When a new prospect raises their hand, most businesses do one of two things.
They pounce…
Or they disappear.
The pouncers immediately start trying to make the sale.
“Here’s what you should buy.”
“You need to act now.”
“This price disappears at midnight.”
They begin at the end of the conversation, trying to prescribe something before they understand the person or their situation.
The disappearers send the requested catalog, report, or download link…and that’s the last the prospect ever hears from them.
Neither approach makes much sense.
If someone has requested your beach condo price report, fence and gate catalog, kitchen remodeling guide, or anything else that indicates what they’re thinking about doing, the first 100 hours are incredibly valuable.
But the objective isn’t necessarily to make the sale.
The objective is to find the five-star prospects.
A five-star prospect is someone who:
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Is willing to engage in a dialogue
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Is friendly and cooperative
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Knows what they want
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Knows when they want it
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Would like us to help them
All five need to be true.
And since they all need to be true, we may as well start at the top.
Are they willing to engage?
That’s the only thing we need to discover first.
We’re not calling to corner them into an appointment. We’re not trying to create artificial urgency.
We’re simply introducing ourselves, making sure they received what they requested, and giving them an opportunity to tell us what they’re thinking.
That first conversation may reveal someone who needs your help immediately.
Or it may reveal someone who is still six months, a year, or several years away.
Both are valuable.
Remember, if we begin with 100 leads, there’s a higher-than-good expectation that 50 of them will eventually do what they raised their hands about over the next 100 weeks.
We simply can’t tell which 50 by looking at their names, email addresses, and phone numbers.
The purpose of the first 100 hours is to get a head start.
To connect.
To inquire.
To serve.
And to discover whether one of the five-star prospects hiding in that group is ready for our help right now.
Don’t pounce.
Don’t disappear.
Start a conversation.