MBA2355 How To Follow Up with Clients Without Being Annoying + Free Ride Friday

0:09Heyo! Welcome to the$100 MBA show. Powerful business lessons you can count on. Deliver to you on a silver platter. I'm your host, your coach, your teacher, Omar Zinhome. I'm also the co-founder of Webinar Ninja, an independent software company I started back in 2014. And today's episode is Free Ride Friday. On Free Ride Friday, we give away a lifetime membership to the$100 MBA program, our six-part course on how to become a better entrepreneur, 100 % guaranteed over at 100mba.net. If you want to win a free ride, just leave us an Apple Podcast rating and review, and you enter our weekly random draw.

0:43We announce our winners every Friday. A little bit later in the episode, we'll be announcing this Friday's winner. In today's episode, you'll learn how to follow up with clients without being annoying. So many deals get dropped because of lack of follow-up. In my experience, 20 % to 30 % of your revenue can be increased simply by just following up properly with your clients. Whether you're closing deals with clients one-on-one via email, or you're sending a follow-up emails for webinars, or you had a call with a client and you want to follow up regarding that call on the decision they've made.

1:19Follow-up is where you win the game because it's your advantage. Most people get lazy. Most people don't do it right. And this is how you can beat the competition by being better at it. And I'm going to show you how in today's episode without having to feel like you're scammy or bothering your potential clients. In fact, I'm going to show you how to do it so they feel like you're doing them a favor. So let's get into it. Let's get down to business. All the strategies I'm going to share with you today, you can pretty much do at any scale, whether you're doing one-on-an-e-mail or group email, or even through Messenger or group text on WhatsApp.

1:53Some people do business on these apps. But for the sake of this lesson, the examples I'm going to give is just following up with a client individually one-on-one. But again, you can apply this to any circumstance. One of the most important things about follow-up is expectations. You have to set the tone with your clients and let them know they should expect you to follow up. Just by setting that expectation with the client, you already are not annoying when they get the follow-up. Because you told them you will follow up. So, for example, if you're on a sales call with somebody and you're giving them a demo of your product or service or your program or whatever it might be, at the end of the call, you could say, hey, here's the offer.

2:30Or I will follow up with you tomorrow via email so I can ask you what you decided or whatever you want to say or the way you want to word it. But that's kind of how I do it. I like to do this because it shows, number one, that you're professional and you have a system. And number two, that you're going to hold them accountable and you will do what you say. And that's important because if they become a client or they sign up for your program or sign up for your service, it shows that you're a pro. So that's number one. Number two, you send that email and you can automate this if you'd like. And I like to keep this first email short and sweet.

3:03And again, we're going to do the same thing we did in the first conversation when we're closing off the call, where we set up expectations and say, hey, it was great to talk to you. Here is a summary of what we talked about. Like I mentioned, I was going to ask you what decision you made. If you'd like to sign up, please let me know by XYZ. in the next 48 hours, the next two days, whatever it is. Let me know by then. If I don't hear back, I will send you another email with some more information. So what this email does is that, one, you recap the conversation, you remind them of all the value of what they're getting and why they should sign up or all the things that were positive about the meeting.

3:47Number two, you give them sort of a deadline and say, hey, if I don't hear back in the next 48 hours or something like that, you're gonna hear back from me again and I'm gonna give you some more information. More information doesn't sound like I'm nagging. It just says, hey, it sounds like you haven't made a decision yet, so maybe I'll give you some more information to help you make that decision. And that's the point of that wording there. It's like, hey, I'm going to send you more information if I don't hear back with the decision in the next 48 hours. Not, I'm going to nag you or bombard you.

4:14I'm going to help you, right? And I like to word my emails to sound like I'm their consultant. I'm on their side. I'm going to help them make a decision to buy or not buy. Maybe they're not a good fit, But the point here is that I'm going to help them. So that's the first email that goes out. If they don't buy, if they don't respond, if they don't say anything, my next email is going to be different. Now, this one you can't automate. And that's okay because it's so effective. It's worth your time. My next email I send is really short and sweet. But this time I attach a video. I say, hey, I just shot you a quick video with more information on XYZ, on the product, on the service, or whatever you talked about.

4:53And this is literally a video that you could shoot with your phone in selfie mode. And it's literally a minute or two where you say, hey, client X, I just wanted to shoot you a quick video and mention feature number one, feature number two, benefit number one, benefit number two of why you would benefit from this product service program, whatever it might be. You mentioned on the call that you struggled with this and our program helps you with that. And these are just like nice little benefits of pushing them over the byline and saying, hey, I know that you're thinking about it. Let me remind you or highlight some things that maybe I didn't mention that could be a value for you.

5:31And then you end the video with a little bit of urgency. But it has to be real urgency or scarcity, whether it's a limited number of spots you have or a discount that's expiring or a deal you can't honor or your prices are going up. Just let them know what that urgency is or that scarcity is and say, hey, I want to see you win. You got to let them know that in the video. I want to see you win. And if we work together, I will make sure of that. You got to make sure that they understand that you will take some responsibility. You are going to trade on your name, that you are going to say, hey, I'm taking ownership here and I got your back.

6:07Some people just need to hear that to know that, OK, I can trust this person and this is the right decision. Now, of course, you've got to be able to back that up, but you wouldn't be in business if you couldn't. Usually, when the client gets the second email and watches your video, it's a done deal. What I love about the second email is that people tend to not like to read sometimes when they're in a rush, but they'll be curious about a video that's attached. And I like to attach a video, meaning I like to keep it short and attach it so they see a thumbnail. I don't like linking to it because that looks kind of weird and some people don't like clicking on links.

6:39and it gets them curious and it looks really personal. And wow, you actually shot it for them. And it's not some sort of generic video. And that really earns you a lot of trust and authority and gets them over the byline. Now, you guessed it. At the end of the video or in the email, let them know, hey, watch this video. Takes two minutes. If I don't hear back by X amount of time, I will follow up. Let them know that you're going to follow up. Okay, third email. Third email is a little bit different. It's a little bit of a curveball that they're not really expecting. But basically what it is, is, hey, maybe we need to take one step back.

7:15And you say, I haven't heard from you, or maybe you haven't made a decision yet. And in most cases, I have found that this means you have questions. And I want to make sure I answer those questions. Why don't you grab a time for my calendar here, and let's book a 15-minute call. This could be a second call. But basically the point of this call is, let's clear up any questions you might have. And there's a good chance they have just one or two questions that are really simple for you. Like they're so easy for you to answer and they're not a problem at all for you to fulfill. But in their head, it seems complicated because they're a beginner.

7:49But by just giving them that opportunity to just book a call on your calendar, it's non-confrontational and they can ask questions and make that clear. Hey, this is your call where you get to ask any question you like and I'll answer it. I won't be doing any selling on this call. Make sure it's clear. It's not a sales call. This is just a chance for them to ask questions. This is actually really, really effective because a lot of people just have some questions they need answering or they had time to think about or talk about it with their partner or business partner and they need these questions addressed.

8:20Usually, if they haven't bought yet, you can close the deal on this call because you address those objections that they have, those questions they have, and they have no reason not to buy anymore. And by this time, you've built so much goodwill and you've been so helpful, they're going to feel a sense of reciprocity, a sense of like, hey, I got to respond and give this person a try. If they book the call, you have the call, you're golden. If you don't have the call, they don't respond to the email. Again, guess what on that email? Hey, if I don't see you schedule a call on my calendar in the next few days, I will follow up with you one more time.

8:57And I'd like to follow up one more time via email. and in this email, I just flat out be honest with them and say, hey, when we had a call, when we talked, you told me these were your goals. And if you want to achieve these goals, I have a plan for you. I have a product for you. I have a service for you. I have a program for you that can help you achieve these goals. And it's okay to be a little bit aggressive. Now, I don't mean overly aggressive, but just a little bit pushing them a little bit, holding them accountable and say, hey, if you're serious about achieving your goals, If you want what you asked for on that call, then I'm here for you and let's get this started.

9:32Let's get it going. Let's go. But if you want to continue to push this off for some time in the future, who knows when that is? Just let me know. I won't email you anymore and I'll be here for you when you need me. And I love that line because if they're not a buyer, because they just are not capable of buying right now, whether they don't have the money or the time or the effort or the motivation, they will tell you, you gave them an out. They'll reply and say, I'm not interested right now, but I'll reach out when I need you. And that's great. That means they're not gonna shop around and you got your answer.

10:03And this is a technique that I like to use. It's not very popular because it doesn't actually mesh with a lot of people's thinking. And that is the myth that you can make somebody buy. No, some people are just not ready to buy and that's okay. They're not a good fit for you, but you got to build that relationship and that trust. So when they are ready to buy, they come back to you. And that's the point of this. Give them an out if they need an out. You're being authentic. You're being real. And you're being fair to them. But that first part of the email saying, hey, if you really want this, if you want those things you mentioned on the call, let's do this.

10:32That might be the push they need. They're like, yeah, I don't want to delay this anymore. This person's right. Let's make it happen. And often you'll get a reply that says, let's do it. And then you send them the invoice and it's done. So that's it. Those are the four emails. It's not annoying. It's well thought out. And you're making sure that you are positioning yourself as the consultant, as the helper, or is the person that cares and has your best interest in mind. Again, your job is to help them make a decision. That's what sales is. Not push them into something they don't need or want or can't do.

11:02By doing this, you don't come off as annoying. You come off as professional and somebody that has it together. They're going to want to work with you either right away or in the near future. That wraps up today's lesson. But today's episode is not over. It's Free Ride Friday. Let's see who won this week's free ride. And the winner is King of Video. That's a handle on Apple Podcasts. King of Video says, listen for distilled and useful business insights and lessons. Five stars. This is the best podcast for short, distilled and insightful business lessons. I've learned a lot as a business owner and creator.

11:35Love the energy too. Well, thank you so much, King of Video, for your awesome review. Appreciate it all the way from Kenya. Your mission is to email me over at omar at 100mba.net. If you love this show, let us know in a reading and review when you enter our weekly random draw. We call Freeride Friday. Just pop it into Apple Podcasts and you enter our draw until you win our lifetime membership to the$100 MBA program, our six-part course on how to become a better entrepreneur, 100 % guaranteed over at 100mba.net. Before I go, I want to leave you with this. When you're following up, you're not following up with some random person, some imaginary person.

12:10There's a real person on the other side of that email. And I just see it as this is an opportunity for me to build a relationship and to prove that they can count on me, that I am in their corner. They're kind of my pen pal where I'm trying to show them, hey, you can trust me. I got your back. This is what you're going to get. This is what you're going to learn. This is what you're going to benefit. Let's make this happen. And if you're not ready, that's okay. I also say that's all right, as I mentioned. And when you have that kind of intention, it really shines through. People can hear it and people can read it.

12:43They feel it and it differentiates you from the crowd that's just vanilla and just trying to get them to open emails through some, you know, spammy subject lines. No, I like to write these emails as if I'm writing to a friend. I'm not trying to trick them into anything. I'm trying to build a relationship. Thanks so much for listening and I'll check you on Monday's episode. I'll see you then. Take care.

13:13Thank you.