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Joeclc profile picture

Joeclc

Partner Channel Manager

Contributor
Fire Starter

How to not give pushy salesperson impression when following up after the demo meeting?

I tend to follow up my hot prospects (the one I already have had demo meeting with) 1 week after the meeting. To give them a space, time to digest and come up with a decision. My follow ups usually refer to our conversation in demo and I ask whether there is anything else I can do and etc. Some answer and say that they need more time to discuss, some hit me with another objection. I keep following up after 1 or 2 weeks depending on the prospect.
I have a feeling like I am being pushy and I am sure nobody wants that to happen.
What would you suggest to do?
Is 1 week good to follow up after the meeting?
What should my follow up email, call look like ?
🧠 Advice
📈 Closing
📳 SaaS
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19 comments

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Notmyrealname
Politicker
18
AE
Stop doing this. You're waiting to take an order. While you're on the demo you should be agreeing next steps and arranging the next meeting, as well as clarifying what everyone needs to do in between.
TennisandSales
Politicker
5
Head Of Sales
this is a very common problem. And most of the time what is going on is NOT due to your follow up. its your demo/discovery.

1. agree on next steps before the first meeting is over. "john i know you and the team will need time to connect. can we put some time aside next week for 20-30 minutes so we can reconnect? That way we have something on the calendar and time wont get away from us?"

2. you have to make sure that THEY agree they have a problem that needs to be fixed.

3. you have to be 100% sure that the prospect actually likes what they see. lots of ppl are just nice and wil tell you "yeah this is nice" "i like this" "no questions from me"

if the prospect wont get back to you its because they do not view you and the product as something that they NEED right now. so make sure you are digging in when doing discovery.
jefe
Arsonist
4
🍁
Looks like it's been covered, but I'll reiterate. You need to set up next steps and timelines before the demo, or preferably discovery ends.

Uncover triggers and set expectations
CuriousFox
WR Officer
4
🦊
I send a recap email the SAME DAY outlining the next steps and who is
responsible for what. Then I follow it up with a calendar invite to
discuss the results of the actionable items I set in the email.

Sunbunny31
Politicker
3
Sr Sales Executive 🐰
You're doing the equivalent of "are we there yet?" and as you can tell, it's not always effective. It's not pushy to be setting expectations and a path forward at each stage of your process - not when you've hung up the phone by email, but during discovery, at the end of the demo - you are continuing to validate that the customer sees value in your solution and you agree to steps along the way. TennisandSales has good suggestions for how to frame this and what to look for.

It's not pushy at all to talk about their buying process and the steps to get to a decision, or to ask about their decision criteria. Timeline for when they must have a solution in place will help you help them manage the process so that they can be successful as well.
Cabbie
Good Citizen
2
AE (Account Executive)
Couple of notes on this, but firstly: I always try and get a timeline in the meeting, and would strongly recommend doing that.

Doesn't need to be anything pushy, just a "when would you like this sorted by, one way or the other?" then "great, so can I expect to hear feedback next week, or would you prefer I follow you up on a certain day?" generally does the trick.

Then, if you don't hear from them, you're well within your rights to hit them with a "Hey, I didn't hear from you yesterday - what was the feedback internally? Have you hit any roadblocks that I can remove for you?" is normally fine. Absolutely hold them accountable for their timeline, and it doesn't feel as needy.

Second note: it's only pushy if you're actually desperate. Don't follow up to hit quota - follow up to keep the conversation going, working off the best-faith assumption that if a prospect is willing to give up their time for this, then it's important to them you keep this moving.

If you're getting the feeling that it's no longer worth their time to continue the conversation, I'll normally start swinging in with a "hey, it's been a few weeks since I heard from you, so I assume this isn't a priority anymore. Just an FYI that unless I hear from you by COB Friday I'll be closing this off."

Tends to sort the time-wasters from the genuinely interested, but busy.

Hope that helps.
Cabbie
Good Citizen
3
AE (Account Executive)
All "quotes" are indicative only, and should only be used in the most natural, least "I read these words on a forum" way possible, FYI hahaha.
TennisandSales
Politicker
1
Head Of Sales
haha i like this explanation!
mdhcanada
Executive
2
Enterprise Business Development Director
Even though it’s a demo for them to see your product, it is also an opportunity for you to really understand what their needs, wants and challenges are. This is not only their opportunity to see if you are a fit for them but also to see if they are a fit for you?

Do they have a problem you can solve? Do they have a budget? What is their urgency - or are they only fishing?

I usually send an email the day of or 1 day after thanking them for their time and to highlight the main points of the conversation. Including:
- What they are trying to solve for
- How my company helps solve that problem
- Agreed upon next steps or call to action.

As others have said, book the next call while on the demo call. Then when you send the invite, you can include this message there as well so that people remember what the call is for.
saaskicker
Celebrated Contributor
2
Enterprise AE
Deals are won in discovery, not on the demo.
Thatsalesdude
Politicker
2
Account Executive
Always bring value to every conversation. Calling and saying "I'm just checking in" dosen't get anyone anywhere.

Following up with something extra they can walk away with whether its a feature, advice anything with value will get you a lot farther.
antiASKHOLE
Tycoon
1
Bravado's Resident Asshole
Two things should happen. Get somewhat of a commitment at the close or proposal. Then gain a clear future of how the process/deal will work out.
nomdeguerre
Executive
1
Account executive
Never get off the phone without getting on the calendar.
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
1
Sales Rep
Also have some else cc’ed so they can follow up so it’s not you being pushy but two people with separate thank you notes
Joeclc
Contributor
0
Partner Channel Manager
This is awesome my friend! Thank you. I always thought it wouldn’t be good to tell the prospect that I am not willing to cooperate unless I hear from him in a couple of weeks. Apparently I was wrong 😀 Learning new things everyday
saaskicker
Celebrated Contributor
1
Enterprise AE
the downtime between the last time you chat with a prospect and your next meeting, always assume they are talking to competitors. i will put 30 minuts to reconnect / sync / debrief with a prospect almost every day to just fill their calendar and steal their brainpower so they dont have time to demo another product or chat with other reps.
LightingLeader
Politicker
0
Specification Sales
A WEEK. Dude I follow up with hit prospects the next day. I only wait a week between emails if they seem very apprehensive.
BostonHound
Opinionated
0
Enterprise BDR
Not to beat a dead horse but so crucial to set those next steps in the demo/discovery call… a few minutes before end saying something along the lines of “We’re almost at the end of time, sure theres a lot to process with the team. Let’s put something on the calendar next week at xyz time and date (and send the invite while on the call) to connect again.

Gives you the leverage to absolutely follow up if you dont hear from them or they suddenly decline the meeting such as “Hey John looks like thursday no longer works for you would friday morning at __ time work well to continue the discussion around (list pain points here, not your products features)
salezkween
Opinionated
0
Enterprise Account Executive
If you’re not scheduling even a 15 min sync after a demo, it’s not a real deal

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