Lead Follow-Up Toolkit

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Lead Follow Up Module 1

Lead Follow-Up Toolkit

Everything You Need to

Effectively Follow Up With Leads

If you have questions about the Lead

Follow-Up Toolkit, contact your Concierge:

Name: <your first and last name> Email: <your email address> Phone: <your phone number>

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Lead Follow-Up Toolkit / 2

Lead Follow-Up Fundamentals

Laying the foundation for success

Lead follow-up is one of the most critical functions for the world’s most successful organizations. The information contained in this Lead Follow-Up Toolkit provides the tips and tools you need to organize and executive an effective follow-up program.

Three Things You Need to Know

1. What is Lead

Follow-Up?

The process of establishing contact after the lead indicates interest (filling out form on website, attending an event, etc.). It should include a brief phone call to qualify the lead and set an appointment for sales, if appropriate (not all leads will be qualified for a sales call).

2. Why is it

important?

Technology companies that actively follow up with leads using best practices generate eight times (8x) more leads than companies that don’t (Marketo).

3. How do I do it?

Make sure that you follow up with leads in a timely manner using phone and email. Keep your initial call short, but long enough to qualify the lead and set a meeting for sales if appropriate.

What’s Inside

Lead Follow-Up Basics

Master the follow-up fundamentals and learn the six _{steps you should take when following up with leads.}

Lead Follow-Up Best

Practices

We have compiled eight best practices that you can implement today to boost the effectiveness of your lead follow-up efforts.

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Lead Follow-Up Basics

How It Works

Your number one goal is to connect with a lead and conduct a brief phone call so you can determine if the lead is qualified for a sales call. If so, then you should work with the lead and sales to set an appointment.

The Lead Follow-Up Process

1 Lead is

generated

Follow-up begins as soon as a lead is generated. This often occurs on your website, via a campaign, or at an event.

2 Conduct

outreach

The most effective way to connect is to reach out to multiple times, if necessary, using both phone and email over a two week period.

3 Live call to

qualify the

lead

Have a brief phone conversation with the lead where you can determine if they are qualified to meet with sales, using simple qualification questions that tell you about the lead’s budget, authority, need and timeframe.

4 Set a

meeting

for sales

If the lead is qualified, make sure you set an appointment to meet with sales.

5 Hand off

lead to

sales

Once you have set a meeting time, introduce the lead to the salesperson via email. You should also pass along data you’ve collected about the lead to sales at this time.

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Lead Follow-Up Best Practices

Make follow-up 8x more effective with these best

practices

1. Follow up within minutes of receipt

You increase your odds of making contact if you try to connect within 5 minutes of the lead being generated. If this is not possible, make every effort to connect within 24 hours.

5. Use a script to keep your call brief

A script can help guide your first call so you can qualify the lead and set a meeting with sales in less than five minutes.

2. Use email and the phone to

connect

Use a combination of phone and email when following up with leads. In fact, make sure you reference your emails in your voicemails.

6. Qualify the lead on the first call

Use a standard set of three to five qualification questions to qualify the lead. Many companies qualify for budget, authority, need, and timeframe (BANT).

3. Use a multi-touch follow-up pattern

Over a two week period, you should reach out at least six different times =if needed. Buyers are busy and reaching them may require more than one attempt.

7. Set a meeting with sales on the first

call, if possible

Once you connect with the lead, your primary objective is to qualify them and set a meeting with sales, if appropriate.

4. Always have a call to action

Remember that your primary call to action is to get the lead to have a brief conversation with you. Every communication should emphasize this.

8. Capture qualification data for sales

Help sales succeed by capturing qualification details during your conversation. Enter the notes in your CRM or pass them via email to sales.

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VMware Lead Follow-Up Tools

All the tools you need to drive more conversions

What’s Inside

Lead follow-up pattern

The most effective cadence uses a series of phone and email touches over a two week period to increase the chances of connecting with the lead.

Email template

The template provides an easy-to-modify email script that _{you can send to your leads.}

Voicemail script

The script incorporates follow-up best practices so you can begin leaving voicemails that encourage leads to respond.

Final touch messaging

Provides the messaging you should use in your final _{voicemail and email when a lead hasn’t responded yet.}

Live call script

This script helps you qualify the lead and set a meeting _{with sales in under five minutes.}

Lead handoff process

This information will help you handoff leads to sales and _{register opportunities with VMware.}

The lead follow-up

organization

Identify the right resources to use so you can follow up on leads in a timely manner.

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Lead Follow-Up Pattern

Use a multi-touch pattern to connect with leads

When following up, make sure you attempt to reach the lead multiple times over a two week period, if necessary. Use the following best practices to make sure you connect:

1. Follow up with the lead as soon as possible upon receiving the lead alert. Five minutes is a best practice, but try to connect within the first 24 hours.

2. Use a combination of voicemail and email touches clustered together. 3. Use the attached voicemail and email scripts to increase response rates.

Touch Business

day Step Description

n/a 1 Receive lead Spend two to three minutes researching the lead’s LinkedIn profile and company website and make note of any interesting points.

1, 2 1 1st call/ email As soon as possible, leave a voicemail and send an email within minutes of each other. Use these touches to introduce yourself and request a brief call (see script/template).

3, 4 3 2nd call/ email If there’s no response, use the same tactics as above but vary the messaging slightly so as not to be repetitive.

5, 6 6 3rd call/ email If there’s still no response, try again with the same tactics, changing the messaging slightly to increase the urgency.

7, 8 9 Final

call/email

Leave a voicemail and/or email noting that this is your final attempt and that you will no longer be reaching out (see script).

Ongoing Ongoing Nurture Continue to email value-add content to the lead every 2-3 weeks.

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Email Template

Get leads to respond to you

Email is a critical channel for reaching buyers simply because that is where so many of them prefer to do business and communicate. In fact, research shows that 75% of them prefer to work digitally. Follow these best practices when creating and sending emails to this digitally savvy audience:

1. Create personal subject lines for each email.

2. Always include a call to action to schedule a brief call in your email.

3. Keep the email short – the lead should be able to read it in less than 30 seconds. Use the following email template as the foundation for all your lead follow-up emails.

Lead Follow-Up Email Template

Dear <Lead First Name>,

Thank you very much for downloading <content name>.

I'd like to set up a brief phone call to understand your current environment and tell you more about how <relevant VMware solution e.g. vSphere with Operations Management> might be able to help <Lead’s Company>. During the conversation, I can provide examples of how companies such as yours are realizing greater IT performance, availability, and agility while doubling their IT savings.

Just let me know a couple days/times that work for you, and I will make one work on my end. I look forward to our conversation.

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Voicemail Script

An effective tool for multi-touch follow-up

90% of your lead follow-up calls will end up with a voicemail. IT professionals simply don’t answer the phone as much as they used to. Still, voicemail can be a very effective tool for reaching a lead, particularly when combined with email. Utilize the following best practices when leaving a voicemail:

1. Keep voicemails to 25 seconds or less.

2. Clearly state the purpose of your call – to have a brief phone conversation. 3. Be sure to reference the email you sent and ask for a response.

Use the following lead script to start leaving more effective voicemails.

Lead Follow-Up Voicemail Script

Hi <First Name of Lead>, this is <First and Last Name> from <Partner Name>. Thanks for your interest in <relevant VMware solution e.g. vSphere with Operations Management>.

The purpose of my call is to schedule a brief phone conversation to learn more about your interest in virtualization and direct you to resources that can help you with your initiative. I will also be sending you an email with more details. Please just reply to that and let me know a good time to talk.

Again, this is <First and Last Name> from <Partner Name> at <phone number>. Thanks for your time and I look forward to speaking with you.

Note: If you have not already sent the prospect an email, make sure you send an email immediately after leaving this voicemail.

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Final Touch Messaging

Detailed messaging to use in your final outreach

If you have reached the end of the lead follow-up pattern and still haven’t made contact, send an email and leave a voicemail notifying the lead that you will no longer try to contact them. You can use the following messaging for your final email and voicemail.

Final Touch Email and Voicemail Message Template

Dear <First Name of Lead>,

I am hoping to connect with you to discuss your virtualization requirements and provide you with information on new technology that is helping companies like yours improve service levels and reduce costs.

If you have been too busy to respond but still want to talk, please reply to this email and let me know the best time to speak with you. If you’re not ready to talk now but would like to connect in the future, you can reach me using my contact information below.

Thank you, <First Name>

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Live Call Script

Set a meeting and qualify a lead on the first call

When you first connect with a lead on the phone, you have two objectives:

1. Qualify the lead as a good fit for the solution or product that they are interested in. 2. If Objective #1 is met, set an appointment for a 30- to 60-minute sales call where you

can introduce the solution or product.

There are a handful of best practices you should use when conducting a live call. First, try to keep the call length brief -- less than five minutes, if possible. Second, make sure your tone is conversational. Third, give the lead a reason to meet with you.

Lead Follow-Up Live Call Script

Hi <First Name of Lead>, it’s <Your Name> with <Your Company Name>. I saw that you recently downloaded some content about <relevant VMware solution > and I wanted to follow up.

I’d like to find a convenient time to schedule a 30-minute phone call to discuss your current IT infrastructure and tell you how <relevant VMware solution> has helped companies such as <Insert similar companies if possible>. We’d also like to offer you <relevant VMware offer>. Is there a time that works for you? I’ll make it work on my end.

Before we wrap up, can you answer just a few questions for me?

Question Answer

What are you responsible for at <company name>?

How many virtual machines do you run? Are you interested in improving

availability, IT costs, or performance? What is your timeframe for making a decision?

How does budget work for something like this?

Thanks for that information. I’ll send you a calendar invite confirming our meeting in the next few minutes.

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The Lead Handoff Process

Hand off a lead to sales and register it with VMware

Once you’ve qualified a lead and set a meeting appointment for sales, you need to hand the lead off to sales directly. Try to do this immediately after your conversation with the lead.

Meeting Confirmation Email (Send Right after Call)

Subject line: Confirming Meeting with <Partner Name>,

Dear <Lead First Name>,

Thank you very much for speaking with me earlier.

This email is to confirm that <Salesperson Name> will call you on <date of meeting> at <time of meeting> to discuss how <relevant VMware solution e.g. vSphere with Operations

Management> can help <Lead’s Company>.

If you have any questions in the meantime, just let us know. We look forward to speaking with you.

1

Now that you’ve scheduled a time for the lead to meet with sales, the

first thing you should do is send a confirmation email to the lead and the salesperson. Make sure you note the location of the meeting or provide phone number that sales should use to reach the lead.

2

Update your CRM system immediately with any new demographic information such as phone number and business email address, as well as answers to qualifying questions that you asked on the call.

3

You should also send a brief email to the salesperson to whom the lead is assigned, updating them on the time of the call as well as providing any new information you have gathered.

4

One day prior to the meeting, send a reminder email to the lead confirming the meeting and stating that you are looking forward to it.

5

If the lead is a qualified and you have captured sufficient budget information, you should register it at VMware Partner Central. You can do this at http://www.vmware.com/partners/

6

Sales can prepare for the meeting by reviewing Sales Bytes that VMware has created to help ensure productive lead conversations. http://increasesalesvmw.com/salesbytes

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Lead Follow-Up Toolkit / 13 <First and Last Name>

Lead Handoff to Sales Email

Hi <Salesperson Name>,

Earlier today, I spoke with <Lead’s First and Last Name>. They are interested in meeting with you to learn more about <relevant VMware solution e.g. vSphere with Operations

Management>. You have a meeting with them at: <Time and Date>

Here’s the qualification information I gathered for this lead:

Question Answer

What are you responsible for at <company name>? How many virtual machines do you run?

Are you interested in improving availability, IT costs, or performance?

What is your timeframe for making a decision? How does budget work for something like this?

They’re looking forward to meeting you. Thank you and let me know if you need anything else!

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Reminder Email (Send 24 Hours in Advance of Meeting)

Subject line: Reminder of Meeting with <Sales Person First Name>, Dear <Lead First Name>,

I’m just confirming that you and <Salesperson Name> are meeting tomorrow at <time of meeting>. <Salesperson Name> will call you then.

If you have any questions in the meantime, just let us know. Thank you. <First Name>

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Lead Follow-Up Organization

Identify resources to help follow up with leads in a

timely manner

You need to have personnel in place to focus on lead follow-up. You can use your sales team, an internal telemarketing resource, or an outsourced telemarketing resource. Whichever option you choose, make sure they use the following best practices:

1. Try to follow up with leads five minutes after they are generated. If you can’t meet this timeframe, make sure you follow up within 24 hours.

2. Use multiple phone and email touches to reach the lead over a two week period. 3. On the first call, focus on qualifying the lead and setting an appointment for a full

sales call.

You can use the following table to understand the different options when it comes to assigning someone to follow up on leads.

Lead Follow-Up Resource Options

Option Description

Sales team You may have salespeople who already follow up with leads. If you do,

make sure they are trained on this process and are able to dedicate the time required to follow up the right way.

Telemarketing team

You may already have a resource to follow up on leads. Often, these are internal resources who qualify leads and set the appointments for members of the sales team.

Third-party resource

VMware has partnered with telemarketing firms you can engage with for lead follow-up services on an outsourced basis. These firms specialize in lead follow up and use proven best practices.

Lead Follow-Up Toolkit