Following up from our last post, below are 2 remaining key practices that every lead buyer should follow in order to improve their conversions.
III. Earn the Consumer’s Trust
Consumers are going to do business with someone they trust. There are 4 key components to earning a consumer’s trust:
1) Qualify the Consumer’s Needs
In this step you need to ask open ended questions to learn the reason for their inquiry. Use both financial and emotional qualifiers to pinpoint the reason they completed an online inquiry. It is likely that there may be some sort of “pain” point behind the inquiry. If you don’t identify that “pain” point then one of your competitors will. As a result, they are more likely to get the consumer’s business. Below is an example of open-ended qualifying questions:
- “What is it about your current mortgage that caused you to inquire?”
- “Have you found a house that you are looking to buy that you need the loan for”
- “Is there a pressing financial need that is behind your inquiry to refinance?”
If you can identify 2-3 solid qualifiers, or examples of “pain,” from the open-ended question process, then it’s safe to move to step 2.
2) Identify the “Implications” for the Needs
This is arguably the most important step of the process because if you can find an emotional response to the needs, the consumer will be able to literally “feel” how your solution will help them. Some examples of “Implication” questions would be:
- “What might happen if you don’t resolve the situation?”
- “How has the financial strain of your current situation affected your stress level?”
Once you have identified the “Implications” of the consumer’s needs, then you may move on to step 3.
3) Listen for Buying Signals
At this point, the consumer will likely begin asking you questions that show their level of interest. This is because you have earned their trust, identified their needs and identified the emotional and financial impact those needs have on them. So at this point, the consumer needs you to solve their problem. Examples of buying signals include:
- “So, I could achieve this monthly payment and get the cash out of my house that I need?”
- “What is the application process like with your company?”
- “What are your fees and closing costs?”
- “How soon can I get the money?”
4) Obtain the Consumer’s Commitment
There are several keys to gaining commitment. Undoubtedly any commitment that includes a monetary component is best. But if that is not possible, get the consumer to commit to receive your “official packet,” whatever that might be.
Bonus Tip: Recycle Older Leads
Many of your consumers will fall out of the process for various reasons. Maybe they had a change of heart, or maybe they were overwhelmed by the calls from multiple companies. However, many of these consumers are still in the market for a product or service several weeks after their initial inquiry, but by then most of your competitors have already thrown that consumer to the floor.
Set up a process to call any consumer that says they are not interested (or any consumer for whom you have left unreturned messages) at 30 days from the point they were removed from the initial call cycle. Introduce yourself and let them know that they should contact you if they are still in the market for the product they requested. Repeat this process at day 45, 60 and 90. LeadPoint has several clients for whom this is one of their more profitable sources of business.
We hope these 4 steps will prove valuable and are confident that if you loyally follow them you will see measurable improvements in your conversions rates and ROI over time.
