How can you prioritize prospects who are not ready to buy?

Understanding the different levels of prospect awareness will help you to sell your products and services more efficiently. Eugene Schwartz's "Breakthrough Advertising" outlines five prospect awareness stages: Completely Unaware, Problem-Aware, Solution-Aware, Product-Aware, and The Most Aware. This approach allows you to meet your reader where they are, building trust and likeability. As they journey through each stage, they become closer to becoming a customer, and you become their trusted advisor.

I feel like this is leading. No one is aware until they are aware. Either we market to you or we simply do our jobs and convey a message. Our job is to convey, pursued, advocate, promote and fight for a point of view.Give all the relevant info and showcase here is why. I have sold to people unaware I or my company or my tool existed in the same sales cycle time that a high engaged lead did. The level of awareness should be replaced with level of difficulty. Either they are too shrewd for you, or you are to persuasive enough. Welcome to sales.

Prioritizing prospects not ready to buy involves nurturing them effectively. Segment these prospects based on their interests and behavior. Implement lead scoring to identify those showing the most potential. Focus on providing valuable, educational content to keep them engaged and informed. Use marketing automation to maintain regular communication, and set up drip campaigns to guide them through the buyer's journey. By staying connected and nurturing these prospects, you can ensure they are well-prepared and more likely to convert when they're ready.

You have to understand how prospects like to be contacted. Meet them where they are on their channel of preference. Go the extra step of having your lead list optimised for this specifically. When you speak with someone, or if someone responds to your email or social media message, confirm that you have reached them on the channel that they like and where subsequent messages should take place.

Tailoring your communication to your audience is a crucial aspect of effective communication. There are various ways to do this, and when done correctly, it enables you to quickly engage your audience and achieve optimal results. Know your audience Communication objectives Communicating through different channels Adapting communication Communicate effectively by tailoring your message to your audience. This leads to quicker engagement and optimal results.

One thing I have found helpful in my experience is to keep long lasting contact with them. Set up a cadence for the sole purpose of keep nurturing leads that are in this stage. This cadence is to keep it warm with a series of steps that can include: New and exciting information about the solution, Plain and simple greeting and keeping in touch, mock drafts showcasing how they can benefit from your solution or a POC. Keeping in touch is a great way to keep the lead warm. Having short meetings as well with the prospects, to do all of the mentioned above as well is a great method.

In sales, tracking and scoring behavior are your secret weapons: Insights: Learn about customer preferences and needs. Personalization: Customize interactions for valued customers. Timing: Reach out at the right moments for higher conversions. Efficiency: Streamline efforts, saving time and resources. Predictive Power: Anticipate future actions, staying ahead. Practical steps: Use CRM tools for tracking. Apply scoring systems to prioritize leads. Analyze data for informed decisions. Adapt strategies based on behavior insights. ????

This is so so so important, I would highly recommend having a program to track your prospects so you know when they are engaging with your content, what they are clicking on, what's interesting them and most importantly you know when they will be ready to reengage and be in a buying position. We use a Lead Nurturing platform called Dynamo that will help us to track all email engagement and web traffic, nurturing over time through an email journey and spitting out pipping hot leads for me at the end.

if a prospect isn't ready to buy and is in their learning phase, it's crucial to provide actual valuable content, regularly across different platforms so that when the time comes and they feel ready to take the next step, you are at the forefront of their mind - create a cadence and have 4/5 steps, one a week "saw this blog you find handy", "wanted to make sure you'd seen this" etc

Make sure the follow up isn’t a “follow up” but a convo that can provide the prospect with further value or micro-solution to their problem.

Far too often, follow ups just focus on ascertaining a timescale or nudging the lead to an expedited meeting. This adds no value & risks the prospect becoming 'blind' to your email. Think about all the emails you receive from various mailing lists - how many do you just swipe to delete based on the sender, as you have decided they offer no value? (& really should unsubscribe from!) It's no different from those receiving your FUPs. Instead focus on adding value, social proofing & building rapport, as then, when the times right the lead will come to you, as you have demonstrated knowledge & created the perception of being a trusted advisor. People buy from people, so remember that selling yourself is as important as selling the product!

In sales, automating and personalizing is a game-changer: Efficiency through Automation: Streamline tasks to save time and ensure consistency. Scalability: Handle leads from a few to thousands effectively. Data-Driven Insights: Use automation for personalized strategies. Tailored Personalization: Deepen connections with data-driven personalization. Enhanced Customer Experience: Value each customer's uniqueness for lasting relationships. In practice: Implement CRM software for automation. Utilize data analytics for insights. Craft personalized messages and solutions. Save time, offer insights, and create lasting customer connections. Embrace these tools and watch your sales soar! ????

Automate with Heart ???? In my journey, automation isn't about losing the personal touch; it's about amplifying it. 1. CRM Mastery ?? Imagine your CRM system as a trusted ally. It streamlines tasks and automates campaigns, ensuring no prospect falls through the cracks. 2. Personalisation Power ?? Personalisation software is like a chisel for sculpting your messages. It tailors content based on prospect behavior, making it more engaging and relevant. 3. Efficiency & Engagement ?? Automation lets you do more in less time while maintaining a personal connection. By combining technology with personalisation, we ensure each prospect feels like an individual, not just a name on a list.

What do prospects think about your approach? This is why I've been reaching back out to the prospects that I was in contact with during the last 6 months. And I asked them to provide me with some feedback on why they decided to get in touch with me. I assumed this would be due to figures. Guess what they said? ?? “I love that you personalize your emails!” “I know how hard your job is, so I felt you deserve a compliment for researching my background :)” “You seem easy to talk to” “Very relaxed but still knowledgeable” My takeaways? Yes, be passionate about your product. Know it inside out. BUT Address your prospect as a HUMAN, not with their Job title. Write simple language. And be straight to the point.

In sales, constant evolution is the key to success. Review and refine your techniques regularly for these reasons: 1. Continuous Improvement: Regular reviews identify what's working and what isn't, fostering ongoing excellence. 2. Adaptation: Sales and customer preferences change. Reviewing keeps you ahead in this evolving landscape. 3. Efficiency: Streamlining processes saves time and resources by eliminating what doesn't contribute to success. 4. Customer Focus: Reviews ensure a focus on providing exceptional value as customer needs evolve. 5. Competitive Edge: A commitment to improvement sets you apart in a fast-paced, competitive field. ????

First off ask the right q's to know why its not now & genuinely if ever. Become a trusted voice to them. Relationship building is the art side of sales & super important to develop your empathy. The more you give the more you get! Share relevant information they will find useful and know this won't always be authored by your company. Utilise external expert communities. The goal of sales development isn't to book meetings now - It's to identify if you are a right fit and importantly when may be a good time to start the conversation. Collab with marketing too with your feedback and invite them to relevant events. You can boil the ocean with personalisation but if its not relevant its pointless. Relevancy is key.

Good prospecting will pay off in the long run. Completely fine if you can’t book a meeting with your prospect just yet. Instead of forcing the demo. Keep in touch and reach out based on relevant trigger points. If you stay relevant—good outbounding can even lead to inbound requests later on. Had you ever come a prospect come inbound after you prospected them? Happy prospecting ??