What does your prospect do when you introduce your product?
How to change a prospect to a customer?
“I am sorry, but we are overload with other projects which we have prioritized. In case of later need, I will contact you.”
“I am sorry, but there is no need for your product at this stage.”
And I can go on and on and on. And this is the better scenario; most of the time, people do not respond at all. They ignore your existence and efforts.
“Everyone occasionally misses an email. But if you’re habitually “too busy” to answer legitimate emails, there’s a problem with your process. It sends a signal that you’re disorganized — or that you just don’t care.”- Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist at Wharton.
I am doing it as well. But the reason behind it is that the salesman proposed too early or a product I wasn’t interested in. It was out of my reach, or I didn't understand the offer. Complicated explanations discourage me, upset me, and the slightest hint of interest disappears.
It is even more frustrating when a prospect shows interest in your product at the beginning. We get to the next level, when a prospect started to test a product, and then? We hear nothing more about it. That’s killing. I’ve always bothered with the questions.
“Why is that?”
“Where do I make a mistake?”
“What is the reason behind quietness?”
“Lack of interest?”
I used to recapitulate for myself:
- We scheduled a call.
- There was an ice-breaking.
- We found common ground.
- He showed an interest in the product.
- He did not respond to me anymore.
The only common I had with that person was a brief past. Then after many years in business and observing this pattern, it clicked. I realized the formula that every person does regardless. And you do it too!
Googling and comparing!
I’m not telling you anything new here. But the reason for the phantom’s lack of interest is your competitive products on the market. And if you do not understand why the prospect didn’t contact you and did not negotiate, why should?
Being pleasant doesn't mean that you are exceptional. Your prospect was able to find a replacement on Google in a reasonable amount of time, maybe thanks to the excellent SEO of your competitors. The competing product doesn’t need to be better than yours at all. It could even be completely disadvantageous. The success of your direct competition is more likely on their proper content marketing focus. They probably understand ideal customer’s pains and offering them a simple solution in a short time.
So we are talking about two aspects which can shut you down from the market.
Wrong identification of your Buying Persona and underestimation of your Content Marketing.
So what should you do to be the first and last choice? Start planning your business strategy. Yes, you have already heard and read this a thousand times. But, are you planning on how to start selling your product?
It’s like in a Lifetime movie.
- It starts with a fascinating scene.
- It tells a story and explains it.
- Yet, it is still under the guise of secrecy.
- Action is taking place.
- Resolution.
And this is how the business strategy is structured. As a movie moves your feelings, you also want to stir up your customers’ emotions to gain their trust.
So if you’re ready to create your business strategy, start like this. The basis is to specify and narrow the attributes until you go from a broad audience to your niche market. It is also called Market Segmentation. Your niche market is your Ideal Customer.
Hubspot Academy is explaining that ideal customer is a company providing significant value to your company. Based on your happiest existing customers you can specify attributes of your ideal company by size, revenue, headaccounts, location etc.
After the specification of your Ideal Customer, let’s move to the Buyer Persona, where I would like to pay more attention.
Specification of the Buyer Persona
An Ideal Customer is an Ideal Company, and a Buyer Persona is a person who is your primary target in selling strategy, is your decision-maker, a person you want to approach and attract.
Based on sales statistics, 2020 from Groundbreaking Study explains that at least 50% of your prospects are not a good fit for what you sell!
Therefore identifying your buyer person before starting your prospecting action is crucial. Hubspot offers tools and instructions to determine your Buyer Persona correctly.
To cut a long story shorter, you need to find out:
- What your buyer persona’s working day looks like?
- What is their challenge your product could help?
- Where does the persona look for new information?
- What social platforms visit?
- What blog’s persona reads?
You’ve learned a lot from your existing customers, and you know some of them as your own palm. Ask them only a few additional questions to get a complete picture. Secondly, your Buyer Personas are your LEADS you have been thinking to approach.
Leads are new people, and you want them on board. They are your future customers. Do you already have leads’ email lists in your database?
Yes? Send them a questionnaire! I use Survey Monkey for creating a questionnaire to send as a link in your email or message on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn is a great tool to search for leads. Sales Navigator gives advanced ability to filter profiles based on your attributes. Use a Key Word option for more exact results. After the invitation, you can kindly ask to fill out your questionnaire via a shared link in your first message.
So you know your Buyer Persona, let’s move on to Content Marketing.
Based on Demand Gem Survey Report from 2018, 49% of B2B buyers said they now rely more on content to research and make purchase decisions.
Educate your future buyers is the best start for your content.
- Prepare free giveaways.
Guide, report, checklist, and present your content for free. Well, not completely free, but for exchange for an email. Please note. Don’t fool your free content. There’s nothing worse than downloading content that didn’t give me anything valuable. When I read site by site, I wait for facts, and if nothing comes, only sauces, I lose interest forever in that company. There is no way back, and you lost your lead forever, most likely. - Present your company via free webinars.
Free, at least from the beginning. But webinars are great options if you offer service, technology products, and innovations. I would not recommend a webinar if you sell a physical product, e.g., a car.
Let me give you a real case study that recently happened. I have a client, a law company. Their service is so obvious, any other law companies on the market provide. They started to organize free webinars once a month. The second webinar gained enormous interest and won significant clients. Later on, we decided to combine free and paid webinars regularly. It helped them to persuade leads to become clients and make extra money. We are planning the third webinar on the 4th of February and from now on have 200 registrants.
If you would like to get more information on creating webinars read my previous articles: If you want to succeed with a webinar, read on. & 3 Trends that will make your webinar attractive.
- Choose one or two social platforms to present your content.
What type of presence is closer to you? Some people prefer to write; others make videos instead. Share your blogs, webinar records, landing page with free giveaways to subscribe to. Keep in mind; your aim isn't sales but engagement with your audience. Aim is building a TRUST. - Measure your success.
As soon as you run and get the right direction in the sails, the bag will burst with those interested. It won’t happen right away. Sorry, it sounds unmotivating. But, when you start to do it properly from the beginning, you will save enormous time. You will achieve your aim much faster, believe me.
Wrap up
The magic formula to create a connection with your leads and prospects contains:
- Identification of your focus group by understanding your Buyer Personas.
- Understanding their pains.
- Making sure you can fill this pain with your product.
- Use a story that moves their feelings.
- Compare their life without your product and life with your product.
- Be personal, unique, and creative.
- Don’t copy, be different than your competition.
- Talk to your target like you would sit with them on a coffee.
- Choose one or two social platforms.
- Be regular. Make sure you keep going and evaluating the behavior of your personas.
- Be ready to change your strategy if feedback from the market has low engagement.
Interesting in getting more LEADS?
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