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Many of you have a growing database of prospects. It’s filled with leads who have visited, called, or emailed you. This database should be the lifeblood to your sales efforts, but what are you doing with it? Are you just looking for more prospects to file into your database or do you actively cultivate the possibilities that are tucked in there?

Don’t just focus on the here and now. Avoid the temptation of the bright, shiny object that could detract from tending to this database that is chock full of potential sales. In other words, breathe new life into your leads.

There are three easy ways to resuscitate your dormant leads:

1. Organize your database. Keep your database up-to-date. Take one hour a week to clean it up and tend to the list. Segment the leads into areas so that when you go to do your follow-up, you can easily focus on specific groups, like those who have either not responded at all or just not lately.
2. Create an email. Develop a follow-up email that you can personalize to your prospects. Using this format, you can follow-up more often with more leads. For example, take a chunk of leads that are six to nine months old and craft an email marketing message. Make the email appear as personal as possible—without getting too specific—and mail it to the group all at once. Done! Now you’ve maximized your time and potentially revived some of dying leads.
3. Pick up the phone. Yes, go old school. Make personal contact with those people you just emailed. Combining the one-two punch of email and phone follow-up is like charging up those defibrillator paddles and zapping those leads with your sales pizzazz.

You might be surprised by how many of those prospects are still in the market. You’ll probably also encounter many who have had a change in their situation and, because you’re the only one following up, you hit them at the perfect time to convert the lead into a sale!

Don’t let your valuable leads die. Shock them back into the home-buying mode. I promise, it won’t hurt a bit.

I hope these tips are helpful, and welcome your thoughts and ideas!

Similar Posts:

• Email is to Phone like Peanut Butter is to Jelly
• Don’t Hide Behind Email – Pick Up The Phone
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We all love our smartphones and the cool things they can do, but we can’t forget the word “phone” in the name. Salespeople have become accustomed to emailing and texting customers and expecting their prospects to check them out on Facebook or visit their website. As a result, they may overlook the importance of calling home buyers to make the truly personal connection. It might be time to pick up the phone.

Sales professionals frequently tell me they’re not as comfortable “selling” over the phone and that they do a better

job face-to-face. My advice? (And I say this with love in my heart)…Get over it. It’s your job.

Okay, I can appreciate the fear of dialing, so here are five easy ways to build your confidence with your phone skills.

1.     Listen to yourself.

Record yourself having a phone conversation—practice a dialogue with a colleague, if you want—and listen to it. What do you hear? Is your voice too perky, too deep, or difficult to understand? Do you talk too fast? Do you say certain words—like “um”, “you know”, “yeah”, or “awesome”—too often? Listen carefully and then make a list of the changes you want to make. Keep the list handy when you’re on the phone with someone, and practice, practice, practice!

2.     Be prepared.

Before you pick up the phone, create an agenda of what you want to cover during the phone conversation. The list will keep you focused and allow you to frame your thoughts in advance, even practicing your dialogue. When you’re prepared for a call, you’ll execute it with ease, confidence, and control. Keep in mind, around half of the time you will get a voicemail, so have that ready to go!

3.     Focus.

Listening is an essential skill for any sales professional. When you’re talking on the phone, you have to rely on verbal cues because you can’t see facial expressions and gestures. So, you need to listen harder. Don’t multi-task or allow yourself to be distracted in any way. Pause before you respond and be sure you are thinking about what was just said. Were you so busy framing up your next comment that you missed an important clue? Could you have failed to catch something because you were watching some other activity? Give your phone listener the same level of attention as if he or she were sitting right in front of you.

4.     Slow down.

It’s easy to talk over another person on the phone but can be very annoying to be constantly interrupted. Contain your energy a bit and take a breath before responding to your home buyer. In that way, you can make sure the other person has finished their sentence—and breathing is an excellent relaxation tool that can put both you and your customer at ease.

5.     Smile.

If you smile when you’re speaking, it automatically improves your tone. People can “hear” smiles. The tone of your voice communicates a lot to your customer, so put yourself in control and smile when talking on the phone. You don’t have to overdo it—just be pleasant. You might find that smile permeates your whole day!

So with that last tip…it is time to smile and dial! Similar Posts:

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There’s a difference between management and leadership. Management maintains the status quo. Leadership drives results. I see this difference every time I work with a homebuilder where the owners or managers are pushing their sales executives to use technology—manage prospect via the CRM, send out video emails, and leverage social networking.

But what happens when they don’t practice what they preach.

They might complain about their new sales executives. “They don’t follow up with their prospects.” or “Why don’t they enter their prospects into our CRM.”

So I suggest we take a look at the information—only to discover that the sales manager doesn’t even know his username or password to get into the system!

One builder told me he was aggressively pushing his sales people to use social media. I asked him about his own Facebook page and he vehemently exclaimed, “Oh no, I don’t want to be on Facebook.”

If you want your team to appreciate the importance and value of these technology power tools, you must use them yourself. Send out a video email update to everyone in the company or congratulating a sales executive on a great sale. Motivate them to use the investment you made in a CRM by checking in on their prospects and giving them ideas and suggestions for improving their conversion rates. If they know you’re looking, they’ll be looking, too. And the more they use the technology that is at their disposal, the better the results.

If you believe these tech-techniques are important to your sales team, make them important to you. If you’re not comfortable with technology, get someone to show you.

It’s time to do more than manage your people; you should lead them into the technology of selling in today’s market.Similar Posts:

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Three.

There’s not a question in anyone’s mind that a good salesperson has those top prospects down. They’re doing everything they can to write that contract—calling, emailing, and working every detail. I refer to that as “riding your customers like a pony”. (How is that for a visual?)

Meanwhile, they might be ignoring the other 95% of the prospects and potential homebuyers.

So think about this. If you have 30 prospects, you will probably pluck the top two and fixate on them because you can almost taste the sweet success. But if you’re good at what you do, you can work those homebuyers in your sleep.

What are you doing with the remaining 95%? Do you have a process for staying in touch? Do you regularly communicate with them and nurture their interest? I’ve seen many sales executives who haven’t created a toolkit for working this majority of new homebuyers. The number of prospects mounts up, maybe to 200 over a few months, and they just can’t keep up with this crowd.

Of these people, how many do you think will go on to buy a home from someone who made them a hot prospect? You should really be afraid of some other sales executive getting the sale that you let get away. Fear of loss is more powerful than fear of gain.

I encourage you to invest some time in developing your “95% Process”. Create a system to stay connected over a long period, whether they purchase a home or not. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Work your CRM and set reminders. Build some follow-up messaging that can be easily customized to make it more personal.

Realistically, you’re only going to convert 20% of this group to the next step. The other 80% will do what they do, but you should still keep in touch. At the end of the day, if they don’t buy, you have maintained your own personal brand and the brand of your company. And your professionalism, attentiveness, knowledge, and diligence might at least earn you referrals.Similar Posts:

• Old School Thank You Notes, High Tech Touch
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As a salesperson, it’s your job to respond to customers. It’s what I call “planned interruptions”. You’re calling, emailing, maybe even texting. You know that a fast response equates to conversion. With all this communication juggling, how can you be productive, efficient, and effective? Managing interruptions sounds like an impossible task.

Stephen Covey, the master of “Highly Effective” systems, proposed time blocking, where you schedule blocks of time for specific tasks. An hour in the morning for emails. An hour to do follow-up calls. An hour dedicated to prospecting. Sounds great…in theory.

And then you get a phone call during your “email time”. It’s a hot prospect, so you have to respond immediately. Now your time block is unblocked. Your focus is broken and you head off in different directions, leaving behind your wonderfully organized productivity plan.

Here are five ways I’ve discovered that keep me in my Effectiveness Zone (it’s EZ!) even with the interruptions that are unavoidable:

1. Create rock-solid blocks of time when you will not allow interruptions—no matter what. Focus solely on those tasks that will move deals forward. No exceptions!

2. Establish a separate period to address things to do that are important, but not urgent, like follow-up with buyers. I know plenty of salespeople who don’t arrive at the model home until 10 or 11 a.m., so use the earlier morning for this second tier of priorities.

3. Keep your email inbox clean. An over-cluttered inbox is one of the most dangerous threats to productivity. Check it periodically throughout the day and clean it out. Unsubscribe from lists that don’t matter. Create an “Action” file for those you need to deal with—by naming it “Action”, it will sit high on your alphabetical list of mailbox folders. File the others that don’t need a response but should be kept. And then Delete, Delete, Delete!

4. Give yourself permission to forget. Use a lead management system that will prompt you with reminders when needed. Once you’ve made initial contact with a prospect, enter the person into the system and set the follow-up task. Then forget about it for now. Move on to your next priority.

5. Turn off all unnecessary dings. If you have alerts for email, IM, text messages, and Facebook, turn them off. Put the silencer on your phone. Don’t let dings interrupt your focus. But what if that means you miss new prospect who calls during this time? Easy! Set up a phone number on Google Voice that is just for prospects. When it rings, you know to answer this call.

I know that many salespeople get pumped up on these interruptions. They love being busy, but “busy” doesn’t mean you’re productive. If you’re not organized, the interruptions will get the best of you and you’ll be more like a hamster on an endless wheel than a successful sales pro.Similar Posts:

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“OK, 100% of the time at least twice?” Hands start dropping. “And how many of you follow up with 100% of your leads, 100% of the time at least 3 times?” By now, we only have a few people left with their hands up (and suspiciously those are from the agents sitting next to their managers).

I can’t stress the importance of persistence in your follow-up program. I think it is one of the easiest ways to produce more sales from the leads and prospects you already have.

But as LeVar Burton would say, “You don’t have take my word for it.” (Now you will be walking around singing, Take a look, it’s in a book…. You’re welcome.)

There are studies that back this up. The National Association of Sales Executives conducted a survey that revealed 80% of sales are made between the 5^th and the 12^th contact. Does that ring true for you? Think about how many points of contact you make before it results in a contract.

Now, contrast that to a recent shop conducted online with 261 new home communities. The shopper submitted their full contact information including a phone number and they actually asked a question (sounds like a hot lead to me). The results, less than 3% followed up more than once via phone and/or more than twice via email.

This can be your opportunity to jump in there and be the one that follows up and gets the sale. We haven’t even talked about the fact that roughly half of agents don’t follow up at all!

So, if you “mind the gap” between what it takes to move a lead to an appointment or a prospect to a contract, I don’t believe you will have to worry about business in 2012.

Take a moment and think through your follow-up strategy. What do you have in place that will ensure you make at least 5 contacts with a lead or prospect?

Remember, it’s not about writing an email that is so magical it convinces them to move forward. It’s not about the phone call you make where you say exactly what they needed to hear. It’s about doing what the other 97% of agents won’t do.

When you think about it, persistence really does pay!

And if you are looking for a more mature quote than LeVar Burton – how about this classic quote from the 1840’s

‘Tis a lesson you should heed, 
Try, try again. 
If at first you don’t succeed, 
Try, try again. – Thomas H. Palmer  - Teacher’s Manual (1840)

(saying ‘Tis really does make you feel smarter doesn’t it!)

Photo by Mike KnellSimilar Posts:

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In this video, I discuss the importance of utilizing a CRM or Lead Management tool. (WARNING! It gets heated when I talk about sales managers using the system too…but it is all out of love.) Let’s face it; this is not a sexy topic. Most sales execs roll their eyes when I bring it up.

However, despite the geek speak, this is usually the missing tool that can set your sales on fire. Why? Did you know surveys have shown that most sales people (yes, even the good ones) tend to focus on the top 5% of their prospects? The question is, what happens with the other 95%? What is the process? We know that you have the top 5% covered; you can manage them in your sleep. But that isn’t how you increase sales.

You may be thinking , “Mike, I do a much better job than that.” OK…here is a little test…name your top prospects right now. Give me their  first and last names. Can you make it past 3? I have yet to see a sales executive do this when I ask. It  is impossible to focus on 100% of your prospects 100% of the time. We are not capable. This is where our CRM comes in handy. It gives us permission to forget. I suggest you use it as a crutch, your digital assistant, your amplifier that allows you to accomplish more and work smarterSimilar Posts:

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“The last impression is the lasting impression” 

That’s deep right. It is something to think about in the customer experience.

We just finished our new home.  We designed it, we love it, but the last month was brutal. My wife had a hard time getting past all of the little things going wrong and it created a not-so-fun experience at the end.

That is the lasting impression for us and it will take a while to get that taste out of our mouth.

Attention sales pros! We talk to hundreds of prospects, we sell a lot of homes, we say the same things over and over, it can become robotic. I encourage you (and you too Mike Lyon) to put yourself in the customer’s shoes and do everything you can to make sure they have an enjoyable experience.

 Similar Posts:

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Marketing Solutions for Serious Sales Results

Date: Friday, February 10
Time: 10:00 – 11:30 am
Location: West 312

Description: Three leading industry trainers and speakers have concentrated their new home sales and marketing strategies and techniques into this high-energy, information-packed presentation. With a special focus on online marketing methods, you’ll get an actionable plan that will help you increase your sales traffic, polish your online efforts and revitalize your sales team.

Learning Outcomes:

• Become familiar with the most valuable, innovative and proven online tools to create on-site success, improve budgeting and planning and maximize sales.
• Acquire field-tested, step-by-step techniques for creating online content (at very little cost) to capture the attention of potential home buyers.
• Learn how to create a ‘digital inbound path’ for your prospects that attracts the right buyer – including how to create content that makes you consistently appear at or near the top of search engine results.
• Discover little-known secrets for successfully integrating your online and on-site sales efforts to provide customers with a seamless transition from your website to face-to-face interactions with your sales force – and thus avoid the Internet elimination game.

Speakers: Brian Flook, Mike Lyon, Myers Barnes, MIRM

100 Ideas for Maximizing the Benefits of Your Existing Traffic

Date: Wednesday, February 8
Time: 10:00 – 11:30 am
Location: West 311 G-H

Description: Nearly everything about our market has changed – including the selling environment, the buyer, our products and how we follow up on leads. One old-fashioned rule still applies, however: the unmatched potential in a prospect who has actually walked in the door. In this session, you’ll learn new ways to market, network and follow up to maximize your chances of closing the sale. This course will cover 100 new ideas a builder’s sales team can implement to maximize sales from the traffic they are getting.

Learning Outcomes:

• Appreciate the real value of walk-in prospects, and learn new ways to follow up and close the deal.
• Get insights that will help you achieve measurably better results – whether you’re a CEO, COO, builder, lender or sales or marketing manager.
• Acquire great new ideas your sales team can use immediately to maximize sales from the walk-in traffic you’re already generating.

Speakers: Mike Lyon, Scott Stroud, Shirleen Von HoffmannSimilar Posts:

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I recently had a conversation with a very large home builder about starting an online sales program and they basically said, “Mike, we like to make slow and calculated decisions. We will get there eventually, but we have to wrap our brains around this first.”

What can you say to that logic? All I know is “slow” doesn’t work when it comes to life and business on the Internet. They kinda work like dog years. Every moment counts!

I understand not wanting to make the wrong moves, but moving in some direction is better than doing nothing at all. Don’t allow yourself to succumb to “analysis paralysis”. If you want to reach more customers for less money and to sell more homes, here are five fundamental principles that will enable you to make “no-lose” decisions. (Plus bonus content to dive deeper)

1. Spend More Money on Your Website—Rarely have I found a builder that spends too much money on their website. This tool houses the digital hub of your universe, the virtual model home. You may need a redesign, a new feature, a mobile site, or more exciting content. The investment in your website is the best money you can spend with tremendous ROI! If you question whether putting money here is worthwhile, just compare your website’s unique visitors (using your site analytics) with your walk-in prospects and see which one gets more traffic. With a great site, you will drive more traffic through both your virtual and physical door. It might be time to Build a New Virtual Model Home >>
2. Move More of Your Advertising Budget Online—50% of home shoppers take their very first step by searching online. Compare that to 3% who will pick up a paper and 18% who will call a Realtor. What does this mean? You should be spending your advertising dollars where your prospects are looking. Get as close as you can to allocating 50% of your advertising dollars online.  10% of your budget to online advertising is like trying to spark a fire by rubbing two wet sticks together! If you are wondering how to measure what works, check out this post >>
3. Get a CRM Program That WORKS!—If you don’t have an effective Customer Relationship Management Program …get one. Don’t waste your time trying to make a tired, old clunky CRM system do more than it was designed for. Just ask yourself these questions: Does my CRM make my life easier? Does it automate the follow-up process? Do my salespeople actually use it? Does it track prospects on my website? Will it send mass emails? If the answer to any of these is “NO”, then you need a new system…immediately! Great guest post on CRM here >>
4. Get A Dedicated Responder—Let’s face it. Bad salespeople suck and they just won’t follow up with prospects. Good salespeople may not be able to follow up quickly or frequently enough because they are busy having valuable face time with customers. So you need a system that ensures communication with an interested prospect. Whether you choose a dedicated Online Sales Counselor or an automated responder, make sure all leads are responded to within five minutes or less and receive five to seven contacts in the first month. I guarantee that those prospects are getting better communication from your competition so you need to be on top of this step! Not getting the results you want, see this post on 10 reasons why >>
5. Establish an Online Sales Process—Building homes requires a process. Traditional selling follows a process. If you want sustainable results from your online selling efforts that you can replicate, you need to create and implement a process—from generating leads to follow-up to marketing, You can start by making sure that the first four tips are incorporated! Here is a quick video overview >> 

There you go. Five things that you can put on your board and chase after with Ricky Bobby-like speed. I guarantee, these are good decisions you can make as a company and ones that have never yielded a negative result. Get your new year off to a winning start with these “no lose” tips.

Photo Credit: Claire Wilkerson Similar Posts:

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