What to send between enquiry and decision while they think

4 days ago
3 min read

Updated: 2 days ago

Introduction

Between the quote going out and the decision being made there is a period of days or weeks in which most businesses send nothing at all. The buyer is comparing options, discussing it with somebody, forming impressions, and receiving from you exactly what they receive from the supplier who has already given up.

That gap is an opportunity that costs almost nothing to use. Not with chasing messages, which have their own schedule, but with material that helps somebody decide: the things they will be asked internally, the questions they have not thought to ask, and the evidence that supports the choice they are leaning towards.

1. What to send between enquiry and decision should help them decide, not chase

The distinction.

A follow-up asks about your quote. This material addresses their decision. The second is welcome and the first is tolerated, and they serve different purposes. Running both, separately, is better than trying to make one message do both jobs.

2. Send the questions they will be asked

The internal-case material.

Whatever a partner, a director or a spouse will want to know, answered. You are equipping the person who has to argue for you in a conversation you will not attend. Ask your contact who else is involved and write to that person's concerns.

3. Send a comparable example

The reassurance.

A job like theirs, with detail. This addresses the doubt about whether you have done this before without requiring anybody to ask about it. Match the example to their situation rather than sending your most impressive one.

4. Send the process description

The anxiety reducer.

What happens, in what order, over what period, and what you need from them. Buyers stall because they cannot picture the work, and this resolves it directly. A numbered list with rough timings is enough.

5. Send what usually goes wrong and how you handle it

The counter-intuitive one.

Naming the common problems in advance is more reassuring than promising none. It also prevents a surprise during the work, which protects the relationship later. Buyers who have been let down before respond to this more than to anything else.

6. Send something relevant to their situation

The genuinely useful.

A seasonal consideration, a regulatory point, a supply issue. Material about their circumstances rather than your service is the strongest thing you can send at this point. It also positions you as an adviser rather than a supplier waiting.

7. Keep each item separate and small

The format.

One thing at a time, spread across the period. A single large document sent at the start is skimmed once; a short useful message every week or two is read. Small items also give you legitimate reasons to be in contact.

8. Do not attach a request to each one

The restraint.

These are not follow-ups. Sending something useful with no ask builds the impression that persuades, and the follow-up schedule can run separately.

9. Prepare the material once and reuse it

The practical point.

The same four or five items serve almost every buyer in the same situation. Writing them once turns this from an effort per deal into a sequence you can send.

Be careful about volume. The objective is to be helpful during a gap, not to fill it. Four or five short items over a month is supportive; something every other day is the pressure you were trying to avoid.

Conclusion

Use the gap to help them decide rather than leaving it empty.

Send the questions their approver will ask, a closely comparable example, a plain description of how the work runs, an honest account of what usually goes wrong and how you handle it, and anything genuinely relevant to their own situation, keep each item short and separate, avoid attaching a request to every message, and prepare the material once so it can be reused on every similar deal.