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Trade businesses often face a common challenge: converting leads into paying customers. While generating leads through paid advertising is effective, many businesses struggle with the next critical step—nurturing those leads through to conversion. The issue is often not the quality of the leads but the lack of an effective follow-up system. A well-structured sales cadence can help transform the way trade businesses manage their leads and significantly boost conversions.
The Common Sales Problem
For many businesses, the sales process typically involves one or two attempts to contact a lead, after which the opportunity is abandoned. Research shows that 50% of all leads are never contacted again after the initial outreach. This approach wastes valuable marketing dollars and overlooks potential customers who may simply need more nurturing.
Cold traffic leads—those generated through paid ads—often require more follow-up and relationship-building than referrals. These leads don’t know or trust your business yet, and expecting immediate conversions without additional touchpoints can be unrealistic.
High-Converting Sales Cadence
Implementing a consistent sales cadence can dramatically improve the conversion rates for trade businesses. This cadence involves multiple follow-ups over a defined period, increasing the chances of reaching and converting leads.
Here’s a simplified version of an effective five-day sales cadence:
- Day 1 (Morning & Afternoon): Call the lead three times during each period. Persistence here helps cut through busy schedules.
- Days 2-5: Continue calling three times in both the morning and afternoon. Reaching out at different times increases the likelihood of catching leads when they are available.
- After Day 5: If no contact is made, the opportunity may be abandoned, but the lead should remain in your system for future follow-up.
This structured approach can be a game-changer. For instance, a business using this cadence saw $800,000 in pipeline value within 25 days by consistently following up with leads.
Why 45 Touchpoints Matter
At first glance, 45 touchpoints over five days might seem excessive. However, persistence is key. By giving each lead multiple opportunities to respond, you increase your chances of getting a response.
When leads submit their contact details, they expect to be followed up. If they don’t respond immediately, it’s often due to their busy schedules, not a lack of interest. A comprehensive sales cadence ensures that you’re contacting them at times that work for them.
This persistence pays off. Many leads respond after multiple attempts, often apologizing for being difficult to reach due to their busy lives. Without multiple follow-ups, you risk losing these leads entirely.
Qualifying Leads with Discovery Calls
Once contact is made, the next step is to qualify the lead. This is done through a discovery call, where the goal is to determine whether the lead is a good fit for your business.
In trade industries like solar, roofing, or renovations, qualifying leads helps filter out those who may not be ready to commit or who don’t meet your project requirements. This ensures that your team can focus on the most promising leads and avoid wasting time on those unlikely to convert.
The Importance of a Centralised Communication System
For businesses to implement an effective sales cadence, they must have a centralized communication system. This ensures that every team member has access to the same information and can track interactions with each lead. Without this, follow-ups may be inconsistent or duplicated, frustrating potential customers and causing leads to fall through the cracks.
A lead management system allows all communication with a lead—whether through phone calls, emails, or other touchpoints—to be logged in one place. This system not only improves efficiency but also makes it easier to track the progression of each lead through the sales pipeline.
Moving to Sales Qualified Leads
The ultimate goal of this sales cadence is to move leads through the pipeline until they become sales-qualified leads. A sales-qualified lead has been pre-screened through discovery calls and is ready for the next step, such as a site visit or detailed consultation.
At this stage, businesses can invest more time in pursuing these leads, knowing they have a higher likelihood of converting. The sales cadence helps weed out unqualified prospects early, allowing your team to focus on leads that are more likely to result in a sale.
Maximizing Paid Traffic ROI
For businesses that rely on paid traffic to generate leads, implementing a structured sales cadence is essential for getting a return on investment. Paid traffic leads behave differently than referral leads—they require more nurturing and time before they are ready to convert.
A well-defined sales cadence ensures that no lead is left behind. By persistently following up and guiding leads through the sales process, businesses can maximize the potential of their paid advertising campaigns and ensure that every opportunity is fully explored.
Key Takeaways
Effective Follow-Up is Crucial: The majority of leads are lost due to inadequate follow-up. Implementing a structured sales cadence with multiple touchpoints can significantly boost conversion rates.
Persistence Pays Off: A five-day sales cadence with up to 45 touchpoints dramatically increases the chances of reaching and converting leads, especially those generated through paid traffic.
Qualify Leads Early: Discovery calls help identify the most promising leads, allowing businesses to focus their efforts on prospects more likely to convert while filtering out those who aren’t a fit.
Centralized Communication is Essential: A lead management system ensures consistent and trackable follow-up, preventing missed opportunities and keeping the sales process organized.
Maximize Your Paid Traffic ROI: Leads from paid traffic need more nurturing than referrals, and a robust sales cadence ensures that every opportunity is pursued, making the most of your marketing investment.
Conclusion
A properly structured sales cadence is the key to converting more leads into customers in trade businesses. By creating multiple follow-up touchpoints over several days, qualifying leads through discovery calls, and using a centralized communication system, businesses can greatly increase their conversion rates and get more value out of their paid traffic investments.
For businesses looking to scale, adopting a sales cadence can provide the structure needed to optimize the lead management process and close more deals. Persistence and consistency in following up with leads can transform even cold traffic into warm prospects, resulting in long-term growth and success.
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Resources:
- Get 30 guaranteed qualified leads in 90 days! Learn more here: https://tradie.wiki/pod
- Learn more about the CRM that DOES IT ALL for your trade business! Just click on this link: https://tradiehub.net
- Join a global community of 6000+ trade professionals https://www.facebook.com/groups/TheSiteShed
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