A sales funnel is an interesting concept, because just like fishing, even a solid bite doesn’t necessarily mean the end of the journey. To fish well, you have to learn how to reel your fishing rod capably, so the fish, large as it may be, will tire and won’t snap the line as you bring it in. In some cases, the battle can seem lost, until the fish provides one final tug, and you see the opportunity once more.
The same could be said for a sales funnel. Sometimes, a lead might express interest but not go all the way. It’s important to provide them the incentive to continue on, without seeming desperate or forcing them in. If you offer a 90% discount at the first hesitant withdrawal they show, that’s a little suspect.
The art of retaining a lead you were about to lose won’t necessarily pay off in 100% of cases, but it’s a vital practice, achieved through a set of skills you can learn. In this post, we intend to help you with that:
Make The Exit Point Feel Like a Pause, Not a Goodbye
Just because someone clicked away from the pricing page or stopped replying to your emails doesn’t mean they’re gone for good, sometimes they just need a bit of time or something came up that pulled their attention away and now they’re not sure how to jump back in without starting from scratch. To help with this, having a saved cart, or a quick reminder email that picks up right where they left off after a few days can be a gentle way of saying hey, it’s still here if you want it, without putting any pressure on them or making it feel awkward to return.
Use Smart Tools to Spot Who’s Still Worth Following Up
There’s no need to chase everyone, but sometimes you’ll get a number in your system and it’s not tied to much info, so knowing if that’s a legit lead or just noise can help you decide what technique to employ. That’s where a phone number reverse lookup API can be handy, because it might show you where that person’s from, if they’re attached to a known business or profile, or if it looks like spam, and that helps you figure out who to re-engage with and who’s probably not worth the time, so you’re not guessing every time a lead looks half-formed.
Offer Something Small Instead of Slashing Prices
You may find a lead walks away just because the risk feels too high or they’re not totally sold yet, and as we mentioned in the intro, dropping a huge discount right away might feel like you’re rushing to close the deal without really knowing what’s stopping them. It might be better to offer something small like a free trial, bonus content, or a shorter contract just to ease them back in, because that way it doesn’t look like you’re trying too hard but still shows that you’re willing to meet them halfway if they give it another look.
With this advice, we hope you can retain a lead you were on the verge of losing.
