When you've been in sales a while, information technology'southward piece of cake to develop bad habits. You choice them up from other reps or take a shortcut during an especially busy calendar week and, all of the sudden, you've added some skills to your repertoire that aren't helping you meet your quota. If you're not regularly examining your behavior and results, these habits can cause mistakes that end in deals falling apart, annoyed prospects, or missed numbers. Create a new, on-brand email signature in just a few clicks. Get started here. (It's free.)

And I'm not just talking about waiting likewise long to update a contact'south information in your CRM. Seemingly innocuous phrases similar, "Sad to carp you," sneak into our regular sales emails and telephone calls and poison our relationships without united states even realizing it. Here's how to finish information technology.

Why You Should Never Say, "I Am Sorry for Bothering You"

Ideally, sales reps would never have to write a follow up electronic mail considering they would avoid the number-one follow-upwardly mistake: Failing to gear up a next pace before catastrophe the phone call.

All it takes is one cringeworthy phrase to kill a sales follow-up email. One of my least favorite moves is asking for a prospect to reply "ASAP." But apologizing for contacting your prospect is zilch short of poisonous to deals, and should be cut from the vocabulary of every sales rep. It unremarkably looks like this:

Then, why should you avoid saying "Deplorable to bother you over again?"

  1. It implies you've get annoying to your prospect. It also reminds the prospect they've reached out several times before ("again") to no success. Even if the sales rep hasn't annoyed the prospect yet, this is the phrase that might do information technology.
  2. It implies you've done something wrong. In improver, people use the discussion "sorry" after doing something they deem wrong. When we make a mistake that negatively impacts someone, the start phrase that often comes out of our mouths is "I'm sorry." This phrase means we've acknowledged wrongdoing and know we need to fix it.
  3. It signals desperation. Reps send "deplorable to bother you again" emails in hopes of starting a chat after not hearing back. The bulletin is a last-ditch effort to pique the potential buyer'due south interest -- on the rep'due south timeline.
  4. Information technology communicates your time and energy is not as valuable every bit the prospect'south -- which simply isn't truthful. Maintain say-so and equal ground with your prospect by never apologizing for beingness in their inbox or voice mailbox.

If you find yourself using this phrase in an email -- finish writing. Instead, regroup and focus on providing value to the prospect and grabbing their attending instead of "bothering" them again.

There are a multitude of ways to provide value in a sales follow-up email. Hither are a few I propose.

Alternatives to Saying, "Sorry for Bugging You"

1. Send a customer review

A customer review provides value because modernistic-day buyers trust their fellow buyers to give honest feedback most a production they've used. Think they might non trust a written review coming straight from you?

Connect them with current and past buyers who tin can provide honest feedback on why working with you lot is great as well as some of the drawbacks. For case, you might open up an email with, "Instead of sending you a pitch, I'll let a previous client practice the heavy lifting with their unvarnished (really) testimonial."

two. Include a case study

Case studies let prospects to discover how a business concern in a similar position to theirs solved its problems. Southwardend your latest and about relevant study with a note saying, " This example study made me think of your business. I know your time is valuable, and I call up this is worth the few minutes it will take to read. "

You've best-selling their time is a priority for you, without discounting your own schedule and what you're offering.

iii. Link to a blog mail

A weblog post is a way to build brownie with prospects and provide them new information about the product and company equally they starting time to brand a decision.

If you're trying to take hold of a prospect's attention, try sending one with an especially snappy championship. You might even work with a marketer to craft a mail service just for them. Afterwards all, who isn't going to click the link to a post titled, "nine Reasons Julie Needs ABC Staffing Solutions Today."

4. Reference a mutual connexion

Surfacing a mutual connection allows the prospect to inquire their acquaintance about the sales rep and gather more than information. It also signifies that if a friend works with this sales rep, the prospect might besides enjoy working with the same sales rep.

And information technology gives you something in common to bail over. For instance, "I run across nosotros take a mutual connection: Sansa Stark. Her family bought several dire wolves from me a few years ago." You've given your conversation and human relationship something to build upon -- and that can exist a huge aid when conducting outreach.

five. Provide a suggestion

A small strategy tip can help sales reps build brownie and showcase the value of their insight to buyers.

When a salesperson's name appears in a prospect's inbox, the reaction shouldn't be, "No, non this rep once more!" or "Who?" only "I wonder what they're sending me -- I ameliorate check it out."

Transport them a new industry benchmark report or a mention a recent move their visitor fabricated, and offer unique insight into how your product/service could assistance.

For example, "I idea you might exist interested in the latest benchmark report from [insert trusted industry source]. Their findings on the 25% increase in mobile app usage might exist especially interesting to y'all and relevant to your work."

6. Drop shop-talk altogether

Want to really go their attention? Don't talk business at all. Instead, send them a casual email proverb, "I watched a documentary on Colorado ski country this weekend and idea of you immediately. Have you hit the slopes yet this year?"

While your prospect might not be ready to discuss business -- almost people similar talking about their hobbies and out-of-part interests. Once y'all have them engaged again, use your best judgement to steer them back to the topic at hand: your offer.

seven. Offer to walk away

If you've reached out multiple times over the form of several weeks or months and your prospect still hasn't responded, do yourself a favor and walk away.

You lot should be spending time on deals that actually accept a chance of endmost, and pleading with an unmotivated prospect to respond to your emails isn't doing either of y'all whatsoever good.

Simply say, "Tony, I've tried to achieve you lot unsuccessfully a few times now. Ordinarily when this happens, information technology means my offer isn't a priority for you right now. Is that safe for me to assume hither? If so, you won't hear from me again."

If your prospect is withal interested, this should grab their attention. If not, it gives them an easy mode out. You can always leave the door open for a call or email six months downwardly the line to see if things take changed.

8. Compliment them

If your prospect recently published a new weblog post or the company unveiled a shiny, new production, permit them know yous're paying attention.

Chances are, they put a lot of time and effort into their recent project, and would beloved for someone to detect. Ship a simple note maxim, "I saw your contempo feature in Forbes and wanted to tell you what a nifty write-upwardly it was. I particularly liked your observation that AI will brainstorm to accept a stronger concur in sales." It's curt, specific, and gratis.

Neat emails build rapport and credibility. Past looking for this mortiferous phrase before sending your emails, you can improve your odds of a response, and somewhen, a relationship.

Desire other ways to meliorate your sales emails? Check out these killer opening e-mail lines or explore alternatives to saying, "Hope you're doing well" -- guaranteed to put your prospect to sleep before they've even read sentence two.

New Call-to-action

Easily create your own professional email signature with our free Email Signature Generator here.

Originally published Jun 10, 2019 2:17:00 PM, updated June 10 2021