Hurry Up and Get On That Lead!
Imagine this …
… a person walks onto your RV sales lot and starts admiring RVs. By the looks of him, he’s obviously quite interested – and he’s got questions – in fact, he’s glancing around, right now, looking for help.
• You’ve got a hot prospect there! – standing, waiting patiently, hoping for some attention, questions in his mind, needs some answers …
What Would YOU Do?
Well – if I know you – you’d be “all over” that prospect like … “honey on a hot biscuit!”
No point letting the person wait, right? Of course, you don’t want to SEEM over anxious when you approach that prospect, but you don’t want to dilly-dally either, do you?
So, Here’s an Interesting Question …
How “pronto” are you in response times when an Internet lead comes in?
Do you …
- Jump on it right away?
- Check your emails frequently enough?
- Do you have a dedicated person working all your Internet leads?
What Are Your Dealership’s Web Lead Response Time Standards?
10 minutes? 30 minutes? 2 hours? Next day? Or, … (shudder!) “We print ’em out & we call ’em when we’re not overly busy.”?
A 2011 study by Harvard Business Review of 2,241 companies exposed some serious lead follow-up issues:
- 37% responded to their Web leads within an hour (good!)
- 16% responded within one to 24 hours
- 24% took more than 24 hours
- 23% of the companies never responded at all
And, shockingly, the average response time, among companies that responded within 30 days, was 42 hours
Not good.
Can you imagine a “hot” prospect standing out on your RV lot, in the wind & rain, all alone, shivering and waiting for – 42 hours? Un-thinkable! And, that’s the cross-industry “average.”
It’s wise to …
Think of Your Online Classifieds (& your Website) the Same as Your RV Sales Lot.
Because, that’s what they are. Your Internet properties are a place where people actively browse your inventory. Your attentiveness – to your online and in-person inquiries – is crucial.
What’s more, quoting Harvard Business Review:
Firms that tried to contact potential customers within an hour of receiving a query were
- Nearly seven (7) times as likely to qualify the lead (which we defined as having a meaningful conversation with a key decision maker) – as those that tried to contact the customer even an hour later
- And more than 60 times as likely as companies that waited 24 hours or longer.
Amazing! Contacting your leads within an hour is 60 times more effective than waiting 24 hours.
Now, Mystery Shop Yourself!
Every now and then, it’s extremely useful to test your own RV selling systems. Why not create yourself a fake email address and inquire about one of your own RVs at your own Dealership?
How do you “feel” during the process at the various touch points? Speed of response. Knowledge of staff. Professionalism. Attention to detail. Asking quality questions. Clarifying. Listening. Qualifying. Trial closing. You know the game.
Try and buy an RV – from yourself! It’s a (fun and) revealing exercise.
And be sure to review the results with your staff – especially the timelines. Let everyone know that … if you respond to a Web lead within an hour, you’re sixty times (60 X) more likely to find yourself in a “meaningful conversation” with a live one!
RVAdvertiser.com by RVT.com – We’re “in the RV Dealer’s corner” helping you generate and better sell RV shopper leads.
Comments welcome below. And, thanks!
Is your entire Sales Team subscribed?
June 17th, 2013 at 1:44 pm
[…] to as quickly as possible. This is a given at all times. Be quick to reply. But, seeing this early afternoon spike for yourself – and assuming the story that folks […]