Do follow up emails to enquiries generate bookings for you?

[bananacake]

Its pretty irritating when you dont get a response once your reply to an enquiry and was wondering if a follow up email a day later a best practice that we should be following?

Has this approach ever worked for you and has it ever generated a booking for you?

...or does it make you sound a little pushy or desperate for business?

Many thanks!

[Nightowl]

I generally follow up and yes, it does often jog people's memories and result in a booking. I do it about a week - 10 days after the initial enquiry .

[Zorro]

Well, being new to this letting business, (first season) we are still learning. With our 3rd enquiry, wanting the first week in August, I [/i]did follow up after 2 days, purely out of desperation to get a booking, and because the guy had p***** me off a bit during the initial enquiry, costing me a lot of money calling mobile to mobile from France, and I wanted to reciprocate.

The result was that he had already emailed me requesting to book, along with the completed booking form, and it had never arrived. So if I hadn't followed up with the telephone call, I guess he would have just put me down as just another ignorant owner who can't be bothered.

So, it's definitely worth it

[Mouse]

Yes I always follow up on those I'm interested in converting. Some have booked. Then again maybe they would have anyway...though I do know of at least 2 bookings I definitely got because I followed up.

Mouse
x

[Hells Bells]

I don't always follow up, but will do so if they appeared ready to book,and I don't hear anything. I've had a couple of emails to people spammed recently, so chase it up from a different email address if possible.

[brenda]

Sorry to disagree with the previous posters but NO - I never follow up.

After doing so for a couple of years I realised that people just don't want you to chase them up. If they want to book they will do so without you persuing them.

[Giddy Goat]

I'm glad you said that Brenda because I don't follow up either, and for the same reasons. I do take a lot of time over the initial response to the enquiry though - do you? I think if I have gone to the trouble of personalising it and sounding keen but not pushy and they don't respond, then I move on.

If you have a website and a stat counter, that is a very handy way of identifying your enquirers and monitoring how interested they seem to be when you're feeling a little insecure ...

[brenda]

Exactly GG!

All my initial responses are personalised and welcoming which I feel is enough. I don't want people to feel hassled.

If they are genuinely interested they will get back to me.

[Giddy Goat]

Just re-read HelenB's post and would add that if someone has appeared ready to book but has gone quiet and I receive another enquiry for the same dates, only then would I get in touch and ask them if they would like me to hold the slot for them for a couple of days.

[Margaret]

I always follow up and principally for the following reason: not all of my emails actually arrive! Is there any other information I can help you with? I have never felt that anyone thought that was pushy and I have certainly had replies from time to time where people have specifically said that they did not get the original email. Some people say they are still trying to work out holiday dates or travel and often there is the opportunity to reserve dates for them with a specific deadline. Brenda, you have been saying how poor bookings have been this year, maybe this gentle approach could work for you? I send my second email 2 days after the first one - any longer and the risk increases that they will have booked somewhere else if they did not get the first email. If they are still undecided, it is a prod to them to check your website again. With our conversion rate up to 49% this year, I don't think it is doing any harm. Like GG I always work at personalising the original reply.

[brenda]

Margaret - I appreciate your comments.

I ask if enquirers require any further information in my original email - and find VERY few go astray.

I personally would be annoyed if someone contacted me again so would not feel right doing it to someone else?

I am not saying that we are right and you are wrong, we just see things differently and all do what we personally feel comfortable with.

High season bookings are lower tnan usual this year but things are looking much better for later in the year and July has ended up at 50% occupancy which is much better than we feared a couple of weeks ago.

[Giddy Goat]

readnotify.com or similar is useful, although some here say that any email address with that suffix can be viewed as spam by the server and go into the recipient's junk folder! On hearing that I used it less frequently for a bit!

I guess our market is different from some others here as it isn't so competitive, although that is slowly changing.

[bananacake]

readnotify.com or similar is useful, although some here say that any email address with that suffix can be viewed as spam by the server and go into the recipient's junk folder! .

Im looking for something exactly like this! Does this system work if i send from a Gmail account? Will it tell me if my email went into a recipient's Spam/Junk mail?

[pepsipuss]

I do as GG for rental. Almost never follow up an enquiry unless I get another for the same dates soon after, in which case I notify the first enquirer to find out if they are interested and inform them that I have someone else who might like it for similar dates. I think it is important to do this if it is a big property because they are often trying to sort out holiday dates and transport for several different people.

For B&B I do as Brenda and would not chase people as it is an enquiry for a maximum of 4 people and the same problems do not apply as for a group trying to organise.

[Giddy Goat]

I think it is important to do this if it is a big property because they are often trying to sort out holiday dates and transport for several different people.

Yes, excellent point PP.

bananacake, have a read of this topic. I think there are probably other topics which mention this and similar services too:

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