Why Are Prospecting Ghosting Me? | Donald Kelly - 1945

62% of buyers regularly ghost salespeople. Want to change that? In this episode, I share five sales tips to get your prospects engaged, respond, and move closer to becoming customers.

Reason #1: Lack of Information Sharing (01:55 - 03:27)

· If neither side has enough information, prospects may leave the conversation due to a lack of perceived value.

· Always use phrases like “Tell me more” or “Is there anything else?” to dig deeper and uncover critical details.

Reason #2: Selling to the Wrong Person (03:27 - 05:02)

· You want to avoid focusing all of your attention on end-users who lack buying power.

· Take the time to identify who is part of the buying committee and who plays a role in the decision-making process.

Reason #3: They’re Just Shopping Around (05:02 - 07:25)

· Prospects may ghost because they are simply researching vendors. Be direct: ask who else they are considering and what criteria matter most.

· Then, schedule a follow-up after they’ve completed their research to make a clear “apples to apples” comparison.

Reason #4: No Clear Next Steps Established (07:25 - 09:20)

· A lack of scheduled next steps leads to more ghosting. Set expectations at the start of meetings and always allocate the last five minutes to plan next steps. This shows professionalism and increases follow-through.

Reason #5: Changing Priorities (09:20 - 10:53)

· Prospects’ priorities can shift, causing deals to stall or disappear. Always discuss their sense of urgency and what might deprioritize the project. This helps you understand their true motivation.

“About 50% of the time, salespeople aren’t securing a next step in their meetings. If you’re getting ghosted, that’s probably why.” - Donald Kelly.

Resources

Join my Sales Mastermind group! This 90-day program gives you hands-on practice, real-world challenges, and expert guidance alongside driven sales professionals.

And don’t forget to connect with me on LinkedIn!

Sponsorship Offers

1. This episode is brought to you in part by Hubspot.

With HubSpot sales hubs, your data tools and teams join a single platform to close deals and turn prospects into pipelines. Try it for yourself at hubspot.com/sales.

2. This episode is brought to you in part by LinkedIn.

Are you tired of prospective clients not responding to your emails? Sign up for a free 60-day trial of LinkedIn Sales Navigator at linkedin.com/tse.

3. This episode is brought to you in part by the TSE Sales Foundation.

Improve your connection on LinkedIn and land three or five appointments with our LinkedIn prospecting course. Go to the salesevangelist.com/linkedin.

Credits

As one of our podcast listeners, we value your opinion and always want to improve the quality of our show. Complete our two-minute survey here: thesalesevangelist.com/survey. We’d love for you to join us for our next episodes by tuning in on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Stitcher, or Spotify. Audio provided by Free SFX, Soundstripe, and Bensound. Other songs used in the episodes are as follows: The Organ Grinder written by Bradley Jay Hill, performed by Bright Seed, and produced by Brightseed and Hill.