Have you ever gotten information from your marketing department telling you about a GREAT lead that is just waiting for you to show up so they can sign the order, only to find out when you get there that the prospect simply called to ask a question and really had no interest in purchasing your product or service?
I call this type of lead an INVISALEAD, a lead that becomes invisible when you call on it. Why do you suppose this happens? Well a couple of reasons come to mind quickly, the marketing department is under a lot of pressure to push leads out to the field, the phone sales rep was thinking they were helping by giving you a lead, the marketing campaigns that have been used are not getting the results they were expected so every call is pushed through as a lead, and a host of other reasons that are all only excuses not real reasons anyway.
So what can you do to end this problem for yourself? Well my first suggestion is to make sure you always ask for referrals. I believe that every sales stop you make, every phone call you make, every time you meet a business associate, every time you see someone you know you should be asking for referrals. It doesn’t matter if the prospect is in the process of throwing you out the door, before you hit the ground you should be asking him or her if they know the person next door or down the street that can use your product or service.
If you will make a habit of asking for referrals you will have a constant source of leads that you can then call on without needing the marketing leads. If and when you get leads from marketing they are an added bonus. (And added sales)
The problem is most sales reps I know tell me that the “timing” needs to be right to ask for a referral. I have never understood this. If the prospect or customer is happy they will be more than willing to give you names, if they are not happy they will give you names of people they don’t like, either way you have your referral right? J
All kidding aside, asking for referrals is a basic part of business for most business people, and it should be for most sales reps but isn’t! I have never met an insurance agent that didn’t ask me for referrals; whenever I have bought a car the sales associate has asked me for referrals. Every time I buy something online I am asked to give my friends e mail addresses so the company can contact them. It is happening everywhere except in outside direct sales.
Well if you enjoy the vanishing smoke and mirror leads from marketing then read this and ignore it. If you want some good solid leads that will turn into sales; start forming the habit of asking for referrals EVERYWHERE you go, to EVERYONE you meet, EVERYTIME you stop.
One last thing, learn how to ask for a referral. Most reps I know say something to the effect of, “Do you know anyone that could use my product or service?” This is better than not asking, but just barely. You see most people know hundreds of people, by asking “do you know anyone” you are asking them to sort through all those hundreds of people and pick a name. This is why reps that ask this way hear, “No I don’t really know anyone right off the top of my head.” Basically the customer or prospect can’t decide who to refer so they just say no. If you ask a very narrow question you will get better results. Ask, “Do you know the person on the corner who would buy products like mine?” or “I heard of a business like yours on the other side of town, do you know the name of who I would talk to there about my products?” (By asking for a business on the other side of town you are usually not asking for a direct competitor) These questions are specific and narrow in scope making the list of people a shot list that will be easy for your customer or prospect to sort through.
Lorin
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