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AUGUST 2013 PRO INSTALLER
PRO BUSINESS
www.proinstaller.co.uk
ARE YOU WASTING YOUR SALES LEADS?
In an exclusive for PRO Installer and Clearview, Andrew Scott, Managing Director of Purplex Marketing, discusses the importance of qualifying sales leads…
The topic of sales leads comes up in almost every client conversion. Sales people tend to have a particular view on what a good sales lead is, and marketing people often have a different view. To most marketing agencies, a lead is a lead is a lead (marketing agencies rarely understand sales).
Before launching Purplex in 2004 I was client-side, as sales and marketing director of a number of very successful manufacturing, distribution and retail businesses. In fact, when we launched Purplex we had a dedicated division specialising in business consultancy and sales training. So, I’m a marketing man who understands sales leads and the sales cycle – and I’m constantly frustrated at how some companies simply waste sales opportunities, losing potential customers and millions of pounds in business. Firstly, let’s park up the idea of a sales lead. What we have are potential buyers who may be at different stages in the sales process. The 5 stages in the sales cycle are; Interest – the initial awareness and interest in your type of product or services Research – the buyer investigates the market to find more information Evaluation – assess and compare features and benefits, compare prices and offers Decision – having evaluated the options available, the buyer makes a purchase decision Sale – having made the decision, the buyer proceeds to place an order A potential buyer may connect with your business at any ?[?[? H ?[\? ???\??H?^H ????\?[??[?HXY ?[???\??Y\??\? ? [?\??[? ?\?H H?^Y\?\?[? H ?[\??X?K?H ?[\? ]X[Y?YYXY
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