| p>One of your most valuable assets is people | | | | Otherwise they will forget you. Or a competitor |
| whowon't buy from you--today. They are the | | | | willcome along during the interval and grab your |
| majority ofyour prospects. But if your business is | | | | lead'sattention, and purchase order. |
| typical, and Ihope it isn't, the majority of your sales | | | | The most effective way to convert long-term |
| leads slipaway and never give you their business. | | | | leadsinto sales is drip marketing. Drip marketing is |
| Dripmarketing is the way to win them. | | | | theprocess of sending repeated, relevant messages |
| In two separate studies, trade magazine publishers | | | | toyour prospects until they are ready to buy. |
| Cahners and Penton discovered that around half | | | | Dripmarketing is like drip irrigation, where farmers |
| ofthe people who inquire about an advertisement | | | | andgardeners apply small amounts of water to |
| theysee in a trade magazine place an order within | | | | plantsover long periods of time. |
| 24months. | | | | Drip marketing is usually automated, and reliesheavily |
| So what should you do with these buyers who | | | | on email marketing letters and newsletterssent to |
| aren'tready to buy? What can you do today to get | | | | opt-in subscribers. |
| theirbusiness tomorrow? Well, here are two things | | | | Drip marketing is effective because it helps you |
| youshouldn't do. | | | | stayin touch with the people who are not ready for |
| 1. Don't pass all sales leads to sales. | | | | asales call today. Drip marketing keeps your brand |
| Salespeople want qualified leads, and a qualified lead,in | | | | inthe top of their mind. Drip marketing ensures |
| their view, is someone who is ready to buy realsoon, | | | | thatyou follow up with every single sales lead, and |
| not 12 months from now. Most salespeople lackthe | | | | onlyhand over to your salespeople the leads who |
| resources and patience to follow up with everysales | | | | areprimed and ready to discuss a purchase. |
| lead. They concentrate instead on | | | | You tend to forget people who don't stay in touch. |
| immediateopportunities. | | | | But you tend to remember people who phone |
| 2. Don't wait until the lead is ready. | | | | you,email you or write to you over time. That's |
| A lead who isn't ready to buy for a number of | | | | thebeauty of drip marketing. It helps you show |
| monthsneeds to hear from you between now and | | | | asustained interest in your prospects until |
| then. | | | | they'reready to buy. |