By Frank Finn
Hospitality sales and marketing professionals face the same challenge the miller’s daughter confronted in “Rumplestiltskin,” the 19th-century German folk tale immortalized by the Brothers Grimm. Don’t remember the story? Here’s a recap:
Once upon a time, a miller who wanted to seem important bragged to everyone that his daughter could spin straw into gold. The king caught wind of this and locked the daughter in a tower with a spinning wheel and a pile of straw. “You have three nights to spin this straw into gold,” said the king. “If you fail, you will be executed.” The miller’s daughter despaired until an odd little man named Rumplestiltskin appeared in her room. In exchange for her necklace, he spun the straw into gold. The king was so pleased, he made the miller’s daughter his queen.
There is a lot more to the story, but the point is, hospitality sales and marketing people face the same do-or-die situation every day: take straw (leads) and turn them into gold (bookings). After all, a sales lead is as worthless as a pile of straw until someone converts it into a booked meeting.
So what’s the secret? Follow “Rumplestiltskin’s Rules” and while you may not become royalty, you will live to spin another day.
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #1: Don’t Let Hot Leads Go Cold
Sales leads are like bread; they go stale overnight. However you generated the lead, whether through a show, a print ad, your Web site, a direct mail campaign, act on it quickly. With each day that goes by without a “touch”—a follow-up telephone call, email message, or some other contact—the odds of converting a lead drop.
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #2: All Leads Are Not Created Equal
Too many sales and marketing people treat all leads alike, when in fact their quality varies widely. Show leads often get priority treatment because they are costly to generate. But let’s face it, those business cards you collected by holding that “Win an iPad” drawing in your booth aren’t leads from serious prospects interested in booking a meeting at your facility. All you’ve got is a list of people who would love to win an iPad. They aren’t nearly as valuable as the list of people who requested information about your meeting facilities on your Web site yesterday.
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #3: Qualify Leads Using the Three I’s
At every stage, make sure the leads you are devoting time and effort to pass the “Three I’s” Test:
- Interest – The meeting planner is actively seeking a facility to hold an event.
- Influence – The contact is responsible for selecting the site.
- Investment – The planner’s budget for the meeting is in line with your rates.
If you are diligent about confirming the Three I’s, you won’t waste time on prospects who can’t or won’t book a meeting with you.
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #4: Put a Fuse on the Hottest Leads
When you assign a lead to a salesperson, especially those that come in as RFPs, always give him or her a deadline. Nothing creates a sense of urgency in a salesperson like the words, “I’m taking this away from you in 10 days and assigning it to someone else if you haven’t booked the business.” On the appointed day, unless the salesperson can show they are making real progress on the account, reassign the lead to the next person in line.
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #5: You Can’t Hit the Bull’s-Eye if You Don’t Have a Target
Effective conversion of sales leads depends on defining the kind of business you are targeting. And in today’s environment, your target may be change every six to 12 months. Be very specific about which type of group and meeting suits your facility best. Then screen your leads and rank them according to how well they fit the profile.
To be continued tomorrow… stay tuned.
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