But, after you've delivered that first bit of information to your prospect, do you send him any further information?

If you are like most Internet marketers, you don't.

When you don't follow that initial message with additional information later on, you let a valuable prospect slip from your grasp! This is a potential customer who may have been very interested in your products, but who lost your contact information, or was too busy to make a purchase when your first message reached him. Often, a prospect will purposely put off making a purchase, to see if you find him important enough to follow up with later. When he doesn't receive a follow up message from you, he will take his business elsewhere.

---------------------------------- ARE YOU LOSING PROFITS DUE TO INCONSISTENT AND INEFFECTIVE FOLLOW UP? ----------------------------------

Following up with leads is more than just a process - it's an art. In order to be effective, you need to design a follow up system, and stick to it, EVERY DAY! If you don't follow up with your prospects consistently, INDIVIDUALLY, and in a timely fashion, then you might as well forget whole follow up process.

---------------------------------- CONSISTENT FOLLOW UP GETS RESULTS! ----------------------------------

When I first started marketing and following up with prospects, I used a follow up method that I now call "List Technique." I had a large database containing names and e-mail addresses of people who had specifically requested information about my products and services. These prospects had already received my first letter by time they requested more information, so I used company's latest news as a follow up piece. I would write follow up newsletters every now and then, and send them, in one mass mailing, to everyone who had previously requested information from me. While this probably did help me win a few additional orders, it wasn't a very good follow up method. Why isn't "List Technique" very effective?

* The List Technique isn't consistent. Proponents of List Technique tend to only send out follow up messages when their companies have "big news".

* List Technique messages don't give potential customer any additional information about product or service in question. He can't make a more informed buying decision after receiving a newsletter! If someone is wondering whether your company sells best knick-knacks, what does he care that you've just moved your headquarters?

1. PROMOTE "SIMPLE, FAST AND EASY"

Your customers want your product or service to provide a simple solution to their problem. They also want to see fast results and they want those results to be easy to get.

Give them what they want. Promote characteristics of your product or service that are simple and easy -- and those that provide fast results. These are often more important to customers than price.

Also make your buying process simple, fast and easy for EACH customer so you don't lose potential sales. For example...

Many internet marketers offer only one way for customers to order -- online at a secure server. That may be easiest way for YOU to buy something but it's not easiest way for all of your customers. That's why many online orders get abandoned before they're completed.

One online marketer told me her sales increased almost 20 percent when she added options of ordering by phone, fax or postal mail.

2. STOP SELLING AND LET THEM BUY

People love to buy things but they hate feeling of being sold something.

I recently read about a survey conducted among new car buyers. Every participant rated helpful attitude of salesperson as one of major reasons they bought their car. None felt like a persuasive salesperson SOLD them a car. Instead, they felt like they BOUGHT car.

Most of those survey participants were probably ready to buy a car when they walked into dealership. The salesperson didn't have to persuade them to buy. He just needed to find a car with features they wanted and a price they could afford.