Is It Time To Give Up On Your Prospects?

When is it ever right to give up on a prospect? If you've been sending consistent email marketing campaigns to them for over several months with no response then maybe the best thing would be to cut your losses. Your email allowance could make room for more qualified leads that are likelier to make a purchase; these unresponsive accounts are ultimately dead-weight to your campaigns.

But before you delete their address from your list, consider for a moment: the fact that these contacts initially showed an interest in your campaigns but aren't responding anymore might not have anything to do with your email marketing campaign strategy; it could be they're just not in a position to buy at the moment.

Before wading into your list with a finger on the 'delete' key, it's worth segmenting your list and putting these unresponsive addresses to one side. Your aim is to establish whether interest in your products / services is still there and what the likelihood is of that interest converting into a sale in future.

Compose a simple text-based email appealing to your subscribers for information. You can be as creative or direct about your intentions as you like. To get subscribers to open the email, emphasise the benefits to them in the subject line e.g. 'We Want to Improve our Services to You.' Include a tick box or something similar asking prospects where they are roughly on the sales ladder e.g. 'I'm interested but don't want to buy at the moment', or 'I'd like some more product information first' as this will help you sort the potential customers from those with no intention of ever buying.

The email should be non-committal and low-risk to the subscriber – that way, if they don’t respond within a reasonable amount of time, it’s fair to say that their interest has waned and it’s time to move on. Now you can delete that address from your email marketing list with a clean conscience; no need to stay awake at night wondering whether you threw away a big opportunity. And on the other side of the coin, you might have prompted some of those other ‘silent subscribers’ into conversations that will convert into sales; all through having the patience to ask the right questions in the right way.

Don’t be rash with your contact list – qualified, opt-in contacts aren’t the easiest to attract, so never write-off a lead until you’re sure it’s gone.