“Marketing Near Sales Retains Future Buyers in Your Sales Funnel”

Prospects are Golden Resources Don’t Let Them Leak Out of Your Marketing Funnel

You’ve worked hard getting the attention of your best potential prospects.  You did this by establishing a position for yourself as a trusted adviser rather than a pesky unwanted even dreaded sales person.  You’ve even gotten them to take the first desired action.

Hoorah, you’re on track.  Unfortunately it’s at this point that the wheels fall off the cart, so to speak, for many business owners and professionals in service related industries.  And the reason is because you want and expect the next step to be an appointment, however, the prospect isn’t ready for that next step yet.

If you press the prospect for an appointment they aren’t ready for you risk losing this prospect you’ve worked so hard to get forever.  That just doesn’t make good business sense for either you or the prospect.  The fact is a buyer will not buy before they’re ready no matter how much you want them to.

All is not lost.  In fact, you have a great opportunity to deepen and strengthen the connection you’ve made with the prospect.  To take advantage of the opportunity you need to:

• plan out a multi-step marketing campaign
• plan multiple contacts throughout your marketing campaign
• vary the way you make the contact

so you help move the prospect into your sale funnel.

When you initially reach out to a prospect you should know they have the potential to be an ideal highly qualified prospect.  What you don’t know is where they are in the thought process in relation to the solution you can help them to get.

• They may not even know a solution exists.
• They may be aware of a solution yet not feel they have a need.
• They may be in the fact and information gathering stage preparing themselves to make an educated decision.
• You may contact them at the exact moment they’re eager to take action.

You can’t know where they are in the buying process when you make that first connection, yet you can know exactly how you’ll gently take them through the stages of their buying process.  As you do this you:

• deepen and strengthen your connection.
• They begin to feel as though they know you.
• They come to trust you as you consistently add value to their lives.

And because they feel as though they know and trust you when they are ready to buy they’ll think of you first.

It’s at that point they finally enter your sales funnel. That is, if you’ve probably planned to market to the near sales retaining them in your marketing funnel.  A prospect is far too valuable to waste because you’re too eager and drive them away.