How Salespeople Sell 9x More with SMS Notifications
Sellizer has sent you an SMS notification - so you are sure the client has opened your proposal. The next step seems obvious in theory, but in practice dozens of questions appear. Call the client or not? Right away, after 5 minutes, or maybe in a quarter of an hour? How to start the conversation and how to lead it? What if the client opened the proposal on a Saturday morning or on Sunday at 11 p.m.?
Did you know that you have 9 times higher chances of closing the sale if you contact the client within 5 minutes of the moment they opened your proposal?
In this article we will show an example course of action after receiving the SMS, thanks to which your chances of sales success grow as much as 9 times. Let's begin!
Receive the SMS and email notification about the first opening of your proposal
Find out which exact proposal the client is currently viewing. In the SMS and email notifications from Sellizer you can conveniently check the recipient's name, the proposal's name and the date it was sent. If you send out different proposals, this saves you plenty of time searching for the right file and gives you certainty that you and the client are talking about the same thing.
Before the call: log in to the system and see what the recipient viewed (and what they skipped)
Log in to Sellizer and go to the statistics of the proposal in question. The statistics refresh every 5 seconds, so you can follow them in real time and will not miss any change in the client's activity on your proposal.
At the top of the page you will see the proposal's general statistics.
In this section you can conveniently check:
whether the proposal was printed (and how many times),
when it was last opened,
how much time the recipient spent reading the proposal,
how long after sending it was opened,
what percentage of the proposal was read,
which page the recipient read most often,
which page the recipient viewed last.
Then go to the section DETAILED STATISTICS (select the proposal file)
There you will find a chart showing in real time how long and how attentively the recipient viewed each page of your proposal. If your proposal consists of several files, you can conveniently check the statistics of each one by clicking the file name.
Hovering over the "bar" assigned to a specific page shows how much time the client spent on it and how often it was viewed compared to the other pages.
Additionally, clicking a specific bar opens a preview of that page below.
If the client forwards your proposal (e.g. to their colleagues) or opens it again, the subsequent openings will be visible in the proposal's view history. Different button colors for the viewing dates indicate openings by other recipients.
You will find more advice on analyzing proposal statistics in our proposal statistics guide.
2-5 minutes after the opening: call the client and build the relationship
Many people fear they will scare the client off by calling. Nothing could be further from the truth! The client sent an inquiry themselves - which means they are interested in buying! Most of us are busy and handle several things at once. Calling the client while they are still focused on your proposal significantly increases your chances of being remembered. It is also worth adding that before buying, clients usually check offers from several companies. Quick contact will certainly distinguish you from the other bidders and make a good impression.
As an example, here is a scene featuring: a salesperson selling marketing services and Mr. Marek, a 40-year-old CEO of a company in the electrical industry.
Salesperson: Good morning Mr. Marek, I sent you a proposal. Could you find 3 minutes to discuss it now?
Marek: Sure, good timing - I was just looking at it.
Salesperson: Great. Let's discuss the key points then, so you won't waste time studying it in installments.
Marek: Let's start then.
Salesperson: Mr. Marek, I know that people matter most to you (with the "cheat sheet" from step 2 at hand, he sees that Mr. Marek spent the longest on the Team page), so let me introduce the team that will deliver the marketing service for you.
Mr. Marek skipped the pages describing the process, so the salesperson did not bring that topic up.
In the proposal statistics the salesperson sees that Mr. Marek spent only a few seconds on the third package, which in the salesperson's view is the best one for him. Knowing this, at the right moment he steered the conversation onto the right track, and saw the reflection on the chart: Mr. Marek's interest in the slide with the third package grew, as did his viewing time.
Instead of the planned 3 minutes, the conversation stretched to over a dozen, and the salesperson won because:
He responded fastest of all potential bidders (the client usually considers several offers from different companies).
He hit the bull's-eye, calling exactly when Mr. Marek found a moment to read the proposal.
He talked with Mr. Marek about what specifically interested him.
He was not a seller but an advisor - looking after Mr. Marek's interest, he proposed the most beneficial option for him.
At the end of the conversation the salesperson asked if he could send the contract. After such a pleasant conversation, he of course got the permission.
What if I don't call despite receiving the notification?
Sometimes clients open proposals on a weekend morning or in the middle of the night. Business etiquette suggests that a call at such an hour is not the best idea.
So what should you do when the notification about your proposal being opened arrives at unusual hours?
Call the client on the next business day and, using the proposal statistics, start the conversation with what interested them. If they open the proposal again, you will immediately receive an email notification and can return to the scenario as if you had reached them during the first opening.
Wait until the client opens the proposal again and make the call then. Sellizer will inform you about every subsequent opening with an email notification. Sometimes a client returns to a proposal after weeks or months. Use the moment when they are focused on your proposal again and build the relationship.
The benefits of SMS and email notifications about your proposal being opened
You call with a better mindset and more confidence - you know the client has opened your proposal. You do not waste time on nervous repeated contact attempts and regular questions about whether they have managed to read it.
You know exactly which proposal the client opened and viewed. In the rush of work and a large number of sent proposals, it is easy to lose track. In the SMS notification you can quickly check which proposal the client is currently viewing. One more glance at the statistics and you are ready to talk.
You will not miss the best moment to contact the client. And that is when the client is viewing your proposal, focused specifically on it, and has not moved on to another task.