Why You Need to Call Your Leads Right Away... or Don't Even Bother

In today's ultra-competitive business landscape, your company is likely spending a good deal of money to generate leads and prospects for your products and services. Hopefully, these efforts are generating quality leads for your business. But what happens once those leads do contact you?

You already know how important it is to follow up with your leads. But did you realize how important the "need for speed" really is?

Here are some eye-opening statistics to drive home the point:

• Studies show that waiting more than five minutes to contact a lead after they have contacted you the first time results in a 46% lower qualification rate.


• Waiting another five minutes results in a 23% lower conversion rate.


• If you wait more than an hour to contact a lead, you're seven times less likely to convert them to a sale.

In this instance, speed really does make a difference.

This study suggests that by simply calling a new prospect within a minute of lead generation, the likelihood of conversion increases by 391 percent. After two minutes, it drops to 160 percent. After three minutes, it goes down to 98 percent. After 30 minutes, it reduces to 62 percent. And after only one hour, the conversion rate drops to 36 percent. It goes down from there.

The key takeaways are:

1. The "speed-to-call" is the single biggest factor in converting leads.


2. Calling prospects six times leads to optimal conversion rates.


3. Combining the recommended call strategy with an optimal email strategy can yield exceptional results.

Combining this strategy with an integrated print campaign leaves little doubt that the hottest leads will be reached in ways that very few of your competitors are implementing.

Consumers may start with price-shopping, but a sense of loyalty drives a large portion of them back to the vendor who reached them first. The company that educates and shows responsive customer service is able to build a bond that can overcome price sensitivities.

Being the first company to respond to a lead conveys the impression that you're more interested in doing business with them than your competitors are. It can also lead to a longer and more memorable conversation.

The speed in reaching a hot prospect is one major part of the success equation. The next part is to focus on the conversation itself rather than trying for a quick close or sale. Listen first, ask questions, and then provide the answers the prospect is looking for. It sounds simple enough, but such subtleties are often overlooked.

Being systematic, consistent, and persistent will be the winning formula in this race. You're competing hard to generate quality leads, new inquiries, and new prospects. But that's only the beginning. By putting systems in place to contact incoming leads as quickly as possible and to follow up with them fast, you'll save precious resources and make customer acquisition a much simpler process.