You’ve just had an inquiry about one of your products. Someone has asked for more information from you. Aha, could be a potential customer, you think to yourself!

How well are you doing keeping your potential customers interested? When prospective customers inquire about your product, either by phone, email or via your website, how quickly do you answer their request and send them the information they need?

In order to increase the prospect of a sale, it is important that you respond to each request for information as soon as possible.

After you have sent them the information they requested, what do you do then? Nothing? Do you follow-up the initial contact to see how they’re going?

You probably don’t, like most people. Do you let this important prospective customer slip through your clutches? It is vital that you keep in touch with the potential customer to increase your chances of getting a sale.

Don’t assume that the person is not interested in your product and therefore has not bothered to reply. They may be very interested. You never know why a potential customer hasn’t contacted you. It could be because they forgot, lost your contact details or decided they would get in touch with you later. By keeping in contact, you could get a sale, and a good customer.

Sometimes a potential customer may actually be waiting for you to make a follow-up contact.

And if another product similar to yours comes up in the market at that time, you may have lost yourself a sale.

Is it possible that you are losing customers by not consistently following up a query from a prospective customer?

You must have a consistent process in place to follow up leads. This should be done on a daily basis to be effective.

It is important that you put a follow-up process into place and remain in contact with your prospects in a consistent manner. Make it part of your business.

When you consistently follow up your prospective customers, you will see results, and this means sales, and ultimately profits.

How do you do this?

Invest in, or create a database of all the potential customers that have inquired about your products or services.

Get a system for keeping in touch with them. After replying to their initial request, send them a follow-up letter. This could be in the form of a brief note to ask them about the information you sent, or you could keep in touch by sending them a newsletter or other communication of interest.

Keep in regular contact with these people. It could be every month, or when you get out a new catalogue or a new product. Send this information to everyone on your list.

An effective follow-up method to dramatically increase your sales is to:

1. Have a system put in place where you follow up each lead consistently, at set times (not at random) and keep in contact with friendly letters and see how your sales will go up. Businesses that have used this system have been able to increase their sales, sometimes by 50%.

2. Generate a series of follow-up letters to send to your prospective customers at various stages.

The first letter in response to their request, you probably already have. The second letter should give more detail than the first letter. Include things that you did not mention in the first letter – added benefits.

Include a special offer. Tell them why they should order now. Ask the prospect why they have not placed an order. Ask for feedback about your product. Even if they don’t buy, you will have important feedback for future reference.

Timing is everything. Reply to their request as soon as possible and follow up before 48 hours. Give them as much information as they need to decide, to make a buying choice. Next follow up 1 - 3 days apart – point out the benefits of your product and your point of difference.

Be consistent, but make sure you don’t overdo it and thoroughly irritate your prospect.

With a good system in place, and following a set process consistently you can make the follow-up very effective in getting more customers.

It is truly an effective way to get customers and nurture them.

Many sales and customers are lost because of failure to follow up. Make this an essential part of your business.

For help designing a follow-up system that works for your business go to http://www.wordsthatsell.com.au