Interest isn't turning into sales

A good conversation isn't a decision. Several people often weigh in on a purchase, and your contact has to make the case when you aren't in the room. A "just checking in" email gives them nothing to work with.

Try this first

1. Before the meeting ends, agree on a specific next step and date.

2. Ask who else is involved and what each of them will care about.

3. Send your contact a short summary they can forward: the problem, the result, and what happens if nothing changes.

4. Follow up within 24 to 48 hours with a real question, such as "What was the most valuable takeaway from our conversation?"

How you'll know it's working: prospects reply with specifics, and you learn who else is deciding before a deal stalls.

Go deeper

• Why Prospects Ghost You After Great Demos

• Why Your Demo Follow-Up Emails Get Ignored

• The B2B Marketing Reality Check, Chapter 7

This is rarely about effort. The two sides are usually working from different definitions of a good lead. If one person does both jobs, the same fix applies: write down what qualifies and what happens next.

Try this first

1. Review last quarter's deals together and agree what makes a lead worth pursuing. Write it down.

2. Agree what happens to a qualified lead, who owns it and how quickly they respond.

3. Keep one shared view of leads accepted, meetings held and deals closed, by source.

4. Meet briefly and regularly to review which leads went nowhere, and why.

How you'll know it's working: the conversation moves from "the leads are bad" to which sources to adjust.

Go deeper

• Why Your Sales Team Hates Your Marketing Leads

• 3 Sales-Marketing Alignment Quick Wins That End the Blame Game

• 3 Sales-Marketing Alignment Quick Wins: Fix the Lead Handoff

• The B2B Marketing Reality Check, Chapters 14 and 15

Silence is often about timing, not lack of interest. Most leads aren't ready to buy when you first meet them, and most follow-up stops long before they are.

Try this first

1. List the leads who have been quiet for 60 days or more.

2. Send a short series of three emails: acknowledge the gap, offer one useful thing, and give a clear choice to continue or step away.

3. Watch for strong signals, such as a visit to your pricing page or a resource download, and follow up on those first.

4. Give people a reason to act, such as a workshop or a time-limited review.

How you'll know it's working: some quiet leads come back, and the rest give you a clear no.

Go deeper

• 4 Lead Nurturing Quick Wins

• Why "Best Practice" Lead Nurturing Is Killing Your Pipeline

• 3 Market Education Quick Wins That Turn "Just Looking" Into "Ready to Buy"

By the time someone cancels, the decision is usually already made. Customers tend to show warning signs first, and you may already have the information to spot them.

Try this first

1. Pick the warning signs that fit your business, such as customers using you less or raising the same issue repeatedly.

2. Review your top 10 to 15 customers and note who is showing those signs.

3. Put a 20-minute check-in with each of them on your calendar every 90 days.

4. Ask what has changed and what they need next. The same conversation can reveal new work.

How you'll know it's working: you hear about problems before a cancellation, not because of one.

Go deeper

• 3 Retention Quick Wins: Spot Churn Risk Before Your Customers Tell You They're Leaving

We don't have a sales team. Does this apply to us?

Yes. If one person sells and markets, the same questions apply. Writing down the answers still helps.

How many times should we follow up?

More than once. Many people stop after a single attempt, while most sales take several touches. Each one should give the person something useful.

Do we need new software?

Not to start. Email, a calendar and a spreadsheet are enough for everything on this page.