➲ Don’t let hot leads go cold.

Converting
Leads [FRANK FINN]

into Sales
Rules for Spinning Straw into Gold

HOSPITALITY SALES AND MARKETING PROFESSIONALS face the Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #1

same challenge the miller’s daughter confronted in “Rumplestiltskin,” the Don’t Let Hot Leads Go Cold
19th-century German folk tale immortalized by the Brothers Grimm. Don’t Sales leads are like bread; they go
remember the story? Here’s a recap: stale overnight. However you generat-
ed the lead, whether through a show,
Once upon a time, a miller who wanted to seem important bragged a print ad, your website, a direct mail
to everyone that his daughter could spin straw into gold. The king campaign, act on it quickly. With each
caught wind of this and locked the daughter in a tower with a spin- day that goes by without a “touch”—a
ning wheel and a pile of straw. “You have three nights to spin this follow-up telephone call, email mes-
straw into gold,” said the king. “If you fail, you will be executed.” sage, or some other contact—the
odds of converting a lead drop.
The miller’s daughter despaired until an odd little man named
Rumplestiltskin appeared in her room. In exchange for her necklace,
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #2
he spun the straw into gold. The king was so pleased, he made the
IllustratIon by amanda ChronIster

All Leads Are Not Created Equal

miller’s daughter his queen.
Too many sales and marketing people
There is a lot more to the story, but the point is, hospitality sales and mar- treat all leads alike, when in fact their
keting people face the same do-or-die situation every day: take straw (leads) quality varies widely. Show leads often
and turn them into gold (bookings). After all, a sales lead is as worthless as get priority treatment because they
a pile of straw until someone converts it into a booked meeting. are costly to generate. But let’s face it,
those business cards you collected by
So what’s the secret? Follow “Rumplestiltskin’s Rules” and while you may holding that “Win an iPad” drawing
not become royalty, you will live to spin another day. ➲ in your booth aren’t leads from seri-

10 HSMAI MARKETING REVIEW • FALL 2010

 ➲ It’s all about... timing.
➲ Old leads never die, unless you let them.

ous prospects interested in booking a Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #5 third-tier players who influence the
meeting at your facility. All you’ve got You Can’t Hit the Bull’s-Eye buying decision at best, while the per-
is a list of people who would love to if You Don’t Have a Target son who really decides never hears
win an iPad. They aren’t nearly as valu- your story.
Effective conversion of sales leads
able as the list of people who request-
depends on defining the kind of
ed information about your meeting Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #8
business you are targeting. And in
facilities on your website yesterday. It’s All About . . . Timing
today’s environment, your target may
change every six to 12 months. Be You know that the prospect’s meeting
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #3 very specific about which type of is a perfect fit for your facility. You
Qualify Leads Using the Three I’s group and meeting suits your facility know you have the amenities they are
At every stage, make sure the leads best. Then screen your leads and rank looking for. You know who will make
you are devoting time and effort to them according to how well they fit the ultimate decision. But you are still
pass the “Three I’s” Test: the profile. missing one critical piece of informa-
1) Interest—The meeting planner tion: when the decision on a meeting
is actively seeking a facility Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #6 location will be made. Your sales effort
to hold an event. Old Leads Never Die, should build to a crescendo just before
Unless You Let Them the decision date and build in a con-
2) Influence—The contact is tact just prior to that time. Talking to
responsible for selecting the site. If a lead doesn’t convert into a sale in
the planner at that point gives you a
short order, don’t purge it from your
3) Investment—The planner’s chance to adjust your proposal for last-
database entirely. As long as the orga-
budget for the meeting is in line minute changes in the meeting specifi-
nization holds meetings that you can
with your rates. cations and win the booking.
accommodate, put them on “life sup-
If you are diligent about confirming port.” Send the contact an invitation to
the Three I’s, you won’t waste time on receive your email newsletter. Add the Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #9
prospects who can’t or won’t book a person to your postcard mailing list. Change Equals Opportunity
meeting with you. It’s well worth using these low-cost, low- Be sure to track the changing profile
maintenance tactics. For one thing, of every lead, both individuals and
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #4 getting address corrections back from organizations, in your database.
Put a Fuse on the Hottest Leads postcard mailings will help you keep Here’s why: When the person who
your list up to date. And if certain books meetings at a prospect organiza-
When you assign a lead to a salesper-
leads never open your email promo- tion leaves, that change can create two
son, especially those that come in as
tions, they just aren’t interested. Purge opportunities. A current customer at a
RFPs, always give him or her a dead-
them from your prospecting database. new organization could book addition-
line. Nothing creates a sense of urgen-
al meetings with you. And the person
cy in a salesperson like the words, “I’m
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #7 who moves into the old customer’s job
taking this away from you in 10 days
Drill Down to the Decision-Maker is a prospect for return bookings.
and assigning it to someone else if you
haven’t booked the business.” On the Whatever system you use to track
appointed day, unless the salesperson leads, make sure that you can see all Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #10
can show they are making real the players in a target organization, Customize Follow-Up by Lead Source
progress on the account, reassign the and that you focus your sales efforts Today’s sales and marketing depart-
lead to the next person on the decision-maker. Too often, sales ments generate leads from multiple
in line. resources are wasted on second- and sources: websites, shows, direct mail,

FALL 2010 • HSMAI MARKETING REVIEW 11

 ➲ Fire up your team with a tote board.

print advertising, email broadcasts and essential tool, whether it takes the
so on. You’ll get better results if you form of a white board at the front of READER RESOURCES
tailor your follow-up efforts by source. the sales department or a spreadsheet
For example, prospects who inquire in a shared folder on the network or a
over the Web expect a quick response. weekly email to the entire team. And Click on the links below for additional
information about Converting Leads
Don’t be shy about feeding Web that tote board should highlight each
into Customers
requests and RFPs to your sales staff salesperson’s current close rate, the
with instructions to make the call percentage of leads converted to
immediately. If you need time to draft bookings for the month and the year- MEETINGPLANNERLISTS.COM
a response to an RFP, program your to-date. The top performers will enjoy Largest online source of qualified
site to send an instant email advising the limelight and compete to stay on meeting and event planners
the prospect that a proposal will follow top. The stragglers will feel the pres-
within 48 hours. That’s not to say you sure to raise their game. HSMAI MARKETING REVIEW
can dawdle responding to leads from Prospecting: Taking a Positive Path
other sources (see Rule #1). Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #13 to New Business (12/10/2009)
Feed the Funnel The Basics of Direct Selling (Part II)
Rumplestiltskin’s Rule #11 While you’re working to convert leads
(12/10/2009)
Exploit the RFP Opening into sales, don’t forget to keep the The Basics of Direct Selling (Part 1)
(10/15/2009)
With the proliferation of RFP genera- leads coming in the first place. When
tors, meeting planners can broadcast acquiring lists for direct mail and tele-
these documents to multiple hotels and phone campaigns, stick with sources HSMAI UNIVERSITY WEBINAR
CVBs at the click of a mouse. So is each that provide the organizations’ prior ARCHIVES
RFP less valuable as a lead than it once meeting activities—the number of Fueling Sales with John Parke- This
was? Yes, but every RFP still deserves to meetings per year, preferred location, two-part webinar series addresses
upselling in today's economy, and
go to the top of the active prospect list. peak room nights and other data you
moving from defense to offense.
Never miss an opportunity to contact need to target qualified prospects.
the planner, preferably by telephone,
to get more information. You’ll be in a As you can see, there is nothing The Story of Rumpelstiltskin
better position to respond to the RFP magical about Rumplestiltskin’s
in hand and you may also learn Rules. Converting leads into
about future meetings still in the sales takes hard work,
planning stages. organization, and more
than a little determina-
tion. But hospitality
Rumplestiltskin’s sales and marketing
Rule #12 professionals can be
Fire Up Your Team with a sure of one thing:
Tote Board When the time
Salespeople are com- comes to tally
petitive by nature, sales results,
and competitors those who
thrive on recogni- follow his
tion. That’s why a rules will be
tote board is an golden. n

12 HSMAI MARKETING REVIEW • FALL 2010