Are You Wasting Your Time With Your Print Sales?

Here’s the story of a friend of mine who tried to buy some print
He was excited. He was starting up a new business. And he was ready to invest in a few thousand dollars in print.

So my friend approached three printing companies. He rang them up and explained his requirements.

At first all went well
All the printing companies were pleased to hear from him. One company spent a considerable time on the phone understanding his needs. They had a lengthy conversation, helping him to create the right specifications.

Two companies went even further. They both sent a sales rep to visit. They were happy to invest the time from their sales team to try and win the business.

My friend was impressed by the approach of all the companies
They all seemed to offer a good level of help and service. He could see himself potentially working with any of these companies. So he asked them all to submit prices.

The prices all arrived. Unfortunately, all were rather higher than my friend’s budget. It was clear that a further conversation was needed to change the specifications and come up with the right solution without over-spending.

So what happened next?
Nothing!

My friend expected some follow up from the companies. He thought that they would call soon after submitting prices. After all, they had invested considerable time and effort in a meeting and in producing a print quote.

They had an opportunity to discuss the quote with my friend. They could have worked out an alternative solution and potentially win the business.

It appears that none of the companies were that bothered...
That was certainly the impression that my friend received. So he went to his design company and asked them to handle the print on his behalf.

Three printing companies lost out on the chance to win a new client. All because they failed to remember an important lesson.

Print sales people MUST follow up on quotes
There’s always the opportunity of a meeting with a new prospect. There are always client and production problems to be sorted out.

However, it is not acceptable to fail to follow up on a quote. This story is not an isolated incident. I have lost count of the number of printing companies that have failed to follow up on quotes with me.

Remember to follow up properly
A single phone message or a quick e-mail doesn’t count as a follow up. You need to have some proper feedback from your prospect or client.

It can take time to get through to your contact. But it also took time to get to the point where you were able to produce that quote. No-one said that sales was quick or easy work.

Do you really not have the time to follow up on quotes? If so, you must make sure that someone else at your company has this task delegated to them.

Here's a quick action point for you
Review your process for following up quotes. Do you have time blocked out in your diary for this? Have you developed a contact sequence to ensure you maximize your chance of client feedback?

If you don’t have a plan for this activity you risk losing out on clients. Just like the three companies that missed out on the print work for my friend.

P.S. Learn what buyers expect and how they think. Download Matthew’s free e-book “Ten Common Print Selling Errors and What To Do About Them” right now at http://profitableprintrelationships.com/e-book/