Did you know that “free strategy sessions” have no-show rates up to 50% in some cases?
According to studies by Close.com, a CRM that has worked with companies like Zapier, Toggl, Naturebox, and more; and SalesBuzz, which delivers online sales training programs for companies that want to get more prospects on the phone; there are a number of reasons – here are some of the main issues.
Many of your prospects who you’re asking to attend a “free strategy session” feel they’re going to get pitched either on the call or immediately thereafter, so rather than be put in a place where they have to make a decision either way, they’ll simply avoid the conversation.
I’ve heard plenty of complaints from business creators who have invested time and money (not to mention huge ad spends) on filling their free strategy session slots, only to be galactically underwhelmed by both the quantity and quality of applicants who book calls.
This Is A Huge, Gaping Leak In Your Sales Pipeline.
It’s causing you to hemorrhage cash that SHOULD, by rights, be going into your bank account, because it means missed opportunities to start conversations that may lead to future clients, referrals, and media exposure opportunities for yourself!
Think about this.
When you see an offer for a “free strategy session”, you know you’re going to get pitched.
At minimum, you probably suspect you’ll get a lot of “what” and “why” – but not a whole lot of “how” unless/until you sign the line that is dotted or fill out the credit card form that is secure.
Smart entrepreneurs keep close tabs on their ROI and measure the amount of revenue their “free time” brings in.
Therefore, if you know you have neither the money nor the bandwidth, you’ll avoid the conversation altogether, as I mentioned above.
This not only defeats the purpose, but it also denies both of you what could be a mutually valuable conversation now that could lead to doing business, speaking opportunities, media exposure, and more a couple hundred yards down the road.
Solution: Launch Your Podcast And Interview Your Prospects!
The conversation itself builds the know, like, and trust that leads to conversations about doing business.
First of all, podcast interviews have a 99% yes-show rate – it’s very rare someone will schedule an interview with you and then skip out on the opportunity.
No matter how many listeners and downloads you get (if you keep track, or care), there is ONE listener who is GUARANTEED to stay for the entire episode – your interview guest.
There is ONE person you’ll get green-room time with as a result of doing that episode – your interview guest.
Now that you’ve put reciprocity on the table by giving them exposure on your platform and an introduction to your tribe, will they be more likely to enthusiastically agree to a follow-up conversation about doing business?
Will they be more likely, even if they are not ready to become your customer right now, to refer someone who will?
Is there a chance they may invite you to be on their show, or even host you on a webinar where you’ll get to make a money pitch to their tribe?
When you know how to master the green-room conversation – trust and believe, these things will happen for you.
This is how you exponentially reach more profitable customers.
