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Marketing Myth #22
I’ll Email You the Information

It’s always good marketing to do what you say you’re going to do, but some ways of doing what you say you’re going to do are less effective than others.

Recently I met with a client who was diligently following up with information via email within an hour after speaking to the prospect, but he wasn’t closing. I offered several reasons for his frustration.

1. When you email important information, you’re competing with potentially hundreds of other messages.
   
   
2. People don’t open all their emails as soon as they see them. All too often they leave emails requiring special concentration for later, when they have “a long, uninterrupted block of time.” Therefore, your email could be sitting in their inbox for quite awhile, unopened.
   
   
3. People procrastinate calling for information. When they finally make the calls to request what they need, they virtually consider the to-do item accomplished (“Whew! I finally did it.”). There might be even greater procrastination, until they pay attention to what they requested.
   
   
4. Being conscientious about following up is good, but you don’t want to follow up within an hour, when following up within 24 hours is more than satisfactory. If you follow up too quickly, you might come across as having nothing else to do or being desperate for the business.

Consider sending information via snail mail or fax. No, I’m not trying to get you to regress to pre-email. I’m trying to get you to stand out. Snail mail and faxes arrive a piece at a time. They’re not among hundreds of messages competing simultaneously for one’s attention.

Always, always, always follow up on the information you submit. It does you no good to wait to hear from your prospect or client. A follow-up call ensures receipt and provides you the opportunity to address any questions/concerns they may have.

Remember, each of us is besieged by 10,000 messages per day on radio and TV, in newspapers and magazines, on the Internet, while driving. Consider how you may stand out. Show you want the business. Don’t settle for being one of the crowds.

Editorial provided by Adrienne Zoble. Visit Adrienne Zoble’s website at www.azobleassoc.com. Check out her “Do-able Marketing Plan” workbook and her “10-Minute Marketing Plan” Program.