Sales & Customer Growth
Many sales are lost between "send me a quote" and the next message
A customer asks for a quotation. The owner sends it and waits. Days later, both have moved on. Follow-up is where many small businesses lose opportunities, usually because they do not want to seem pushy or simply forget. This session builds a small, repeatable routine that keeps conversations alive without annoying anyone.
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Silence is not always a no.
Customers get busy, compare options, wait for a family member or forget. A short, friendly follow-up often arrives at exactly the moment the customer was about to decide. At the same time, repeated messages that say nothing new are tiresome and damage the relationship.
The answer is not to follow up more, but to follow up better: at sensible intervals, with a reason, and with respect for the customer's reply, including a no.
What the session covers
30 topics across 6 areas. Six parts, aimed at a system a busy owner can keep.
Where Opportunities DisappearLook at your own open enquiries.5
- Listing every quotation or enquiry from the last month
- What happened to each one
- How many were never followed up
- The reasons: forgot, awkward, no time, no system
- What these cost, in plain terms
You may well find a few opportunities worth a message this week.
A System Light Enough to UsePaper, sheet or app: any will do.5
- Name, contact, what they asked for, date, next step, next date
- A status for each: new, quoted, waiting, won, not now, lost
- Looking at the sheet at a fixed time each day or week
- Recording the reason for a loss
- Keeping personal data of customers private and secure
The Next Step, Agreed in AdvancePrevent the silence.5
- Ending every conversation with a stated next step and date
- Asking "when would it be good for me to check back?"
- Telling the customer what you will do and by when
- Sending a written summary after the call or visit
- Why customers rarely mind a follow-up they have agreed to
Follow-Up That Adds SomethingA reason for every message.5
Participants write three follow-up messages for their own business and swap them for feedback.
- Answering a question the customer did not ask yet
- Sharing a relevant photo, sample, price option or reference
- Mentioning a date that matters: stock, delivery, offer end
- Short and specific, with an easy reply
- What to avoid: "just checking", "any update?", guilt
Rhythm and LimitsHow often, how many, when to stop.5
- A reasonable pattern for your type of sale
- Choosing the channel the customer prefers
- A closing message that leaves the door open
- Respecting a clear no and any request to stop
- Moving a lost customer to a longer-term list
If a customer asks you to stop contacting them, stop, and note it so no one else on your team contacts them either.
After the SaleFollow-up does not end at the order.5
- Confirming delivery and satisfaction
- Asking for feedback and, if it went well, a referral
- Reminding customers when a repeat purchase is likely due
- Keeping in touch without selling every time
- Handling a complaint early
What participants leave with
- A follow-up sheet set up with their own open enquiries
- Three follow-up messages in their own words
- A rule for rhythm and limits
- A closing message for enquiries that have gone quiet
- A weekly review routine
What this session is not
- Training in persistent or pushy selling
- A software tool or customer-management system
- A guarantee that quiet enquiries will convert
- Advice on any law about commercial messages
Who teaches it
- Sales practitioners who manage long enquiry cycles
- Owners of service businesses and project-based businesses
- Customer-relationship practitioners
- Small-business owners who have fixed their own follow-up habits
How the session runs
Two to three hours, in a small group. Participants bring a list of recent enquiries or quotations. They sort them into those worth following up and those to close politely, set up the follow-up sheet and write messages for the first batch. With the practitioner's feedback, they decide their rhythm and limits.
What your students leave with
- A simple list or sheet showing every open enquiry and its next step
- A follow-up rhythm that suits their kind of sale
- Follow-up messages that offer something useful rather than only asking "any update?"
- A clear rule for how many times to follow up, and when to stop
- A habit of agreeing the next step before ending a conversation
- A weekly ten-minute review they can keep up
Scheduled sessions
Nothing scheduled yet
Sessions are arranged with a college once a date is agreed. Ask us and we will find the right person for it.
A student rather than a college? See what is coming up, or ask your placement team to host this.
Follow up kindly, follow up usefully, and know when to stop.
Tell us who your students are and what stage they are at. Sessions are free for participants.