What To Do if a Conversation Goes Silent

We’ve all had that casual conversation with a prospect – the one where all of a sudden, CRICKETS. It happens, and it’s okay! You’re probably still practicing spammy tactics. I’m here to help you steer the conversation back on track.

So you’re thinking to yourself, “I messaged this person, I’m doing the reach outs, I’m following up, but if they aren’t responding to me, how am I ever going to make a sale?” This right here is actually a gift, because it means you’re doing something wrong.

Don’t assume the worst.

By nature, people get busy. So, it’s totally normal for people not to respond, take a few days, or need a nudge from you. If they don’t respond, don’t assume the worst. That’s the biggest mistake I see that people make. Put yourself in their shoes. Think about your avatar. My avatar is moms. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had my phone open, listening to a message in messenger, and then something happens with the girls, and I drop the phone. When I come back to it, it shows the message as read. So the receiver will look at that and go, “Kimberly saw my message, and she didn’t respond. What’s her problem?” Little did they know that I had a child who had an accident in the bathroom – mama has to go. Things happen, so don’t give up!

Follow-up if they don’t respond.

Now what I have found is that people do need a nudge. My rule of thumb is I will message people two times. And after that, if they don’t respond, I’m done. I don’t message anymore. It’s two and done. I give my opening message and they respond, letting me know a little more about them, and usually want to know more about me. I tell them what I do for a living, and I ask if they have ever thought about doing something like what I do, have they ever thought about adding another stream of income to what they already do. If they don’t respond, I wait a few days. I’ll make a note on my Trello board, and I will not message them until the next day.

I’ll give it a couple of days because people get busy. I will message them, and I will say, “Hey! I hope you’re having a great week. Did my message come through?” And I always ask, “Did my message come through?” Because let’s just say they didn’t have good wifi. But we don’t know why they didn’t respond. We don’t want to assume that they saw the message and ignored it, which is the story you’re telling yourself. Give them an opportunity to go, “Oh my goodness, I am so sorry. Saw the message and got busy”, or “I saw it and this week has been crazy.” There’s always going to be some excuse. It’s going to be a valid excuse in their mind, but there’s a reason they didn’t respond. You just needed to re-engage!

Permission marketing is the wave of the future.

If you are frequently having conversations go cold, if you’re messaging back and forth, and then all of a sudden they’re just not responding, this means you are probably pitching, prospecting, or sending links out too quickly. Never send a link out unsolicited. Never send a graphic with your products and specials without getting permission first.

You always need to get permission. If you’re doing this right, you’ll have people ask how to order from you and to grab that link from you. You want to build a relationship and focus on the value of mentoring them. You need to lead with some kind of value.

Let’s say you’re talking to somebody who is a yoga enthusiast, and you share that in common. You’re chatting, and you have a Facebook group that has health and wellness tips. Invite them into your community. Maybe you created a freebie with 10 smoothie recipes, so say, “Hey, I saw you’re also into yoga. One of the things that really helped me a lot was working some smoothies into my routine. I just put a guide together for my own purposes. Let me know if you want it. I’d love to give that to you!” You say this while you are having a conversation with them, that’s an example of you offering value. You’re focusing on what you have to offer, whether it’s a freebie, a Facebook group community, an upcoming challenge, or a giveaway. Does it make sense for your avatar? Can you lead them over to the things that you have?

How will you show up and stand out?

If you don’t have an avatar or a freebie, posting and praying isn’t going to work anymore. You have to learn how to show up and how to stand out. This doesn’t mean you have to be branded and have colors like me. You just need to figure out who you are, who you’re going to serve, and how you are going to show up.

Go give that convo a nudge, Goal Diggers!

If you want to check out this blog in video format, watch my latest #getLIT training!