Efficiently Managing and Funneling Inbound Demo Requests

The circumstances below usually indicate a “Bad Fit” lead:

• Advanced ticketing
• Assigned seating
• Bogus Request
• Destination site (no tours)
• Event
• Free tours
• Gym
• Lodging
• Member log-in
• Multi-day vacation
• Not a tour company
• Retail
• Spa/Salon
• Tiny business with no website
• Transportation / Taxi
• Travel Agency

Questions to ask when determining if a lead is a “Bad Fit”:

• What are you looking to use FareHarbor for?
• Do you accept full payment at time of booking?
• Do you need any specific features to operate, if so, walk me through what you are looking for?
• How much online revenue do you annually process?

Responding and Engaging with Bad Fit leads:

There are multiple Bad Fit templates that can be sent to companies via Close.

On the phone, you can explain how our software is designed and built for tour and activity companies. Our goal is to drive online sales and save companies time and money, we are only able to do this when partnering with a company that is a good fit. We always want to partner with companies where we can grow their business and drive online sales.

If they ask for software recommendations, you may refer them to capterra.com or building out a proprietary software for their needs.

Process:

1. Explain to the company that they are a bad fit and follow up with an email (so they do not send multiple demo requests)
2. Change the status to “Bad Fit”
3. Update the Bad Fit custom field with appropriate reasoning and add a note in the lead with any helpful information
4. Set a task for the Inbound Sales Team Lead who will change the INS Owner to “Other”

If the company still persists with multiple emails and phone calls, you may escalate them to the Inbound Sales Manager or Team Lead to handle.

When calling and emailing a demo request, occasionally the contact will tell you they did not submit the request. In these situations, ensure you have spoken to all of the contacts listed in the CRM.

If the contacts state they are not interested or it was a fake request, continue to try and land a demo with them and/or show them value in your communication. Emailing a company more information about our software can also be helpful after speaking to them, so they have more context.

If the lead does not seem to be moving forward or if the demo request does not have enough information for you to even contact them, follow the process below:

1. Change the status to Bad Fit
2. Update the Bad Fit custom field with “Bogus Request”
3. Set a task for the Inbound Sales Team Lead: “Bad fit”
4. The Inbound Sales Team Lead will change the INS – Owner custom field to “Other”

Companies will submit demo requests that do not offer their own tours or activities but are wanting to sell other operator’s tickets.

Process:

1. Explain to the client that you assist companies getting set up with FareHarbor who offer their own tours/activities. We have a dedicated team that works with resellers, concierges, etc. and that you will pass along their information to the Channel Development team so that they can be better assisted. (Try to avoid giving a specific timeline if you can)
2. Leave a note in the lead with any helpful information for the Channel Development team.
3. Set a task for the Inbound Sales Team Lead who will set a task for the Channel Development Manager.

Note: If the company is located in the EU or Australia, the task is still assigned to the Americas CD Manager. If the Americas CD Manager is OOO, the task can be assigned to the Americas CD Connectivity Specialist.

Questions to ask:

• Are you offering your own tours or selling other operators’ tours?
• Are the operators that you are reselling utilizing FareHarbor already?
• What are the names of the FareHarbor companies that you are working with?

The circumstances below indicate when a lead should be escalated to Hawaii or Needham.

• Lead has potential to become a Tier 2, 3, or 4 company

  • Examples of Tier 2+:

    • Company with a large amount of inventory or capacity (Examples: 30 snowmobiles, 30 ATVs, selling 5,000 tickets to an event, large catamaran, escape room with 4 rooms, etc.)
    • New business that would be considered a large attraction or expected to process a large volume of ticket sales (Examples: ARTECHOUSE, Gulliver’s Gate, Las Vegas Shooting Center)
    • Lead operates out of multiple locations (Example: All in Adventures)

  • Examples of Tier 0-1s:

    • Fishing charter that fits 6 passengers (6pack) (Example: Swim Free Hawaii, Reel Tight Fishing Charters)
    • Part-time walking tour guide (Example: Aurora Pioneer Tours)
    • Driving tour with one van (Example: York Country Ale Trail)
    • 20 trike bikes for rental (Example: ETrikeCo)

• Lead has more than 100 TA Reviews

• Lead has more than 500 Organic Search

If the lead tier still appears unclear after being assigned to you, below are questions that can be asked to determine the tier:

• How much revenue do you process annually?
• What is your inventory? (Ex. How many ATVs do you have? How many snowmobiles do you have? How many tickets do you expect to sell online?)
• Who are the decision makers involved in the booking software process? (If it’s a board of directors, it’s probably not a small operation)

If you’re still not sure, ask a Sales Manager!

Process for escalating leads:

1. Explain to the client that the Inbound Sales Team handles smaller businesses and to better service them throughout the sales/onboarding process, we are going to introduce them to another sales contact who works with similar businesses.
2. Update the call notes so there is context for the next sales contact and explain in a note the reasoning for escalating the lead.
3. Assign a task to the Inbound Sales team lead “Escalate to AE”.
4. The Inbound Sales team lead updates the INS-Owner accordingly and sets a task for Needham Sales Operations (AE and Enterprise leads) or the Hawaii Sales Manager (AE and Enterprise leads).

If the company has submitted any information, the date will be populated in “INS – 1 Pre Demo”. Account Executives may view the information submitted prior to the escalation in this AirTable view.

Refer to this internal doc regarding which countries are currently supported on FareHarbor.

Refer to the doc below regarding pricing and tax information based on country/region:

Questions you may want to ask the lead when determining whether or not they meet the bank and tax criteria:

• In which currency are you charging customers?
• Do you have a tax identifier within a certain country?
• Where is your bank physically located?

If it is determined that the company operates in a country currently supported within the Americas, proceed as normal.

If it is determined that the company operates in a country located in the Americas but not supported, follow the process below:

1. Change the status to International
2. Change the custom field “US Bank Account” to No
3. Task the INS Team lead and indicate in the task that the company is international or not currently supported

Utilize the international INS template in the CRM to save time.

If it is determined the company is not located in the Americas, follow the processes below accordingly.

Companies based in Europe, Middle East, or Africa:

1. Set a task for the INS Team Lead who will assign the lead to the EU Sales Manager
2. Set a task for Sherry providing the new location so the Lead Generation team can update the location details

Companies based in Australia, Oceania Pacific, Asia, or New Zealand:

1. Set a task for the INS Team Lead who will assign the lead to the Australia Sales Manager
2. Set a task for Sherry providing the new location so the Lead Generation team can update the location details

Many times an existing client requests an additional dashboard to be built.

Process:

1. The CSA or AM follows the process as outlined in the Request Forms internal doc
2. Once this is submitted, the Lead Generation team creates a new lead in Close and sets a task for Sales Operations who will then set a task for the Inbound Sales Team Lead.
3. The Inbound Sales Team Lead will set a task for an Inbound Sales Specialist.
4. The Inbound Sales Specialist should re-confirm the secondary dashboard is needed (See Best Practices one vs. multiple dashboards)
5. If the company is requesting an additional dashboard that is a duplicate of their existing dashboard or they do not require training or an onboarder, the dashboard build is the CSA or AM’s responsibility. In which case, the Inbound Sales Specialist should let the AM/CSA know and be removed from being the INS Owner.
6. If the company’s secondary dashboard is new information and/or a new staff requiring a new training, proceed with the sales/onboarding process as normal.

Occasionally, a merchant service provider will reach out to FareHarbor inquiring about payment gateways and information on FareHarbor.

We can always redirect the contact to the FareHarbor website and tell them we have a corporate partnership with Stripe.

Questions to ask:

• Are you working specifically with a client? If so, who?
• Are you looking for more information on FareHarbor?

Process:

1. Change the lead status to Bad Fit
2. Update the Bad Fit custom field to “Not a Tour Company”
3. Set a task for the Inbound Sales Team Lead who will change the INS Owner to “Other”

Web developers frequently submit demo requests – usually to learn more about FareHarbor or to oversee the booking software implementation process on behalf of their client.

Whenever possible, try to work directly with the client throughout the sales and onboarding process. Oftentimes, the web developer does not understand how the business works which will cause building and onboarding issues down the line.

Questions to ask:

• Who is your client?
• What is your client’s timeline for having a live website and online booking?
• Can we work directly with the client or involve them in this process to ensure we set everything up for them efficiently?

If the web developer is simply requesting information for a client (for example, do you integrate with Wordpress? What is your pricing?), follow the below process:

1. If the Web Developer is inquiring about pricing, ask the above questions to determine who the client is, explaining that we normally work directly with clients. If they insist on knowing pricing, explain pricing but exclude the 6% booking fee when you can.
2. If the Web Developer is inquiring about other information, respond as you see fit but ensure it does not become a timely process.

There are multiple INS templates in the CRM which can save time when contacting web developers.