Declaring leads as dead too soon is costing you business. Here's a dead lead horror story, with a happy ending.
I was on a call last week where a question came up asking for a workaround because their email provider would not allow them to email people they hadn't emailed in the last year. The provider was effectively declaring those leads dead.
That's crazy. Having worked with hundreds of companies, I know how many struggle with an easy way to stay in touch, but it doesn't mean they never want to email them again, or that the lead isn't still interested.
Two Real Stories
Dave is a realtor up in Cape Ann. He'd emailed his list pretty consistently for years but decided to kill off anyone who hadn't engaged in a couple of years. Eight months later, he received a voicemail from Bob.
"Hi Dave, it's Bob here. You'd been sending me the Marketwatch reports, but something must have happened with my email and I haven't received one recently, so I got your number from another agent in town. Anyway, my sister moved in with us over the summer, and we're ready to sell both houses and find a more accessible place. Can you give me a call?"
Two oceanfront listings and a new home for the family. That's a lot of commission from a dead lead. Imagine how many other people were less persistent than Bob and sold their homes without hunting down Dave.
Michelle owns a financial planning firm that years ago helped with college funding. They moved on from that work and hadn't emailed those clients in many years. Knowing many would now be focused on retirement planning rather than college prep, she sent a helpful email:
"Hi Susan, with the recent changes to the retirement rules, can I send you a copy of our new retirement readiness guide?"
Instead of declaring those leads dead, it started several conversations with living people excited to hear from her.
You can't know when someone is ready, so don't pull the plug on them too soon.
