Speed Works - The Necessity of Speed in Sales
The necessity of speed in sales is more apparent on the internet than anywhere else. In order to maximize the results on your leads, it’s essential that companies be able to react at the speed of business. This is especially true when it comes to internet leads. High quality internet leads are expensive and cannot be wasted, making it all the more important to be the first agent contacting a lead/potential client and to do so within five minutes of receiving that lead. The first salesperson to contact a quality lead is the one that makes the sale the majority of the time, and those that can get there inside of five minutes further improve their chances.
Leads that are contacted within the first five minutes are converted at a healthy rate of 19.86%, a number that drops to 4.96 percent in the first ten minutes, 2.12 in the first 15, and continue to fall precipitously the longer it takes to contact the lead. Of course, a higher rate of conversion isn’t the only reason speed in contacting leads is so important. There’s also the fact that contacting a lead within five minutes of their completing an online application increase contact rates by over 500% when compared to those attempting first contact at the 10 minute mark. Contacting in the first three minutes also improves the rate of qualifying high quality leads to as high as 76% while only 10% reached in the first six hours can expect the same results. Finally, over three quarters of buyers wind up closing with the company that contacts them first. Beating your competitors to the punch is essential and the most effective way to convert leads into business.
The early bird gets the worm, and a sales staff that can move immediately on high quality leads is more efficient and sees much better results. Not only will they convert their leads at a much higher rate, but they will make a first contact more often and get in ahead of any competitors. Especially with the current state of the economy, it’s essential that neither time nor money be wasted on leads that don’t convert, and the best way to convert leads is to beat your competitors to the punch and get to potential buyers in the first five minutes.
Keeping Ahead of the Curve said... November 11th, 2009 at 6:39 am
[...] in insurance sales. Internet leads are more effective than traditional methods, particularly when contacted within the first five minutes. Those companies that have been willing to utilize these leads and employ efficient methods of [...]