The customer leaves the supermarket with full grocery bags. It would be ridiculous for the grocer to remove that customer from the prospect list and stop marketing to them. That customer will need more food soon, and the sales cycle begins again.

But few companies sell products and services that everyone on the planet needs to use daily and buy every few days. Their marketing and sales model is different. Very few companies just sell their offerings on a “once and done” model. But it’s shocking how many companies seem to follow that model or the “we did a good job for us that they’ll come back when they need our products or services again.”

The roofing company packs up and leaves. The house has a new roof, one that will last fifteen to twenty years. The roofer can delete that address from the list of prospects, or should he?

The corrugated box maker “high-fives” the vendor as the truckload of boxes heads toward his customer, but can he afford not to follow up?

The jeweler sells an engagement ring and a wedding ring to a man in love, and hopefully the ring is the beginning of a long and happy marriage. If the jeweler markets the happy couple, they will come back for anniversary rings and other expensive gifts.

That grocer has to continually market to the same people because the prospect requires their products at least three times a day. The roofer’s customers will not be in the market for long, so the roofer must market at a different rate. That customer will need more boxes soon, and the jeweler should send an anniversary card because there are many future sales opportunities if he continues to market to those customers.

In twelve years, the roofer might start sending out an annual newsletter showcasing advances in roofing techniques and styles, just so the homeowner is aware of the company that did the latest job. In fifteen years they could do a “Free Inspection”. In subsequent years, the marketing effort should increase because that roof will need to be replaced soon.

Your product or service likely has a sales cycle between that of the grocery store and that of the roofer. Draw a graph of the cycle. Determine when the typical customer is going to need your product. Plan a method to reach them so they know who to turn to when the time is right. If you don’t, it may be twenty years before you get another chance with them.