Re-engaging Lost Leads: A Simple Guide

Sometimes, despite how interested they seem, we lose a lead. When this happens, it can feel disheartening as you’ve lost an opportunity to make a sale and generate revenue.

Although some leads are lost because they truly aren’t interested, some can be gained back because, maybe, they simply needed more time to think, or you weren’t serving them the right content.

If you’ve found that you’re losing leads that seem qualified and interested in your business, read on to discover strategies that will help you bring them back and drive a conversion.

8 Strategies For Re-engaging Lost Leads

1. Survey the leads you’ve lost.

Surveying lost leads helps you strengthen the process of interacting with leads and lessen the likelihood of losing them or having them go dark for a while. These surveys don’t have to be long and drawn out; you can simply ask where they stand with your business — if they’re still interested, no longer interested, or used to be interested — and why those that lost interest lost interest.

From the results, you’ll learn which leads are still interested in further nurturing, and you’ll also learn why certain leads lost interest and left, helping you focus on high-impact strategies that are more likely to drive a sale.

2. Use trigger events to reconnect with lost leads.

A trigger event is anything that creates a sales opportunity with your leads, like a new company executive, an acquisition, or even someone opening your email. All of these pose an opportunity to reach out again and make a sales pitch that re-establishes your relationship and helps you further nurture a conversion.

You can monitor trigger events through a CRM (which we’ll discuss later), social media, press releases, LinkedIn, google alerts, etc. When you get wind of these trigger events, reach out to a lead that may have gone cold and remind them that you’re there to support them through a change they’re experiencing. For example, if they’ve started something new at their business, maybe your solution is more relevant to them now.

3. Share relevant content with lost leads.

Sharing relevant content with your lost leads can help you increase the likelihood of closing a deal because you’re giving them resources to help them solve their pain points and reminding them of the benefits that you stand to bring them if they close a deal with you.

This tip is especially useful when combined with trigger events, as you can reach out to those leads and share content with them that relates to the event, like a webinar you’re hosting about client onboarding if you see that they’ve recently experienced growth.

4. Use a CRM.

A CRM is a valuable tool for all sales teams, especially when it comes to tracking leads. If you store contacts in your CRM and keep information up to date, you can track interaction history with your leads and take note of when you haven’t heard from them in a while.

You can then initiate contact with this lost lead and leverage some of the strategies below to drive a conversion.

5. Offer incentives.

Customers appreciate incentives, and they can help you ignite the fire in your lost leads, especially if the incentives are relevant. This can look like sharing a limited-time offer to inspire them to take action right away or letting them know that something they were previously interested in is on sale.

In practice, this could look like tracking relationship history in your CRM, learning pain points and interests, and reaching out with a limited-time offer that speaks directly to their goals. For example, maybe you just launched an e-book containing new data that will significantly benefit their practices, and you’re offering it at a discounted price.

6. Start a conversation in a new way.

When re-engaging with lost leads, consider switching up your mode of communication. For example, if you always send emails, consider placing a phone call or sending a letter to their place of work.

This works because leads are used to receiving communication from you in the mode you typically use. If you reconnect in a new way, you may leave an impression, stay top of mind, and inspire them to re-start the conversion process.

7. Try retargeting.

Retargeting is a form of online targeted ads that are served to people who have already taken action with your business, like visited your website, or are already an established contact in your CRM.

These retargeting ads appear when they browse online and serve as a reminder to your leads that you’re still there and have something to offer them, which can inspire them to reach out and begin a conversation that may lead to a sale.

8. Restart from zero.

While you likely have some relationship history and you understand their pain points, consider re-starting the conversation with a lost lead from square one.

Discuss their pain points again, learn if anything has changed since you last spoke, and start fresh. You can also ask what caused them to go dark in the first place, so you can tailor your strategy to best meet their needs. Essentially, you can put all of your cards on the table and start a relationship that is more likely to lead to a closed deal.

Lost leads don’t have to be lost forever.

As mentioned above, a lost lead isn’t necessarily a lost customer. Monitor your pipeline with a CRM and re-engage those lost leads with the strategies above to drive conversions.