Media and Sales representatives are not trying to annoy you as much as possible before you finally give in. They want to match up their products in a way that will help your company succeed.
The world changes quickly. Very quickly! You now send more emails in a day than you could ever possibly make phone calls. It’s all about efficiency and how much we can cram into one day’s work. The downside to more and more digital communication, is that messages are easily lost, and even ignored. You might skip over emails from vendors or sales reps on a regular basis. Heck, if an email is too long I skip over it! The average person is also not likely to return voicemails from vendors or sales reps. It goes in one ear and out the other. The challenge here being able to catch the oh-so-busy decision maker at a good time when they are not in the middle of something. Good luck with that. In 2007, it took less than 4 cold call attempts to reach a prospect. Today it takes eight! (Source: Telenet and Ovation Sales Group)
Consider this: 80% of sales are made on the fifth to twelfth contact. Fifth to Twelfth! That is quite a bit more work than sending out twelve emails.
How does one overcome the odds of being ignored?
-Be where the people are, and connect with them the way they what to be connected and when they want to be connected.
-Make sure that your service or product is a good fit.
-Get Social. Top sellers use LinkedIn six hours per week. (Source: Jill Konrath)
-Balance being persistent, but not too persistent. When a prospect finally contacts you somehow, be sure to answer them as soon as possible.
So the next time your sales rep calls, give them a few minutes of your time. Set up a ten minute meeting with them. It might just help your business grow.
Want to learn more about how you can reach your customers more efficiently? Not enough time in your day to dedicate to sales reps calls and meetings? Contact Midwest Marketing today!
