What mistakes should I avoid when following up on construction sales leads?

Building a relationship with a client is what drives success for any home builder. But remember, few clients sign at the first meeting. What seals the deal is great sales follow-up. To turn prospects into buyers, here are five classic follow-up mistakes you can avoid in sales calls, emails or video conversations.

Let’s start at the first mistake: responding too slowly. A prospect expects fast replies, not to be left hanging. Statistics show why: a survey by Arise found that 37% of customers expect a reply within one hour. Fewer than 20% of prospects were satisfied if a reply took over 24 hours. Prospects who have to wait often click to hire your competitor.

Turn every builder on your sales team into a first-to-respond star. InsideSales reports that the first vendor to reach a lead wins 30% to 50% of sales! Think about the power of that fact for a moment. Build a culture of urgency across the company. Taghi Shaw of Waze Development found that calling a prospect back while they are still in front of their phone or computer is like catching them at the door.

One of the keys to closing a sale is follow-up calls and emails. Yet a 2021 report by Scripted found that 44% of sales reps make only one follow-up attempt. Also, the winning bid tends to result after around five follow-up attempts by the builder. What you are seeing is customers who are still researching, making decisions, and building a sense of trust in you as they journey towards your product. Spacing between communications is also a science. Too much time between calls or emails loses momentum and attention, while sending them too often is just as likely to overwhelm a prospect.

What is the solution? Build a follow-up schedule and keep timing consistent between communications. Many busy builders use software to stay on track.

A builder who loses a bid can be especially frustrated if the prospect never replied to their follow-up emails. Many people prefer email for follow-up, since it is quick, convenient and can be sent from anywhere at any time. But not every client answers email, and if two or three follow-up emails go unanswered, it is smart to try another way.

The best sales teams use a mix of methods to reach customers. But nothing beats a phone call for getting a prospect’s attention. Many customers actually prefer calls because they can ask instant questions, see how you react in real time, and hear a personal voice. A personal touch builds trust, and customers like to do business with people.

Every contact is an opportunity to impress a prospect. While follow-ups can seem relaxed, professional language is still your best choice. Even on the fourth follow-up when the two of you know each other, stay away from slang and technical terms that might confuse someone. Friendly but formal language at every contact, in phone calls, video meetings, texts, and emails, can make a vital difference when clients have narrowed their choices to you and one other builder.

Few things turn off a prospect as quickly as poor communication. On a call, always introduce yourself first and then your company’s name. In email, use correct spelling and grammar, and also no abbreviations or slang. A carefully written email sets the tone and shows your customer attention to detail.

Email subject lines play a big role in making a connection in follow-ups. Here are sample subject lines:

• Pleased we talked, Bill
• Next steps for your remodel in Everett
• Taking another look at your project
• Several ways to get started

Questions matter too: home builders do know to ask questions, but many don’t ask enough. The most classic and vital questions are the basic ones about timeline, location, and budget, but once they have those basics, many builders stop asking.

It’s tempting to tell a prospect everything you know about a project at the first meeting. All that expert knowledge adds value to you, right? Actually, leading with your knowledge sets the wrong tone. Ruben Guierezz of Errez Design recalls many meetings where professionals told clients what to do before hearing everything they had to say. That set up walls, because clients felt their vision was ignored. Listen with patience and empathy. Discover why the customer is looking for remodeling, especially the problems and challenges driving them to find a solution. Only then can you offer design answers tailored to their exact needs.

Go in to sales calls prepared with a list of open-ended questions. They do more than just get more info from a prospect. They also make clients think, explain more, and make decisions. This kind of question is also a good way to show clients their input matters. Here are four you can use:

• Why this project, and why now?
• Tell me more about your priorities.
• What do you hope to achieve?
• How long do you plan to stay in your home?

Follow-up is often one of the hardest parts of selling for contractors and builders. The key is consistency: stay with a follow-up plan, communicate clearly, and avoid these five classic mistakes. Selling has a lot of challenges, but if your team sticks to a plan, keeps up consistent follow-up and asks the right questions, it’s possible to move ahead of your competitors.