8 Tips to Improve Your Follow-up Calls

Excellent presentation skills and a good product certainly help to sell. But that alone may not be enough. It is also necessary to master certain rules when talking on the phone, as this is usually the first step in prospecting customers. The good performance of the salesperson is essential to be able to schedule the visit with the prospect. Don’t even know where to start? So check out the list we’ve prepared right now, with tips that can optimize the actions of follow-up calls.

Do a good prior research

Before actually calling a prospective customer, do your homework, informing yourself about the company and any news that relates to what it sells. Keep in mind that any additional data can significantly help with the sales pitch. Has the prospect made a new investment, entered into a promising partnership, and launched an innovative product or service? You need to know.

Be brief

The purpose of the call is to schedule a visit, right? So, don’t dare to a speech sales call, even for a second. Some details should be left for a face-to-face interview. Inform the reason for your contact. Not much more, nor much less. Try to arouse interest in a more in-depth conversation so that you reach your goal. Be sure to hang up the phone with a scheduled date and time, making yourself available for the prospect to contact you when you think best. And don’t forget to confirm your appointment the day before.

Hours with minutes

When calling the prospect, instead of suggesting exact times, suggest broken hours, with minutes. So, instead of scheduling a meeting at 10 o’clock sharp, how about 10:20? Besides, ensure that your representative reaches the client at least 5 minutes in advance. It will show the seriousness of your company. However, arriving too early may guarantee your success, but you will have the last-minute preparation.

Determine a daily period

Establish a daily time to make your calls, preferably choosing the time when you are most productive. So, if you usually reduce your workload around 3 pm, make your calls early. In any case, whatever time you choose, make sure you have enough time to call back any customers you were unable to locate the first time. During the period you are making these calls, avoid receiving other people or leaving other devices working. Turn off the volume of internal chat notifications, put your phone on silent and close the email tab.

Set the number of connections

Define how many calls you need to make, as well as determine the number of visits you must make to close the necessary sales and reach your monthly goal. With that number in mind, don’t stop calling until you reach the day’s call quota. In this case, using business process management tools to measure your results is a great request. In fact, time management is essential in this regard. After all, if you take too long on a call, you can compromise the quality of the others, which must necessarily be shorter than ideal.

Talk to the right person

Always try to talk to the decision-maker. To get in touch with the right person, try to find out who the key players in the company are. Such information can be obtained through previous calls, internet searches or even sending emails. And if any employee of the organization gives the name of the decision-maker, be sure to mention the name of the employee who made the appointment when contacting you. The sales process in B2B marketing is much more complex. If possible, before even talking to the decision-maker, try to find a friend or any other contact who works at that company. The chances of this reference person helping with detailed information are many. This way the prospect will be more comfortable to receive you.

Know the name of the person

Always ask the names of the people with whom you have contact, calling them by name, always in a friendly manner. When asking to speak to the decision-maker, use your first name in the presentation. This is a good way to demonstrate familiarity with a potential future customers. Personalization when prospecting customers over the phone is an excellent resource to build empathy and start a lighter relationship, without the pressure of the buyer and seller relationship. A friendly tone would be better.

Confirm and optimize

Never forget to send a follow-up email. You must thank your client for their valuable time they gave over the call. However, be specific and cordial. Besides, evaluate your performance through the results obtained, such as the number of calls, visits, and conversions, etc. Take tests to see if there are ways to improve the prospecting of customers over the phone.

From these simple attitudes, the commercial department gains an important ally to achieve the sales goals outlined in the planning, an important factor that also contributes to improving the methodology used, directly impacting the final result of the work.

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