Ann Barr Marketing | Sales Coaching | Mentoring

one-to-one sales coaching

  • Home
  • About
  • Sales Tips
  • Work with Ann
  • Testimonials
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Blog

Do You Still Sell That?

October 28, 2019 by Ann Barr

dai-ke-GkraTrCYA_0-unsplashOne sales rep told me – first day in her new job –  she phoned a customer to introduce herself and her products and was asked “Do you still sell that?”

The customer said she had not heard from anyone in the company for over a year, so she had begun to purchase products from another vendor. (Ouch.)

That is a perfect example of why it is critical to keep in touch with customers. 

Looking for more reasons to keep in touch?

Four critical reasons to stay in touch with customers

  1. Your prospects forget 90% of what they see and hear within two weeks.
  2. Your competitors are contacting your customers, so….
  3. …you need to talk to your customers on a consistent basis.
  4. When you keep in touch with your customers, you are more likely to be remembered when it’s time to buy.

A Unique Way to Keep in Touch

Write and snail mail an actual letter after your conversation with the customer. A follow-up letter. You will set yourself apart from competitors who are NOT writing letters to customers.

No time to send a letter?  Email your follow-up messages.

Want an example?

First follow-up letter or email

from the e-book

Dear [Name of prospect]:

Thank you for speaking with me earlier today about the exciting opportunities available through the use of our [your product/service].

We are extremely excited about this product and all of the different applications it can be used for.

Per your request, I have enclosed a complete informational packet explaining the [product/service].

At your convenience, please review this information and I will call you next week to arrange for a convenient time to demonstrate this exciting new [product/service] to you and your staff.

If you have any questions in the meantime, please call me at [your telephone number].

Thank you for your interest; I look forward to doing business with you!

Sincerely,

[Your name]
[Your title]
[Your phone number]

 You can get 63 Copy and paste marketing & business letters/emails you can use today at less than the cost of a McDonald’s Big Mac meal!

Thanks for reading – here’s wishing you a beautiful day!

Ann
PS – Follow me on Twitter for more tips and ideas.

1632628084056

 

 

 

Filed Under: Blog, Sales Tagged With: copy & paste letter & emails, critical follow up

4 Email Mistakes that Make You Sound Rude and Uncaring

September 30, 2015 by Ann Barr

wrong-way-medWhenever you place your fingers on the keyboard, you have an opportunity to lift someone’s spirits — or sink them.

Eventually, your words will reach a living, breathing, feeling human being.

The thing I would love you to think about is:

Emails are important. They matter.

When you follow up with a prospect who asks you to email a quote on a specific product they are considering buying, you may think s/he is already sold.

WRONG!

They are not sold.

If they were already sold, you would have the order.

Four follow-up email mistakes that sound rude and uncaring. (And you DO care, right?)

  1. “The quote is $5,000.”
    (Writer of this email was obviously in a hurry and didn’t have time to list benefits & a call to action.)

(End of email, with writer’s name.)

  1. “Here is the quote you asked for. $5,000.”
    (Same mistake as #1.)

(End of email, with writer’s name and title.)

  1. “This is the quote you requested. It is $5,000 and is only good for today. The price goes up tomorrow.”
    (A hard-sell email; not friendly.)

(End of email, with writer’s name, title and phone number.)

  1. “I sent you a quote two days ago and haven’t heard back from you.”
      (Sounds a lot like nagging 🙁

(End of email, with writer’s name, title and phone number.)

These are actual emails I have seen.

Do they sound friendly?

No.

They sound rude and like “I don’t care if you buy or not.”

It doesn’t take much time to write a nice, friendly email that lets the prospect know their business is important to you.

A Friendly and Polite Follow-up Email:

“Thank you for the opportunity to quote on _________________.
You will enjoy the time saving and cost-saving benefits of this ___________.

“Your quote is $5,000. The vendor has informed us the price will be increased next month, so it’s best to let me know your decision as soon as possible.

“If you have questions, feel free to phone me at ______________.

“I look forward to working with you.

“Have a great day!”

(your name, title & phone number)

 

A Personalized and Warm Email Response to a Question

Just today I received a warm and friendly email as an answer to a question I emailed to my favorite skin care company.   Here it is:

Hi Ann,

Thanks for writing in with your great questions!

All of our skincare can be used together or separately!  We do suggest . . . (she included important information about using the products.)

I hope that answers your questions!

Much love,
Aubrey

You can see more email tips on these pages:

7 Words that Won the Sale by Email

An Unexpected Response to One Email

And . . .

You can use the 63 effective copy & paste letters in this e-book – as sales-building emails.

Thanks for reading – here’s wishing you a spectacular day!

Ann

Filed Under: Blog, Email Marketing Tagged With: copy & paste letter & emails, email mistakes, follow-up emails, friendly email, polite email

Latest Posts

  • Spreading the Word
  • Unexpected Tech Help
  • Your Irresistible Subject Line
  • Before You End that Call
  • Are You Part of This 90% Statistic?
  • 5 New Clients Each Week
  • Surprising Customer Support
  • Golden Accomplishments
  • This May Surprise You
  • 5 Reasons They Would Love to Hear from You

CONTACT

Ann Barr
Virginia Beach, VA
757.463.0924

Let’s Connect

  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

© Copyright 2010 - 2022, Ann Barr · All Rights Reserved