The mistake that this salesperson made now was he called around that first week in August, but he didn't send a message. And please, I'm telling, I'm begging you guys, whether you're a salesperson or you own your own business, there's no such thing as you call somebody and then you just leave it like that.

If you call somebody and the person does not respond, send a message. It should be a default. It should be reflex action. You know how you breathe? That is how it should be reflex. Remember the days when you are toasting your wife or you are toasting your husband. It was reflex. You finish the conversation and then you smile and then you send him a loving message or send her a loving message. It was fun hanging out, blah,

blah, blah. This da da da da send. It is the same thing as in love and relationships, so also in business. You finish your conversation with the prospect, send a message. It was nice talking to you. It was nice chatting. I remember that we have so, so, so and so pending. I'll get back to you. So so too on XYZ did send you call the person doesn't answer. You send a message. Tell them Mr. Cooley, try calling earlier. Number was busy.

The reason why I was calling was because blah blah, blah, blah, blah. Let me know when you're available to talk. Send This thing should be reflexed. Every phone call send message. Every time you call people did not answer, send message. Every time you finish a meeting, send message. Was a pleasure having a meeting with you today getting to know the rest of the team. I'm looking forward to executing on this this this that that that as we discussed, I will get back to you on XYZ date as we agreed during the meeting.

Enjoy the rest of your day. Send this issue be default. Always send a message, send a message, send message. Because in this kind of situation now where you don't send a message, yes, you reached out August 1st. But The thing is, you know, people forget, people are busy and just seeing 2 missed calls on your phone doesn't really say anything. What do you see? Two missed calls and then you see a message that said, oh, I

tried calling you earlier because the last time we spoke, last time we spoke, you said was possible for us to move ahead because of this, that and that, you know, I'll put it, OK, that was not elegant. But basically, you send a message given the reason for why you call, and then, you know, a question or a call to action, that kind of thing prompts something, somebody. Now remember that. Oh, OK. I was talking to Gazi. I spoke to her three weeks ago.

Actually, I'm supposed to do this for her. So please let it be your default send message after every single interaction. Send message. All right, so this is the message now that we crafted. Good afternoon Sir. I apologize for losing track of our last conversation and for not being in touch since July 21st. Now the reason why I start off the message like this is because we should always assume some of you say it's the customer's fault.

They don't want an OP call and no problem. But we'll never blame the customer. We'll always take responsibility for everything. Yes, it's their fault. Now they have no, no DP call, but no problem. We'll always say it is us. So good afternoon Sir. I apologize for losing track of our last conversation and not being in touch since July 21st. That's one paragraph. Next paragraph. The last time we spoke, I got the impression you were ready for us to have concrete discussions as you are gathering funds for the first week of August.

Now, in this case, I use the exact words gathering funds wherever possible and is the reason why we need a CRM. You notice that your people are saying some things, they use some kind of expressions, write those things down when you're referring to them, use their own words when they read it, it will sound like them, like, oh, it's true, I said it. Be noting all these things when you're referring to the previous context.

When you're having conversations with people, be using their exact words where possible. So that is why I say gathering funds and that's the reason why I say concrete discussion because that's what the guy said. It's not me that I said it. That is what him he said. So the last time we spoke, I got the impression you are ready for us to have concrete discussions as you are gathering funds for the first week of August. Then remember every single message we gas to end with either the call to action that is do this thing next or a question so that the person has to respond to you.

Because one of the reasons why your customers are ghosting, excuse me, is because you're sending messages that are just statements and the statement says nothing if you just say, oh, good morning, Sir. I tried calling earlier. Send, OK. Like what am I supposed to do with that? What is the customer supposed to do with that kind of message? I tried calling earlier and so, but if it is, I tried calling earlier. Your number was busy.

You asked me to call you back so that we can arrange a site visit for next week Friday. When will you be available to talk, Sir? Is it has a different thing? The person will see the text message like oh, it is true, we're supposed to arrange site visit. So stop sending statements as text message. Even if you must put statement and end it with a call to action. This is what the person should do next or ask a question. If you're not asking questions,

if you're not using call to actions, don't be angry that people are ghosting you. That goes to you because the next step is not clear. They don't know what they're supposed to do. Sorry about the noise outside. It's raining here. That's why Qatar wants to kill me. If I have to be on the radio today, I don't know how I'm going to cope. I should just take active and I'll sleep hopefully by evening time my head going on clear.

So, so now final paragraph. So is that still the case or are you interested or have circumstances came, Sorry, circumstances changed on your end. So that was the the question. So let me repeat the message. Let me just say it in full now. So this is what we, I gave the salesperson to send. Well, of course you take this message and then you personalize it in your own words. You say the way you will say it because if you try and send a message the way some other person will say it, you know it will sound flat, it will sound like you, it will sound inauthentic.

So this is the message. Good afternoon Sir. I apologize for losing track of our last conversation and not being in touch since July the 21st. The last time we spoke I got the impression you are ready for us to have concrete discussions as you are gathering funds for the first week of August. Is that still the case? Are you still interested or have circumstances changed on your end? And then we send that as one message.

So again, we took responsibility for why the conversation stalled. Yes, that damn, no, they pick all. But you are the professional here. Take responsibility, put it there, refer to the previous context and then, you know, give call to action or you ask a question to move this conversation forward. So that's how we wrapped up for that particular customer. Then we now, excuse me, then we now did a role-playing exercise and then we ended the meeting and the role play exercise turned out to be really interesting because I'm not well doing the role play.

I pretend that I'm the salesperson because I've noticed that when I pretend to be the salesperson, they like to fire me all the all the difficulties that customers have been giving them in the field. But this is also a useful way to grow your revenue and increase your sales because as a team, all of us are sitting down and we're having a very crucial exercise and exercises this if to say, not me, how would I have handled this thing?

It is very good to sit down as a team and brainstorm around these sorts of things because the problem with lots of people is they wait until something happens to them in the field and then they just react. That's the wrong time, but if in the office all of us were just chilling and all of us were just discussing that, ah, today, last week, I called somebody. This is what the woman said. This is what me I said. What do you think?

How you have actually, how should I have done it? Other members of the team are now learning from other people's experience. Then when customers say E, you say B or when customer does this, you do this. When somebody pipe high, you pipe low or when somebody do like this, you do like this. It's from role-playing that we tease out all of these things so that as a team everybody is better prepared and we're learning from everybody's experience.

That way we handle conversations much better. Because I can remember as a young wedding photographer when one person pissed me off on my rake on the phone, severe raking. So my business partner at the time, that's my brother-in-law now. He had to calm me down like a guy, you know, that was unprofessional. But the thing, I was all up in my fields. I was like, what the hell? How can he be talking to me like this, blah, blah, blah, blah,

blah. I'm an educated fellow. Master's degree on top of what, how much, how much they won't pay, you know, my business partner had to calm me down. Like, you know, guy, calm down, calm down, calm down. We got to be professional here. I understand, but we have to be professional. This is because I had not been exposed to those kinds of scenarios before. I had not done any kind of role play before. So honestly, I had no background, no other context on what to do when customer begin to provoke.

So I was just going based on emotions, just based on my feelings. While you sit down, are you role play, You are your, your sales team, you are your business partner, maybe even you are your spouse, not that kind of role play, not the other, you understand as in business role play. So yeah, your spouse, you do business role play, you're prepared for other kinds of circumstances. So in this case, the person that was the customer pretended to be rude, flippant.

I was not given information. So we now started discussing how patience comes into the sales process and what to do when we're dealing with customers that are rude. I don't want to say anything and what else and it was an interesting role play shot, but it's something you guys should consider doing in your businesses. If it's just you as the solopreneur, like I said, you can role play with your wife, with your brother or your sister, even your parents.

I remember what role play I did with Momsie. At the time I thought Momsie was being silly, but the thing that happened to me live and in the field, mom, she said what you do if somebody says this, I said, OK, let's play it out. She's OK, Good. And she said, young man, give me the price. I was trying to finesse her, you know, to get some more information. And she said, look, young man, I'm busy, just give me the price.

And I ended the role play. I said, look, mommy, I would never deal with a customer who talks to me like that. My mom, she laughed, She clapped her and she laughed. She knew what she was doing because my mom, see had been, she's retired now, of course, but she had been a marketing exec and of course she knows that, you know, customers can talk like that. And true, true. It happened to me. I was talking to somebody and the person said, look, young man, I'm busy, just give me the price.

And my mind, I'm like, oh, that's where mom, she was coming from. It has happened to her. She was probably talking with somebody and the person said, look, young lady, I am busy, just give me the price. So from role play, talk to people, oh, mommy, how you handle this kind of thing, Daddy, how you handle this kind of thing. Oh my dear, come, I'll be getting some questions in the business and I'm wondering, you know, how do you think I go about this from role-playing exercise scenarios in a low risk environment.

Because when you're role-playing, you know, is role play. Now play, play is low stakes. You people can't stop, you can't laugh, you can rewind. You will now be thinking of things ahead of time so that when you're in the field, when you're talking to somebody on the phone and something happens, you're practicing will just kick over. OK, All right, so it's been 30 minutes. Let me just bring it to close here and let me see how cure this my cutter because to go on live radio and be doing function, it's very unprofessional.

OK, so that's pretty much remember if you'd love to connect, you can call, send me a text message or a WhatsApp message on 08064662140. Thank you for your time and attention. I'll catch you next time. Same place in your headphones or in your speakers.