How to Get Back Those Ghosted Leads
I get asked a lot about how to get back in front of people who appear to have ghosted you. When you dig a little deeper, it’s apparent that you have a lot more to do with being ghosted than the prospect does. I’m going to give you a couple of quick things to keep in mind to prevent these breaks in your process, and then I’ll dig a little deeper into what’s really happening when a prospect goes dark.
One thing that you can do right away is make sure that your next step is defined and scheduled before you leave any meeting. If your prospect is open and in front of you, your calendar should be too.
Don’t send a proposal without scheduling a meeting to discuss it. If I'm proposing to you, it means we're most of the way through the sales process. It's time to talk about how much this is going to cost and when we can start. I’ll put it all in writing and email it while we're on the phone together or I will put it up on a screen share while we're doing a video call, but I won’t just send you a proposal so you can take it and run.
Don’t let your prospects take control of your sales process. Guide them to the next step. Your prospects are begging to be led. Lead them. They need you.
Ghosted? Don’t Beat Yourself Up
They don't return your phone call. They won't respond to emails. They've gone dark on social media. Now what? Start prospecting again.
Forget all the emotion for a second. Quit beating yourself up. Quit being frustrated. Quit blaming whatever you're going to blame and think about what you can control right now. You've got someone that you know you can help. You have more detailed information about their situation and the problems they're trying to solve. You know they've already engaged with you in the past.
They were once a lead and now they're a heavily qualified prospect. They're just not communicating with you. Go back to the problem you solve. Go back to the way you can help. Now you can be much more focused about how you reach them.
Prospecting Becomes More Powerful
Once you get that meeting and you have a couple of exchanges, it feels like you don't have to prospect anymore. “Hallelujah! I don't have to do that.”
Guess what? You never stop. You're always looking for more and if they don't respond, hey you've been here before. Except now you've kind of looked behind the curtain, right? You know there really is potential here… there's so much potential that it's worth doing this again. You’re equipped with more context, with more knowledge, with more connection and more understanding. Discovery is done. You can be laser focused with messaging.
Breakup Emails are Childish
I don’t understand the concept of a breakup message. I think of the kids you see on tv that don't want to eat their vegetables. They say, “You know what? I'm leaving,” and they threaten to run away. They don't really want to leave, so threatening to do so means nothing.
You threatening to stop calling doesn't address the reason that they're not calling you back. We both know that if I come to you ready to buy you’ll turn right around. I know that's what you’re trying to elicit here, but it’s passive agressive. There's probably some company out there that has data to back that it works. I just don't see the value of it. It erodes your professional credibility to threaten to do something that we both know you're not going to do. So stop it.
It’s Not You, It’s Timing
Ghosting has more to do with timing than anything else so remember that it's probably not about fit. In my experience it has nothing to do with you or even with work. You have to maintain and manage your own emotions here.
Remind yourself of what you know to be true. Have a little empathy. Continue with your outreach given the tailored information you have. Say, “I recognize that there might be something going on outside of either of our control and certainly none of my business, does it make sense for us to restart this conversation at another time?”
With empathy you can let them off the hook and show a little emotional intelligence. You're a professional. You're taking back control of your sales process.
Maybe you put them in a drip campaign. Add them to your weekly newsletter or offer them something. Move forward with something that keeps you in front of them. I still believe that every outreach attempt that you make should have some kind of tangible value to them and with all you now know about them, that value should be a lot more straightforward to create.
Sometimes things are going to come up that are outside of your control. I’ve been ghosted by prospects where cataclysmic shifts in their industries have all a sudden moved our project from really important to, like ninth on the list. When things settle down, they re-engage (and they usually apologize for their absence).
So when you think about it, you’re likely giving up on them before they give up on you. So who’s ghosting whom?
Look at your own prospecting cadence and the questions that you ask to start those conversations. If you subscribe to my method of prospecting you know it’s important to refine the questions you ask. If you can, sharpen them to be more powerful and create more tension with them. If you don't have those questions, send me an email.
Do you have a story to share about being ghosted? How did it work out? Join the conversation in the Rethink The Way You Sell Community.
Jeff Bajorek
Real. Authentic. Experience.
There’s a big difference between knowing how to sell and being able to. Jeff Bajorek spent over a decade in the field as a top performer. He’s been in your shoes. He knows what it will take. He can help you succeed.
Join the Community
Related Posts
