Are you working with the right customers? No, I am not talking about cherry picking the easy ones. The ones I am talking about make up the bulk of the customers you see on a daily basis. People coming into your store have a closing ratio of something like 20%. If this is where the bulk of your sales are coming from, you are missing out.
Businesses that don’t take the initiative to create a relationship drive me crazy. How many stores, restaurants, car dealerships, etc. have you walked into and left with zero effort from the business to get any kind of contact information from you.
Do you know that you can increase your closing ratio significantly if you do some kind of follow-up? Past customers are a great source of repeat business. They are also a great source for referrals. Also, follow-up can turn the dreaded “be-backs” into customers.
That’s working smarter, not necessarily harder. If you haven’t been in business long enough to have a larger client base, you can continue to work on those who didn’t buy.
Car dealerships are notorious for not following-up. People walk in, take a look around, get ignored or treated badly and walk out. They drive down the street to a competitor who welcomes them with open arms and consummates a sale.
Let’s face it, rejection is painful and most average salespeople can’t take the pain. Pain avoidance leads to zero follow-up.
If you’re an introvert, shy or uncomfortable talking to strangers, you may want to work on this skillset. Being able to strike up a conversation is a key to selling success. I’ll have more to say on this subject at a later date.
A major key to increasing your sales is follow-up. Make it a point to gather as much information as you can from your prospective customers, then follow-up.
Stay tuned. More to come.
