If there's any solid business advice I could offer to anyone, it would be this: Always follow up.
For many reasons, a follow-up email or phone call is essential in achieving results. Often, however, some people don't feel comfortable reaching out again after a meeting, discussion or event. They're worried their ask is a chore or they're being too pushy. In fact, a friendly follow-up may just be what's required to seal the deal.
In business, how important is a follow-up?
Reasons to Follow Up
When your customers or clients hear from you, it builds trust in a consistent and reliable relationship. Communication can also benefit your business if done properly and for the right reasons. Let's look at a few examples:
- Sales - According to a HubSpot list of sales statistics, over half of your customers will say no before saying yes and 48% of sales professionals never even try to follow up. Also, it costs less to upsell to existing clients than to attract new ones.
- Customer Service - Following up with your customers, through a proactive survey or a check-in after a complaint, can be a warm welcome and/or turn an unhappy customer into one that becomes loyal to your business.
- Accounts Receivable - The sooner you can follow up on an invoice or payment that's due, the sooner you'll get paid for it.
How and How Often to Follow Up
There's nothing worse than sending a business email - introduction or otherwise - and hearing crickets. It's easy to take that personally when in fact, people are overwhelmed with life and work, and oftentimes your email is at the bottom of a long list. The follow-up may take some finesse but it's definitely worth trying. Here are some best practices:
- If it's a follow-up from a previous email, change the subject line for clarification. The recipient may not have opened it initially because it was too vague of an ask.
- Keep it short, unless more detail is required.
- Choose the best option for follow-up. If it's for legal or financial reasons, a certified letter or regular letter may be required. Email may be fine if that's how previous communications were established. A phone call may be necessary if the recipient is non-responsive but has made a commitment to you or your business.
How often to follow up will depend on the reason for the follow-up.
- If you're in sales and the person hasn't opened or responded to 4 or 5 emails, it may be time for a call. If a call goes unanswered, the prospect may have gone cold.
- For customer service, the follow-up may be as simple as a single thank you email, a few emails with helpful tips, or a one-time email to ensure that their problem was resolved.
- When an invoice isn't paid or payments are not going through, follow-up is necessary until the situation is resolved.
See also: Improve Difficult Client Conversations with These Examples
Build Trust Through Consistent Communication
Whether you're following up after a sales call or presentation, when you've finished a big project, launched a new app, or are ready to get paid, the follow-up is necessary for business. Your customer may not have been ready to buy initially but they might if they see that you do truly understand their pain points. A warm welcome to your new client will let them know that you are happy to have them aboard. Follow-up reminders for payment don't have to be demanding and angry but firm and friendly to achieve good results. Through it all, your clients will build trust in you through the consistency of your communication.
