Use These Sales Fundamentals for Effective Post-Event Follow-Up

I Got a Call Today from Carlo

It's the start of a new quarter. QBR's are underway, the next block of travel begins tomorrow, and I need to grab the Moleskine from my desk for the meeting that starts in three minutes.

My desk phone rings from a local (but unknown) number. I rarely pick up my phone, but today was different.

I answer, "Ralph Barsi." 

“Hi, this is Carlo from Zoomdex.* I’m calling because you stopped by the Zoomdex event. I just wanted to see if you had any questions.”

“Are you an SDR, Carlo?” 

“Yes.”

“You can do better than that, my man. If you invested two minutes researching before you called, you’d learn I presented at your conference last week, and I'm a first degree connection to eight of your coworkers.”

Our chat lasted one minute. It was mostly a one-way conversation, with me educating him on the fundamentals of lead qualification. I also asked how long he worked as an SDR and if he liked it.

This is Carlo's eighteenth month in the role (eighteen months and THAT was his opener) and he's now a team lead (even worse, because he's paid to set examples for the other SDRs).

"Carlo, before you call a senior leader, you need to measure twice and cut once. You with me?"

He was with me. My tone was calm, respectful, and kind - and my message was crystal clear.

Carlo represents you, me, and everyone in our beloved sales profession. 

Carlo Needs a Different Approach to Prospects

When you engage a prospect, lead with value. Value comes in many forms, including knowing a thing or two about the prospect before you engage.

Carlo got the point, and immediately followed our call with an invitation to connect, right here on LinkedIn. That was sweet. He's a nice guy, but I'll pass on the invite.

Find three relevant points you can mention to the prospect in a three minute call (my friends at VorsightBP call this "3x3 Research").

Here's an example...

• Relevant Point #1: "Hi Ralph, it's Carlo from Zoomdex. Thank you for taking time out of your schedule to present at our conference. How do you think it went?"
• Relevant Point #2: "I researched you and it looks like you're connected to a handful of folks that work with me. Jody Rhodes says hello. How do you know each other?"
• Relevant Point #3: "As you know, our company helps healthcare providers. I saw you're also connected with people at these three hospitals. How open are you to brokering an introduction for us?"  

Pin a list of conversation starters next to your phone.

Here are examples...

• How did you find out about the conference?

• What was your favorite part of the event?
• How many sessions were you able to see?
• What are the chances you'll attend next year?
• How can we improve next year's event?
• Besides your role, what other roles or titles would benefit from our conference?

See how you're connected to the prospect.

Here's an example...

• Search for them right here on LinkedIn.

Notice there's no selling done at this point. All you're doing is a little homework. You're taking a friendly approach to your follow-up calls and establishing rapport. 

I'm confident Carlo will go on to represent us well. And you will, too.

Execute the fundamentals, engage your prospects with value, and sincerely learn about the people you're calling. Oh, and think about emailing them first.

*No, his real name is not Carlo, and Zoomdex is a fake company. Gotta protect the innocent, my friends.