Top 10 tips for a strong sales follow up

It’s ironic, isn’t it? … effective sales follow-up is on the one hand the biggest lever to a successful marketing game yet on the other hand the most misunderstood and avoided part of the process. Well, we have good news, if you get the basics right you can make massive gains in both your results and enjoyment pretty much overnight.

So here’s our top 10 tips for strong sale follow-ups.

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1. PRIORITISE SALES

Firstly and most importantly, you have to see sales as a priority. Don’t make the classic mistake of believing your gym will ‘sell itself’. Don’t continue reading this article until you fully believe that pro-active selling is an absolutely necessary part of growing your business. Running great classes, having the best equipment, creating an amazing environment and culture, are all vital, but equally pointless without members. If you are getting 100 leads a month, each lead needs on average 7 touchpoints (more on this below) and each touchpoint takes on average 3-6 minutes. That’s roughly 60 hours a month. Meaning you need to dedicate at least 2 uninterrupted hours a day of good quality follow up activity, talking to potential members, answering questions and pro-actively driving the strongest show up rates and conversions.

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2. CALL NEW LEADS WITHIN 5 MINUTES

Not always possible, we know, but if you can catch a new lead whilst they are still on the thankyou page, you are 20 times more likely to convert them. Not only does this give you the first mover advantage, you know they are in the mood to buy. As a bare minimum …

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3. OPTIMISE CALL TIMES

It’s not about calls, it’s about conversations. Build in a dedicated time slot each day for follow up calls, around the best potential pick up rates. We followed up with 1000 new prospects across different times of day and here’s what we found. 

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8-9am: 40% answered

12:30-2pm: 30% answered

5:30-7:30pm: 60% answered

Any other time: 10-15% answered

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4. DOUBLE DIAL

If there’s no answer the first time you call, dial again straight away. In our study above, around a third of the calls answered, picked up on the second dial not the first. Eg: The answer rates between 5:30pm and 7:30pm would have been 40% not 60% with single dials only! This 2 second habit will save you time, boost your pick up rates and likely result in more people in the door.

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5. THE MAGIC 7

It takes, on average, 7 attempts to speak to a lead, sometimes 10-12! Most sales people give up after 3. Don’t be most salespeople.

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6. LEAVE PURPOSEFUL MESSAGES

Voicenotes, and voicemails, can be a secret weapon if used correctly, or just a big waste of time if not. Read our guide to leaving voice messages that get 200% more call-backs.

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7. MIX IT UP

Not everyone wants to talk on the phone, so cover all bases. Back up your calls with texts, emails, WhatsApp or social media and your prospect will tell you their preference. However, nothing can replace real human conversation, so make this the priority

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8. NAIL YOUR FIRST CALL

Your opening call is the most crucial, people will decide whether they like you and whether they want to carry on the conversation within 20 seconds or less. A clear, purposeful and natural opening will set every call off on the right foot. Speak to us about how to structure the perfect call opener and learn from our "Nail Your First Call" article.

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9. EMBRACE THE ‘NO’S

The most common reason for avoiding sales calls is fear of rejection. Remember this is not personal, it’s simply a numbers game. For every YES, there’s always going to be 5-10 ‘NO’’s and no answers. There always has been, there always will be. Embrace every ‘NO’ as yet another step closer to the next YES!

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10. TRACK YOUR ACTIVITY

Honing your process and improving conversions is an ongoing effort. Having a solid grasp of your metrics and conversions at every level will help you understand where improvements are needed. Download our ‘Conversion Funnel Tracker’ to help with this.

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IN SUMMARY

In summary, this stuff is not rocket science but it is rocket fuel for your conversion rates and member growth. Ditch the excuses, pick up the phone and thank us later.