I always refer to myself as a sales rep who happens to train rather than a trainer who happens to sell. While the days of making 400 cold calls a week (and they were truly cold calls) are over, I still prospect every single day to keep a big fat pipeline. Recently I was following up with a dead opp and struck gold after taking just a few extra steps.
Starting in Salesforce
I organize every task in Salesforce, no matter how small. Even lost opportunities that I know will have an opportunity down the road. In this case I lost the deal seven months ago, but I’ve been staying on top of it with meaningful follow up.
Do your research
My follow up to this particular account was pretty strong in my opinion, but I didn’t hear back which was unlike my contact. I looked her up on LinkedIn before hitting reply to that first email to avoid touching base or checking in. In about a minute on their blog I noticed a new product launch and an acquisition. Both of these are great reasons for me to reach out. It’s also a good general practice to check your prospect on LinkedIn to see if they’ve changed roles or companies before contacting them.
Following back up
When following up, I always like to reply to the previous thread. I do this for two reasons. It shows that I’ve been in contact before, and the RE: in the subject line helps open and response rates. I received a response, but it was that the message was undeliverable. This is why it’s always a good idea to take a quick look at your contact’s LinkedIn profile if you haven’t spoken to them in a while.
Where they are now
After looking up my contact on LinkedIn, I saw she was at another company. A company we have an active sales cycle with. I sent her a note congratulating her on the new role and saying I was looking forward to working with her. The response was incredibly positive and supportive. From this I learned she had an impact on the deal at the new company which I didn’t even know about.
What about the old company?
Going into LinkedIn Sales Navigator and looking at new roles in the past 90 days, I found the new head of Global Sales Engagement. Reaching out, I referenced I had been working with a contact at the account previously, but I also used the same triggers of the acquisition and product follow up. The last thing I want to do is touch base and check in.
From doing a little bit of homework, and meaningful follow up, I was able to reengage a lost deal, and influence a current deal in a positive way. I hope you found this valuable, good luck and Make It Happen!
