It’s one of the most frustrating parts of our job. We have someone we want to help, they want our help but we just can’t do it. We miss the sale, they miss what they want and everybody loses. It doesn’t have to be this way though. With a little finesse and a good solid network, you can help and profit from damn near everyone who you speak with.
Just because you can’t sell them your stuff, doesn’t mean they can’t be sold. Often times, we even know someone who can help them, but since we don’t get paid, we don’t offer the help. That’s just wrong. If you can help a prospect, even if you don’t get paid, you should do so. Even better is when you do help them AND get paid. That’s what I’m about to teach you.
Instead of coming up with some grandiose theory of what you can do, let’s talk real work scenarios and how you can get paid from them. You spent the time and money getting the prospect’s contact info to turn them into a lead, you should be paid back. The prospect took the time and effort to seek out help, you should assist them in obtaining that help.
Let’s say you’re in the mortgage biz. These days the credit guidelines are really tough. You’ve got to have perfect debt to income ratios, great credit as well as plenty of disposable income. Not everyone fits into this box. As of late, most people don’t fit in the box. Americans have a negative savings rate. That means most people don’t have cash in the bank.
Instead of denying these people and hopping on to the next one, let’s see what we can do to insure they come back to you when the time is right. Before that though, let’s get you paid back for the money and time you’ve spent to communicate with the would be dead prospect.
We know that everyone in America with a pulse has to buy some form of insurance. Every time you turn down a prospect, you can say “Right now, I’m not able to help you get into a home but I can help you start the home buying process. First I’m going to introduce you to my insurance guy. He’s going to lower your premiums and free up some of your cash so you can start paying debts down…”
Instead of just telling them “no” and sending them on their way, push them over to your insurance guy. In most cases he’ll pay you $25/lead to go back to your marketing budget. Plus, now there’s two of you following up with the prospect. They’ll remember you when the time is right an come back. Especially with you and the insurance person reminding them.
Let’s say the reason they were denied was over bad credit. The same process applies here. Instead of turning them down and moving on, find a credit repair company who will pay you per lead. The best part about this is when their credit is repaired, they’ll come back to you, the mortgage guy, for a loan because you helped them get ready for it.
Let’s talk about another scenario with a different industry. Let’s say you sell cars. The prospect walks on the lot and falls in love. You get all the demo out of the way and they are ready to buy. Once they get back in finance, they get bad news. Most car guys would just let them walk. Not you.
Instead of just letting them stroll out the door, grab them and the finance guy and find out what they need. One thing you can do is send them to an insurance guy, similar to the scenario above. Another thing you can do is call around to second chance lots and see what they have. Most second chance lots will pay a couple hundred in referral fees. You may not have sold a car, but you at least got paid for your time.
Most people forget that being in sales is all about finding solutions to problems. If you see the same problems pop up from your prospects on the regular, start looking for outside, innovative, solutions for them. Build the network for them. This is a powerful selling strategy because the prospect sees your effort and will not forget it. When the time is right, they will thank you for your help, with their business.
Being in this industry for a while, sometimes people will hit me up for motivation, personal development or coaching. Those things really aren’t in my zone of genius though. In the beginning I would just say “sorry I can’t help you but if you need marketing or sales help come back” After a while, when the issue came up more and more, I reached out to a well respected coach who could help the people I couldn’t. I worked out a referral agreement with him and not only can I now help everyone, I get paid whether I can personally help them or not.
We all know that in sales, you lose more than you close. That means there’s a lot of meat left on the table that no one gets to eat. Basically your losing more than you make. Most salesmen don’t even know this and surely haven’t thought of it this way. I have though and I want to maximize my ability to help and get paid from as many people as possible.
If you’re looking for innovative ways to sell and help leads, then I got your back. It’s not always about losing the sale, sometimes it’s about directing it elsewhere and minimizing your loss. If you’re going to make money on every lead, you need a network and a system to follow . My program Ultimate Inbound Lead Selling System will arm you with the info to put that system in place. Watch a free video about it at www.inboundleadcloser.com
If you’d like to speak with me personally about how my consulting or other products can benefit you and your business, simply fill out the form below and we will see what I can do to help you. Lastly, be sure to share this with someone you know who’s in sales. Help me spread the word!
