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You probably get lots of calls from people asking about the products or services you sell. In most cases, it probably takes you a few minutes to answer their questions. But I’ll bet that it’s not uncommon for you to spend an hour or more with some of them, as you dive deeper into not only their questions about what you do, but also the problem they’re having that triggered the call in the first place.

So you’ve invested time and resources educating them and helping them find the right solution. Their problem is a real one, so they are going to end up buying what you sell. There’s some good news and some bad news in that.

Eighty percent of them will move from being a shopper to a buyer. That’s the good news. But they don’t always buy from the company they contacted first. That’s the bad.

How do you increase the odds that they’ll come back and buy from you, rather than one of your competitors? It’s all about frequency. If you only talk to them when they first inquire, you’re at great risk of losing them. Add a follow-up call or letter and you increase your chances.

Your odds go up dramatically each time you initiate contact within a reasonable amount of time. Add some sense of urgency – a time-limited discount or a free add-on with a deadline – and you’ll drive that return rate even higher.

The more of an investment your product or service is, the more contact required to move to the sale.

Bottom line: If you want to cash in on the time you give prospects up front, invest a little more time in talking them through to the close of the deal.

Drew McLellan is Top Dog at McLellan Marketing Group and blogs at www.drewsmarketingminute.com. He can be reached at Drew@MclellanMarketing.com. © 2007 Drew McLellan