Coffee Chat with Eric #13: Closing the Deal - How Many Touch Points Does It Take?

May 2, 2025: ☕ This week’s chat is inspired by my daughter (in college), who hadn’t returned a recent message.

I know finals week is coming up, and she’s busy. I thought, hey, I'll keep dropping her little touchpoints to let her know I’m thinking about her. It got me thinking—this isn’t so far removed from my experience in B2B sales and partnerships over my career.

In sales (and adult parenting), we often extend ourselves without immediate response from the receiving party.

I did a little digging:

• 7 to 13 touchpoints (email, meeting, phone, etc) is the average for most B2B deals to close

• 40+ touches isn’t uncommon for complex sales

• 80% of deals require a min of 5 follow-ups

• Yet 44% of salespeople give up after just one attempt

All of this lined up professionally and personally.

Whether I’m following up with a potential client/partner opportunity or checking in on my college kid, my approach is the same:

1. Be kind

2. Be consistent

3. Follow up

People are busy, and your timing might be off. But if your message matters (and the tone is right), they’ll eventually respond.

Did my college daughter call me back? Give this week’s 2-minute Coffee Chat a watch. ☕️