Orphans

Disciplines > Sales > Prospecting > Orphans

Description | Example | Discussion | See also

Description

Orphaned customers are those who have got part way through a sales cycle but for some reason have been abandoned.

This can happen when other salespeople in your company are overloaded, go on holiday or leave the company. Standing by to catch the fallout can help both you and your company.

You can also find orphans at exhibitions and conferences. Watch for people looking a bit lost or expectant.

Example

A sales person in a company goes on maternity leave. Another sales person catches her before she leaves and gets her list of leads to follow up on.

A sales person finds out that a competitor's sales person is going on holiday for a month. Whilst the other sales person is away, the first sales person calls on a number of the common customers.

Discussion

Customers are used to attention, especially when they are thinking about buying. If they are 'abandoned' by one sales person, they may feel rejected and losing esteem. When another sales person comes along and 'rescues' them, their gratitude to that sales person may oblige them to give a consideration to what that sales person has to say above and beyond what they might normally give.