Who's afraid of Ghosting? Why customers don't get back to you, and what can you do about it

After the summer break, the george james team are back with season 2 of the podcast.
 In this episode, Steve, Pru and Jayne discuss the topic of ghosting in sales. They define ghosting as when a customer or prospect stops responding to calls, emails, or other forms of communication. The hosts explore the reasons why ghosting happens, such as misaligned expectations, fear of rejection, and the customer not being happy with something but not expressing it. They emphasize the importance of setting clear next steps and explicitly agreeing on them with the customer. They also highlight the need for salespeople to not take ghosting personally and to see it as valuable information for moving on to the next opportunity.

Takeaways

• Ghosting in sales refers to when a customer or prospect stops responding to communication.
• Misaligned expectations and fear of rejection are common reasons for ghosting.
• Setting clear next steps and explicitly agreeing on them with the customer can help prevent ghosting.
• Salespeople should not take ghosting personally and see it as valuable information for moving on to the next opportunity. Prospects may ghost salespeople because they don't want to deliver bad news or because they have concerns or uncertainties.
• Gathering information early in the sales process and involving all relevant stakeholders can help minimize the chances of being ghosted.
• Having a coach or ally within the customer's organization can provide valuable insights and support.
• To prevent ghosting, it's important to ask for feedback, agree on the next steps, and understand the customer's timeline and decision-making process.
• Salespeople should not take rejection personally and should focus on continuous improvement.

Music for the show from artlist.io

Steve Vaughan, Jonathan Cooper, Pru Layton, Christian Walter, Pascal le Floche Jayne Green and Debbie Airey are Sales Trainers from george james ltd. You can email the show at: Podcast@georgejames-training.com

The trainers on LinkedIn:

Steve Vaughan https://www.linkedin.com/in/steve-vaughan-salestrainer/
Jonathan Cooper https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathan-cooper-18716b1/
Pru Layton https://www.linkedin.com/in/pru-layton-b46a3528/
Christian Walter https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-walter-a1857b1/
Jayne Green https://www.linkedin.com/in/jayne-green-salestrainer/
Pascal Le Floch-Riche https://www.linkedin.com/in/pascal-le-floch-220ba46/
Debbie Airey https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbie-airey-43026110/

george james training website https://georgejames-training.com/

Chapters

• 9:20 Preventing Ghosting: Setting Clear Next Steps
• 13:16 Overcoming the Fear of Rejection
• 15:48 Seeing Ghosting as Valuable Information
• 17:36 Understanding Ghosting in Sales
• 19:31 Minimizing the Chances of Being Ghosted
• 23:00 Gathering Information and Involving Stakeholders
• 23:57 Having a Coach or Ally Within the Customer's Organization
• 24:37 Preventing Ghosting: Asking for Feedback and Agreeing on Next Steps
• 33:55 Dealing with Rejection and Focusing on Continuous Improvement