There is a saying from the famous American actor Will Rogers. “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression.” There are various studies that argue making a first impression takes less than we think. Some think it takes 2-3 seconds, some say it’s 7 and some suggest it’s 30 seconds. None longer than a minute. And their effect lasts for months, affecting every conclusion and personal judgment people make about us. It is therefore very important to make a good first impression.

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For many businesses first contact defines the trajectory of the partnership. If you can’t make a good first impression it is less likely to improve your situation from there on and close a sale. So how can you make sure that your first contact goes smoothly? Continue reading to find out.

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Reach Out

So you have a prospect and you have decided to reach out to them to introduce your services or product, which you believe can be very helpful for their business. First thing you need to do is to decide what medium to use. If this prospect has no idea of who you are and what your products and services are then your best bet is a well crafted email. No one would prefer to have a meeting about a service or product that they don’t know anything about. Your first contact mail should include a few key elements.

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Personalization: A good cold email shows that the salesperson has researched the prospect’s company enough to grasp the general business model and that the salesperson is actually interested in helping the prospect improve their business, rather than just making a quick buck. 

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Humanization: The email should be sent from a salesperson’s mail rather than a generic company email. It is crucial to build personal connections.

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Subject Line: The subject line is the determinant of a successful first contact. It will be the reason for someone deciding to open your mail and take a look at what you have to say. Keep your subject line short and personal. According to data provided by Campaign Monitor, Emails with personalized subject lines are 26% more likely to be opened. Try to at least include the company name.

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Email Body: When it comes to what the email actually consists of we will mention four main points.

     • Keep it short. The shorter your email the more likely it is to actually be read. 

     • Make it personal and informative. Your email should show your prospect how and why you think your service/product will be helpful for their specific business.

     • Show your success cases. If you have big clients, mention your work with them. If you have a lot of clients, mention the number. Just make it clear to your prospect that you and the company you’re working for are legitimate.

     • Have one clear Call To Action. Tell your prospect exactly what action they should take if they're interested and make it as easy as possible for them to do so.

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Let's say you have sent your well crafted initial contact email and it turns out you reached the right prospect at the right time. If they are directly willing to purchase your product/services, great job! If they are interested in learning more, then comes the second step.

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First Meeting

You have successfully set a meeting with your prospect. Now it’s time to prepare for your first meeting. The days in which we thought “a salesperson that aggressively sells will win” are long gone. Your method during your first meeting should be to position yourself as an advisor, a consultant if you will. Your main goal should be building a relationship rather than closing a sale.

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Let’s separate the meeting into three stages and look into them one by one.

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1. Before The Meeting

Before the meeting you want to make sure you know your prospect’s business and all the ways your product/services can help improve their business. Your purpose during the meeting should be to build trust and a personal connection. This means you should look the part too. Subtle and clean looks are the key. You don’t want to have any statement pieces of clothing or jewelry and skip on over using your perfume too. A clean and professional look is the key to building trust. 

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2. During The Meeting

A first sales meeting has two primary purposes: 1) to determine if the prospect is a good fit for your product/services, and, if they are, 2) to schedule another meeting.

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During your first meeting you should listen more than you talk. Try to understand your prospect’s circumstances and determine if they could actually benefit from the product or service you provide. One thing you will thank yourself for later is taking notes extensively.

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Also make sure that your prospect actually understands your business and offering clearly. Let them take the lead while doing so and address any questions they might have about your business. Having a structure to your sales meeting will make it easier for you to keep the conversation flowing smoothly. 

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An example of a simple sales meeting agenda would be:

     • Introductions - This is where you break the ice with some chit chat, remind them why you’re having this meeting and introduce the  meeting agenda.

     • Sales Deck - A good sales deck will generally include information about your company, your solution, how your solution generates value, and testimonials. Keep it short, easy to understand and to the point. Make sure you study the deck before presenting too.

     • Needs Analysis & Questions - This is where you listen to your prospect and understand their circumstances. Where you identify their pain points that you can offer the solutions to.

     • Identifying Use Cases - During this part of the meeting, now that you have identified their pain points, show your prospect the ways they can utilize your solution to help improve their business. Provide a short demo for their specific use case.

     • Next Steps - Talk about the next steps to follow to move forward. If your prospect is willing to purchase your product/services, great job! If they are still indecisive, identify their hesitations and see if you can offer a solution. You can schedule another meeting to address these hesitations or maybe offer them a trial of your product/service to later discuss in a meeting. Don't end the meeting without scheduling your next touch base.

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Your meeting has concluded so your first contact journey is done, right? Wrong! To make sure of a successful ending to your first contact journey there are some things you need to do after the meeting too.

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3. After The Meeting

Immediately after the meeting you want to make sure your notes are in order. They should capture everything clearly and concisely. If you use a CRM make sure to put your notes in there and update the state of your lead. We must underline this part again, you will thank yourself later for these notes so make sure they captured everything!

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If you are not able to schedule a clear next touch base, make sure you schedule a follow-up on your end, to show them you are thankful they made time for you and you are always available for further assistance and clarifications. 

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How BHuman.ai Helps You Make Successful First Contact

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With our platform's ability to create personalized videos on scale you can improve on all of your outreach efforts and tailor them to your prospects!

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You can send personalized videos to your emailing list explaining to them how your services can benefit them while addressing them specifically, provide personal explanations and walkthroughs, send prospects direct messages containing a personalized video that is inviting them to check out your website, provide personalized promotions and customer support and so much more.

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To learn more about the other ways you can utilize BHuman.ai visit our site at BHuman.ai. You can also contact us at info@bhuman.ai and we will be happy to inspire you in all the ways you can use BHuman.ai to improve your sales efforts. Sign up for our platform today at BHuman.ai.

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