Feast or famine. When it comes to follow up, this is what happens: You either are stalked hourly by a robocomputer emailing you about your unclaimed shopping cart on a website you visited by accident 3 years ago, or you get crickets from the person who took time to come out, meet with you, ask you pointed questions, so much so that you feel compelled to file a missing person’s report on him.
Why does appropriate follow up seem like such a daunting challenge?
If you are in sales (and these days, we all are, pretty much), and you respond to an email requesting information, you handle a phone call with a person making an inquiry, you meet with a potential customer about an upcoming project, or process a website question, how hard is it to simply follow up?
I’m not saying to hound this lead to the ends of the earth. But reaching out once or twice to ask if you could provide any additional information, or inquire as to when a decision is going to be made, or simply to thank him or her for contacting you, all feel like appropriate responses.
Especially if a prospect or customer takes time to meet with you in his or her office, and you expend some effort getting information about future business, the very LEAST you can do is shoot a quick email thanking that person for his or her time in meeting with you. Common courtesy, people.
Think about it. Other than automated responses from creepy websites, how often do you get blown off by people and companies who should know better? Pay attention to those who actually follow up with you in a timely and professional manner. Chances are, THOSE are the firms with whom you should be working.
But don’t be that creepy stalker either:
