How many times have you gotten the response “I need to talk to my business partner” or “Maybe next quarter” or “It’s just not in the budget?”

We’ve all been there.

When this happens, it feels like these prospects are uninterested, so writing them off seems logical.

But every good closer knows they need to follow up, right?

But… how do you follow up without coming across as too salesy or aggressive?

If you follow up too much or too quickly, you might seem desperate. You never want to be desperate. But if you never follow up, you’ll lose the prospect.

So how do you actually follow up with clients who are not interested? The secret is that the follow-up starts before you even get on the phone for the first time.

Qualify Before You Get On The Phone

A trained High Ticket Closer knows they have to properly qualify prospects before getting on the phone. They recognize a proper follow-up starts before the conversation even begins.

You don’t want to waste your prospect’s time – and you definitely don’t want to waste your own time.

You’re selling a solution to a problem, right? So you should only get on the phone with those who need the solution you offer. This is step one in closing.

Salespeople waste too much time on people who will never buy. They get on the phone with people who don’t have a desire to buy or don’t have the ability or trust to do it. But you are not a salesperson – you are a closer. So take the time to qualify people before you ever get on the phone.

    Are they the kind of people you want to work with?
    Can they afford your product or service?
    Do they need the solution you offer?

If you answer these questions, you’ll be able to really know what your prospects’ objections are. Are they being honest about not being able to afford your product or service?  Do you know if they could make room in the budget if they wanted to?

Do your homework so you can eliminate bad and pursue better prospects. If you do your research right, you will also be able to handle objections much more effectively.

follow up starts on the initial call - take notes
Take Specific Notes On The Initial Call

Being able to properly follow up has a lot to do with your initial call. You should know, by the end of the call, why they did not buy. What did they say on the phone?

“I need to talk to my partner.”

“We don’t have a budget this quarter but maybe next quarter.”

“The timing isn’t good. We’ve got a lot going on.”

These are some of the most common excuses you get on the phone.  But you know better than to fall for them. You also know that these excuses and your notes are a solid part of your follow-up.

Make notes on the call so you can have a complete profile of your prospect. Note their pain points, company details, why they’ve chosen to buy in the past, and why they’re choosing not to buy now.

You’re going to be able to use this information to frame your product or service as a solution to their problem and angle your follow-up strategy to hit home.

But what else can you do on the initial call?

Always get off the phone with a commitment. Are we going to talk again in one month? Two months? Even when they make an excuse to not hire you, note their objection and get a commitment.

Because you know prospects lie.
Remember: Prospects Lie

Whatever objection you’re given, remember that prospects lie.

Why would they lie to you?

Maybe they don’t want to hurt your feelings or maybe they are not a direct person. Perhaps they don’t have the money – and don’t want to admit it. Maybe they simply don’t want to be honest with someone they don’t know.

That’s why it’s so important you take notes during the initial call. If you qualify them before the call too, you’ll know if their objection is legitimate. But don’t take their objection at face value. That’ll almost never be the final answer.

Use your prospect profile, research, and intuition to figure out the real objections and then follow-up.
Say Goodbye To Traditional Sales Tactics

Salespeople talk a lot, right? They can rattle off every benefit that their product offers before you even say hello.

It’s great to know what your product offers, but as a High Ticket Closer, you don’t need to do that.

Really, talking a lot and pushing facts comes across as slimy and salesy. In your initial call and follow up calls, you can instead focus on asking questions.

Asking questions is how you’ll identify your prospect’s pain point and be able to tailor a solution perfect for them.

What solution are you offering? For example, if you’re offering a lead generation program, your solution would be helping people get more leads. When you’re on the phone with them, what do you say? A traditional salesman would talk about all the benefits their program offers. They would go on and on, saying, “My lead generation program will get you 100 new client calls next week through our state of the art technology…” They would go on and on about their product.

A closer would focus on the client instead. In their mind, they are already crafting their follow-up, so they know they need to get to the root of their prospect’s pain point. Instead of talking about their product, they might ask about their prospect’s goals for lead generation. Maybe they would ask if the prospect felt like they were getting on the phone with the right people.

You might realize their pain point is not just lead generation but finding qualified leads. Since you qualified them before getting on the phone, you know you’re an expert at this. You can tailor the solution you offer them to not just be about generating hundreds of leads, but getting them leads that are qualified for their business.

This is a new form of closing script that helps you see and relate to your client better. Understanding your client’s pain points will help you follow up and close, but it’ll also make you more likable. Instead of coming across as a pushy or desperate salesperson, you’ll appear as a business associate. Someone the prospect can trust and listen to. Someone they can build a relationship with.

What’s the secret to any solid relationship? Listening. No one wants to feel ignored, so when someone takes the time to listen, the speaker will naturally like that person more. This will build trust. So when you offer a solution – after building a relationship and trust – they’ll be more likely to listen to you.

a good follow up involves a sequence
Initiate A Follow Up Sequence

You’ve got your profile and notes. You’ve figured out their real objections. Now what?

You don’t want to come across as desperate, but you don’t want to lose the prospect. So what’s the perfect balance? How often do you follow up and how quickly after the first call?

It’s not an easy answer because it totally depends on the transaction and what you’re selling.

If the prospect has a more urgent need, you should follow up sooner than if you’re working on a long-term purchase of an expensive product.

The best advice we can give you is to invest in good training to be a High Ticket Closer and to get some experience. This experience will build your High Ticket Closer common sense, which you will then use to plan how often you should follow up. Read the room and determine if your prospect will think you’re being desperate if you follow up quickly.

But remember: 80% of sales reps require at least 5 follow-up interactions to close. 44% give up after one follow-up. So play the game using your intelligence and skill to nurture your prospect.

This is an excellent opportunity to use your Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool. Since you’ll need to follow up more than once, you can add notes to your CRM about when you should follow up. You could even schedule emails to be sent to them, so you don’t have to think about it.

A well-managed CRM is a Closer’s secret weapon. It’ll monitor when was the last time you contacted your prospect and remind you when you should touch base again.

But it really matters how you use these follow-up emails and phone calls. Don’t bug your prospects with messages like, “Hey, I just wanted to follow up. Can we do business?” There is a right way to follow up and it might take multiple follow-ups.

So use each conversation to do two things: posture yourself as a trusted advisor and offer value.

These two points will sell your product better than any initial phone call.
Posture Yourself

How do you come across to your prospects? If your follow-up starts with, “Oh hey there, I’m just following up. Are you ready to do business now?” you will sound needy and desperate.

So you need to posture yourself.

A good closer does not seem like a salesperson to their client. They are a trusted advisor. - Dan Lok Click To Tweet

You need to build trust with your client to be seen as an advisor and source of advice.

How do you do this? It’s a continuation from the strategy you implemented in your initial call. Every time you contact them, focus on them instead of your product. Ask them questions and dig into their pain point.

You offer a solution to their problem, right? If they want it solved, good. But if they don’t want it solved, then be direct with them. You don’t want to waste your time or their time.

This posturing is what will stop you from sounding desperate in your follow up.

Make sure you come across as the confident business associate who offers a solution to their pain point. Not the needy salesman who’s got to make a quota.

That confidence will help them build trust in you.

So don’t follow up with, “Want to buy? How about now? What about?” It appears desperate and needy and defeats any posturing you’ve worked towards.

how to follow up
Offer Value And Content In Your Follow Up

Another way to build trust is to offer content and value in your follow-up.

This is where you need to reference the profile you’ve developed for your client – and why Closers know that their follow-up starts before the call.

What is the prospect’s main pain point?

Let’s say your client can’t get leads. They’ve tried every solution in the book and they just can’t seem to get leads. You had a great initial call and you think you could really help them. But they end the call with, “I just can’t afford you right now. Maybe in a year or so.”

Being the well-trained Hight Ticket Closer you are, you did your research beforehand and you qualified your prospect. You know what they charge and the relative amount of business they’re doing, so you know they can afford your offer.

What’s their real objection? They can afford you but they don’t know you. They need more from you. So you get off the phone with a commitment that you’ll have another call in three months.

But before that call, you start working to solve their pain point: lack of leads. You keep dripping personalized content to solve their problem. Every time you’re in touch, you’re offering value.

Maybe it’s sending an article that has to do with finding leads. Or maybe it’s a note saying, “Hey, this tactic is working for another client of mine to get leads.” Not only does this offer value and content, but it also reaffirms your social proof.

Every time you talk you can also subtly be asking, “Do you still have that problem?” Or “How is that situation?” Or “Have you solved your lead problem?”

When following up with uninterested prospects, don’t be pushy. Be helpful, useful, and practical. - Dan Lok Click To Tweet
Now They Can Come To You

What happens when you posture yourself as an authority and trusted advisor while providing helpful content in your follow up?

Your prospect will contact you.

Or you might get the message, “I don’t know that your service is right for me, but I have this friend.” Building that relationship means they could refer you to someone who does need your solution, product, or service.

a good closer knows how to follow up

What is your goal as a closer?

You’re helping them solve their problems – and if it’s not your solution, recommend something that is going to solve their problem. You might not be getting paid to do this because it’s not your product or service. So why recommend what’s going to solve their problem?

Because it’s the right thing to do. It’s also the smart thing to do.

You want to feel good about your work. You want to help people. So don’t be the slimy snake oil salesperson who’s just trying to make a buck however he can. Do what’s right for your prospect. It’s the ethical thing to do that will help you be fulfilled in your business long term. But it’s also the smart thing to do because it keeps your prospect happy and they see you in a positive way.

It builds relationships – and it builds trust.
Always Work On The Relationship

Bottom line: when you follow up with a prospect that is not interested, you have to make it about them. Don’t make it about you. Don’t make it about your product…

Make it about them. You have to appeal to their self-interest.

This has a lot to do with the fundamentals of closing.

Do you want so some examples of this? What closing looks like in the world… What’s really working for closers right now… What students of High Ticket Closing are doing right now to get them closing even during a pandemic…?

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But only if you want to learn how to start a business that you can run from anywhere in the world with only a laptop and work on your own hours.