Sales is a tricky game and to make it you must learn how to play. No matter what you’re trying to sell or who you’re selling to, knowing how to approach each customer is the key to success. This is why you have to know the difference between customer types and learn how to approach each one.
Knowing how to recognize a lead, a prospect, and an opportunity is thus of great importance. This article will break down all you need to know and will teach you how to deal with each customer type. Let’s take a closer look.
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Defining Customer Types: Lead, Prospect & Opportunity
Let’s begin by defining what each of the customer types is, how to recognize them and how to put them in the right category.
Lead
A lead is the broadest term for a potential customer and marks the beginning of their journey with you. By definition, it’s:
any person that has shown an interest in your business and buying your products or services.
This means you've collected some sort of data about this individual or business representative. Typically, they would have attended your webinar, signed up for your newsletter, or left a comment on one of your blog posts.
Still, they haven’t shown direct interest in buying what you’re selling. But, they’re important for showing an interest.
Prospect
A prospect takes us one step further down the sales funnel. This is a person who:
has shown an interest in buying from you and has the authority to make such a decision.
This means that prospects are closer to becoming a customer and have made it through your selective criteria that qualify them as a prospect. These criteria depend on your market, business goals, buyer persona, and other similar determinants.
Both leads and sales require certain work on your side, to be turned into opportunities.
Opportunity
As you may have guessed, an opportunity is closest to making that purchase and becoming an official customer of yours. This is a prospect that you've carefully selected and concluded that they:
have a need for buying your product or service and are interested in doing so.
You can recognize an opportunity by the action they take, like:
- signing up for a free trial
- asking for the price
- downloading the instruction manual
- asking about terms, conditions, payment options
- searching for a specific product
- ask your chatbot questions
This will signalize that the person is seriously interested, and you need to make a move.
How to Treat Each Customer Type?
Many businesses make the mistake of only paying attention to opportunities. Thinking they’re playing it safe, these businesses are actually losing a huge number of potential customers.
This is why it’s crucial that you recognize, categorize, and then pay attention to all three types of customers that you have. So, how should you treat each type?
How do you nurture leads?
Lead nurturing is the efforts you need to make to transform them into either prospects or opportunities. Here are some of the most popular strategies:
- segmentation and email marketing
- social media marketing and sponsored ads
- any type of interesting content - guides, e-books, how-to videos
You need to reach out to leads, raise awareness about your business and ensure you get their attention.
What to do with prospects?
With prospects, take it a step further and try to deepen your relationship. Your main goal is to understand them to know what to offer. Here’s what we suggest:
- define their pain points
- deliver relevant content
- constantly stay in touch through a series of emails
How to treat an opportunity?
Finally, if you’ve established that a prospect has the pain points, interests, and other criteria fit to your idea of an opportunity, you’re almost there.
Now, think of the best way to approach this person and:
- offer help and assistance
- present the right products and services
- offer a discount or a special deal
Make a direct move on them and work on your sales strategy.
Final Thoughts
Yes, sales are getting tougher by the year as more businesses are entering the global market and customers are being approached everywhere and all the time. But, to stand out, you need to treat them according to their stage in the sales funnel.
The guide we’ve shared above will help you learn the difference between customer types and make sure you treat them accordingly. This will boost your sales and your confidence.