You’ve spent months building relationships with potential customers. Your sales team has been nurturing leads, following up on enquiries, and moving prospects through your pipeline. Then it happens – one of your key salespeople hands in their notice.
Suddenly, you’re faced with a question that many business owners never consider until it’s too late: What happens to your leads when an employee quits? The answer might surprise you, and it’s probably not what you want to hear.
Employee turnover is a reality every business faces. When salespeople leave, they often take more than just their experience and relationships; they can take your leads with them. This puts your entire sales pipeline at risk and can result in thousands of pounds of lost revenue for your business.
But here’s the good news: there are ways to protect your sales pipeline and keep your leads safe, even when employees move on.
Let’s explore what really happens when staff leave and how you can safeguard your business against these risks.
What Happens to Your Leads When an Employee Quits?
When a salesperson leaves your company, several things can happen to the leads they’ve been managing.
Unfortunately, most of these scenarios don’t end well for your business.
1. Leads Follow Your Employee to Their New Company
This is perhaps the most damaging scenario.
Your former employee might contact the leads they’ve been working with and encourage them to switch to their new company. Since they’ve built a relationship with these prospects, many will follow them.
You’ve essentially funded the lead generation for your competitor.
2. Contact Information Disappears
Many salespeople store lead contact details in their personal phones, email accounts, or private notebooks. When they leave, this information goes with them.
3. Leads Fall Through the Cracks
Even if the contact information stays within your company, leads can still be lost during the transition period. Without proper handover procedures, prospects might not receive follow-up calls or emails.
4. Relationship Breakdown
B2B sales often rely heavily on personal relationships. When the person a lead has been dealing with suddenly disappears, it can damage trust and confidence in your company. Prospects might question your stability and decide to look elsewhere.
5. Lost Pipeline Value
Every lead in your pipeline represents potential revenue. When leads disappear due to employee turnover, you lose that pipeline value instantly. For many businesses, this can mean losing tens of thousands of Rands worth of potential sales.
6. No Follow-Up on Hot Prospects
Some of your best leads might be just days away from making a purchase decision. Without proper systems in place, these hot prospects might never receive the final push they need to convert, resulting in lost sales that were practically guaranteed.
How Can You Protect Your Sales Pipeline?
The good news is that you don’t have to accept lead loss as an inevitable part of employee turnover.
There are several strategies you can implement to keep your leads safe and protect your sales pipeline.
1. Invest in a Lead Management System
The most effective way to protect your leads is to invest in a proper lead management system. This ensures that all lead information is stored centrally and remains with your company, regardless of who leaves.
Leadtrekker is designed specifically for this purpose. It’s a comprehensive lead management system that helps businesses safeguard their leads and protect their sales pipeline.
Here’s how it works:
- Centralised Lead Storage: All lead information is stored in one secure location that your company controls. When employees leave, the leads stay with you.
- Automated Follow-Up: The system can automatically send follow-up emails and reminders, ensuring no leads are forgotten during transition periods.
- Lead Tracking: You can track every interaction with each lead, so new team members can pick up exactly where previous employees left off.
- Access Controls: You can control who has access to which leads and remove access instantly when employees leave.
- Reporting and Analytics: Track your pipeline value and monitor lead progression to ensure nothing falls through the cracks.
2. Implement Clear Data Ownership Policies
Create clear policies that establish your company’s ownership of all lead data. Make sure employees understand that contact information, notes, and relationship details belong to the business, not to them personally.
3. Use Company-Controlled Communication Channels
Ensure all communication with leads occurs through the company’s email addresses and phone numbers.
4. Regular Pipeline Reviews
Hold regular pipeline reviews where lead information is discussed and documented. This ensures that multiple team members are aware of each lead’s status and requirements.
5. Proper Handover Procedures
Develop structured handover procedures for when employees leave. This should include transferring all lead information, introducing departing employees’ leads to their replacements, and ensuring continuity of service.
6. Cross-Training Team Members
Train multiple team members on key accounts and leads. This reduces the risk of losing important relationships when one person leaves.
Protecting Your Business for the Future
Employee turnover is inevitable, but losing your leads doesn’t have to be. By implementing the right systems and procedures, you can protect your sales pipeline and ensure business continuity.
Ready to protect your sales pipeline?
