Scenario: Someone gave you a good lead or you’ve developed a lead yourself over time. These leads warrant pursuit. In either case, they’re at the top of your list to contact – whether they’re a new prospect or someone in your pipeline.
The secret to getting a response from someone is to not just use email as a standalone communication effort. Apart from making birthday wishes and blowing out candles in hopes of a response, it’s the weakest formula to use if you’re trying to make contact.
Business owners receive over 100 emails daily. I was speaking with a CEO interested in working with us. He said, “Lilly, I’m sorry I’ve not gotten back to you. I get over 100 emails a day, so thanks for your persistence.” I called, emailed, and texted multiple times over the course of three weeks. Persistence indicates your hunger. You won’t go away unless they tell you to do so. Your perseverance tells them you’re serious about making contact.
In another interaction, a VP said to me, “We’re looking forward to reconnecting on this in Q1 of 2014. We’re not ready to do this work just yet, but I know how you are Lilly. You’ll call early January and won’t let me off the hook until we do something. We want to work with you.” Here’s how I pursue this VP (Mark), and his manager (Ron):
Monday
1.Leave a voicemail for Mark: “Hi Mark, this is Lilly. I’m checking in so we can determine what happens next. Last we spoke, you indicated you would know more after budget meetings this month. I’ll send a follow-up email to this same effect. Feel free to respond electronically, if that’s easier for you.”
2.Send an email right after the voice message: “Hi Mark. We’re checking in to discuss next steps. Last we connected, you indicated that working together was probable. So, I’m reaching out to move this along. We’re available for a call {date} or {date}.” Give specific dates and times and end the email with: “Will either of these times work for you? If not, please suggest a couple of times that work for your team and we’ll make it happen.”
3.Leave a voicemail for Ron, Mark’s subordinate manager and influencer: “Hi Ron. I just left a message for Mark and am leaving one for you too. We’re working to get a call on the books to discuss what happens next. I’ll send you a follow-up email and you can respond that way, if that suits you better.”
4.Send an email to Ron, echoing what you said on the voice message and with the same content as Mark’s email.
Thursday
If you’ve not heard back, repeat what you did on Monday.
Monday
If you’ve not heard back, repeat what you did on Thursday.
The point at which you stop pursuing is blog post topic for another day. If the prospect is genuinely interested, they should respond after a couple of your efforts. If they’ve not responded, then something may have changed. How you find out that information is another set of steps we will discuss in the future.
