Sales and the Importance of Following Up
Now more than ever, sales is often based on who can successfully follow up with potential customers. But following up too much, or too quickly, can also be a problem. To help you avoid this dilemma, we've put together this post all about how to follow up after closing a sale in the correct way and when to give up.
As many of you know, sales is all about following up. If you aren't following up with your customers after closing a sale, you're leaving money on the table; additionally, it can cause frustration among your customers.
Customers may be more likely to actually purchase from a vendor that consistently follows up with them. They'll also feel far more comfortable purchasing from a vendor who follows up regularly, even if they don't need what the customer is selling at that time.
That being said, there are many ways to follow up with a customer after closing a sale. Here are a few of the best ways:
Send Out a Thank You Note
The number one way to follow up after closing a sale is to send out a thank you note. It's not time-consuming, yet it leaves the customer with a good feeling about the transaction. If you sent samples or other promotions and follow up with an email, be sure to send out another thank you note once those arrive in your customers' mailboxes. Don't forget that you can use Salesforce to send out notes and track if they were opened or read!
Consistently Call Customers
Many salespeople will call their customers once they close a sale, but assume that's all it takes. While it is important to get in touch with customers and find out if they're satisfied with your product, you don't want to call too much. If you call monthly, that's fine. But if you're calling weekly, or even more than once in a week, you may be annoying your customers.
Keep Track of Your Follow Ups
If you do decide to follow up with your customers after every sale, be sure to keep track of every thank you note that you send out and every phone call that you make. This will help remind yourself not to overdo it and also let your customers know how much thought you put into even the smallest details.
If you're a salesperson, we hope that this information will help you become a better salesperson by following up as much as is necessary, but not too much. Are there any other good ways to follow up after closing a sale? Let us know in the comments below!
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Use Social Media to Your Advantage in 2017
With social media, businesses can get their brand out there in front of customers on a regular basis. But how do you get prospects to like your business pages? Here are 3 things you can do!
In these article, I will show you how you can raise your brand awareness on social media. I will provide three strategies that demonstrate how to get more likes and shares on social media for your business page.
First, let's take a look at the power of Pinterest. As much as people love to pin things on Facebook pages, many don't use Pinterest because they believe it's more of a hobby than a business tool (although Facebook is obviously the most used social network). But there are very few people who know about Pinterest who haven't heard about its connection with marketing. Pinterest is the second biggest social network, with over 80 million daily users .
Pinterest will open up a lot of opportunities for your business. Not only can you brand your content, but you can also drive traffic to your site, increase engagement, and connect with a relevant audience. Here's how:
Learn about your audience
Pinterest allows users to search for pins and boards based on interests . The first thing you're going to want to do is identify the specific interests of your target audience. As we've talked about in previous blog posts , this is crucial in order to create content that targets those interests and their emotions. You will also want to create separate Pinterest profiles for each of the specific audiences that you're trying to reach.
By creating separate profiles, you can also set up your boards that highlight a different product or industry. For example, if you're selling travel-related products, setting up a board for the destinations of your product will help drive traffic to your business and sell more of your product.
Set up a strategy by which you can drive traffic to Pinterest
Some pins don't even have photos. Instead, users will simply use the link for non-texted pins on other social networks like Bloglovin' or Dribbble . This is where it gets really interesting because it forces users to click on the link in order to get more information. By doing so , they are going to be directed back to your business page on Pinterest.
Use your timing correctly
You will want to choose a time when your target audience can search for pins related to your specific interests. This will help you find those pins based on interest and also make them more likely to click on your pinned link, both of which drive traffic to your site. By waiting for the right time, you can increase the likelihood that people will visit your business page and then get direct traffic.
Please be sure to include these three strategies in order to increase the number of likes and shares on Pinterest. You should also keep in mind that Pinterest is only available in certain areas, so make sure you're aware of when it's available where you're located. If you're not sure, make sure you check out our article on Understanding the Role of Pinterest in Social Media Marketing.
Have you ever thought about why someone clicks a link on social media? We took a look at the various reasons people click on your links, which can help you better understand your target audience and how to make more effective social media links.
Some businesses are hesitant to use social media as they believe it will be too time-consuming. But when it comes to marketing, spending time is always worth it. It's important to share useful content with your customers on several platforms.
Conclusion
When you're on social media, people tend to be very talkative. When they don't have anything to say, they'll often respond with just a simple "like" or "dislikes" - and a lot of people will choose those options.
When someone doesn't have anything to say, they might try to keep things going by doing just one of the following:
They could be thinking about leaving a comment or posting their own thoughts.
They could be arguing with someone else (often their own friends).