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Follow-up strategies that will win you clients

Posted byIan Brodie on April 14th, 2013.

Do you remember my email from a couple of weeks ago?

The one where I talked about the potential client I lost because I just hadn't followed up properly with them.

I thought I'd put down a few thoughts on follow-up strategies that might help you avoid falling into the same trap as I did.

The first principle of effective follow-up is that the more you know about someone, the easier it is to follow up with them.

Let's say you meet someone who could be a potential client at an event but you spend all the time trying to impress them by using your clever elevator pitch and droning on about your business and how great you are.

When it comes to getting back in touch later, how are you going to break the ice? You've got nothing to to talk about.

If instead, you spend your time at the event asking about them and genuinely listening to them talk about their business, what they like and what's important to them then you'll have a whole database of stuff to contact them about.

Provided, of course, you remember to write down everything while it's still fresh in your mind.

The second principle of effective follow-up is to get back in touch quickly after your initial meeting.

If you contact someone straight away after meeting them just to sincerely say thanks, or remark on something you discussed then later on when you want to get back in touch it's easy to just call or email.

But if you let weeks or months pass by without any follow up then it just feels embarrassing to get in touch only when you need something. And the other person will assume you're only interested in them for what they can do for you.

It works similarly on Linkedin too. Whenever I connect with someone on Linkedin I try to send an immediate message to say hi and get a conversation going.

It means that later on, rekindling the conversation will be so much easier than if we'd never chatted.

The third principle is to keep in touch, even if there's no obvious reason.

David Maister once said that the secret to good relationships – in business or in marriage – is to “talk even when there's nothing to talk about”.

Many of us aren't good at this kind of small talk. I know I'm not. We worry that we should only contact someone if there's a “real reason” to do so. Or that the other person won't be interested in just friendly contact.

But if you think of your close friends and colleagues, how often is what you talk about “serious”? Probably not a lot.

Small talk and casual contact is the oil that lubricates relationships.

Of course, you don't want to pester busy people. But don't feel that every time you contact someone it has to be with earth-shattering news or groundbreaking new insights.

Finally, make follow-up a habit.

The very best rainmakers are systematic in their follow-up. They book dedicated slots in their schedules to carry out follow-up activities.

They keep records on who they want to follow up with so they can recall what they're interested in and what's important to them. It doesn't have to be a fancy CRM system. One brilliant business developer I know keeps all his records on index cards.

Whatever system you use, the key is to regularly review the high priority contacts in your database and find ways to keep in touch that add value to them.

Send them relevant articles (preferably ones you've written). Connect them to useful people. Invite them to events. Think of them when people ask for recommendations.

Or occasionally just phone for a chat and invite them for a coffee. Sometimes we all just want to get out of the office for a bit.

Above all, don't do what I did and let good relationships wither and die.

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The “gold door” strategy for attracting clients

Posted byIan Brodie on April 7th, 2013.

I had a bit of trouble sleeping recently, so I ended up downstairs flicking though the TV looking for something vaguely entertaining.

I managed to catch a classic episode of Frasier. It was the one where Fraiser and Niles mistakenly get an invitation to an ultra-exclusive spa which they decide they must find a way to get into.

After they manage to sneak their way in they have a great time until they discover a gold door leading to an even more exclusive section they're not allowed in.

All of a sudden the spa they'd been enjoying so much is no longer good enough and they devote themselves to getting into the private section.

When they do, the same thing happens again. They discover a platinum door and all of a sudden their exclusive gold experience doesn't feel so great. They can't resist sneaking through the door and end up, well, you'll have to watch the show to find out.

I smiled as I watched the show, recognising some of the same characteristics in myself.

We all want that sense of exclusivity in our lives. The feeling we're part of something that not everyone has access to. That we're getting something special.

And we'll often go to great lengths to get that feeling of exclusivity. To get access behind the gold door.

Perhaps not always as far as Niles hopping through the door in full body wrap with cucumbers over his eyes. But often very far indeed.

Which of course, prompts the question: what are you doing to give your best clients that sense of exclusivity? That feeling that by working with you they're part of a club where they get special treatment.

Personally, in addition to the training resources and practical step-by-step guides in Momentum Club, I also give members the opportunity to ask me questions and get feedback in the members-only webinars I run.

Often it's just little touches like that which can make all the difference to give your clients and members a sense they're getting something special.

And the nice side effect is that it gives potential clients a feeling that they're something they need behind that golden door.

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My shocking wake-up call

Posted byIan Brodie on March 31st, 2013.

Have you ever had that awful sinking feeling when you know you've screwed up?

A few years ago a local sales trainer asked me if they could buy me a coffee and pick my brains.

I'm always happy to help people out (especially if they ask nicely and bribe me with a fancy coffee) so we set up a meeting.

The trainer asked for advice about working with law firms. He'd just won a contract to do sales training for the senior staff of a large local firm. But with no experience in the sector he wasn't sure how to tailor his material.

I went through my experience working with law firms with him, giving him some clues and tips on how to adapt standard sales training to be more suitable to professional firms.

At the end, out of interest, I asked him who the law firm was. His answer shocked me.

It was a firm I'd spoken to about a year previously. In fact, I'd done a free seminar that a couple of their partners had attended and had given brilliant feedback on. They'd then asked me to come and talk to them about growing their client base.

Yet I'd gone from pole position to losing out to someone with no previous experience in the sector.

How come?

I'd made a huge mistake. After that initial meeting, the client had told me the time wasn't quite right for an improvement programme.

And my response was…

…I ignored them. Did nothing to follow up or keep in touch.

Despite the fact that they could have been a great client had the timing been right, I decided I had bigger fish to fry.

And so I lost out to someone with no real expertise in what they needed – but who did keep knocking on their door until the timing was right.

Persistence and nurturing trumps just about anything. Not only do you build relationships and credibility over time more effectively than with just “one big hit” – it also means you're in the right place when a client decides to take action.

That meeting was a big wake-up call for me. Nowadays I follow a structured and rigorous approach to nurturing relationships with potential clients that means I never miss out like this any more.

Hopefully you won't need a wake up call: you'll make sure you're nurturing relationships without needing such a shock to the system.

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A huge (and common) marketing mistake

Posted byIan Brodie on March 24th, 2013.

Earlier this week I was in our local Tesco Express store (next door to Caffe Latte for those who remember one of my earlier emails).

Like many convenience stores these days they've installed a couple of self checkout tills.

And like I often see in this store, when I went to the checkout there was a queue for the traditional manned tills, but the self checkout tills were empty.

I find this hugely puzzling. its not like they're difficult. You scan your stuff, bag it, and shove your credit card into the same machine a checkout operator would give you anyway.

And it's not like the people in the queue were all so old they might have been wary of “new fangled technology”.

It was all people in their 30s, 40s and 50s.

But none of them willing to try self checkout.

So I whizzed past them, bought my stuff and was out of the shop (and sitting down next door for a coffee) while they were still queueing.

So one lesson you could take from this is “try new things”.

But actually, there's a deeper lesson.

It's easy to imagine that everyone else feels like us about most things. That we're typical.

In my case, I usually assume that everyone else in the world does extensive research on the web before buying anything. That they check out all the available options, reviews, opinions.

But in truth, many people aren't even ready to use the self checkout.

Remember, you are not (always) your customer.

Make sure you really know what they think and feel about things. How they like to buy, not how you like to buy.

Gear your business up for them, not you.

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Marketing with one hand tied behind your back

Posted byIan Brodie on March 10th, 2013.

Quick thought experiment for you this week…

I'd like you to imagine a parallel universe.

Pretty much the same as ours. Economy still in a bit of a mess. England still rubbish at football.

But one big difference. When it comes to marketing you're not allowed to be proactive.

You can answer the phone and speak to clients if they call you, but you can't call them.

You can meet them if they come in to see you, but you can't go out to networking events or conferences to meet them.

They can write to you, but you can't write to them.

Ludicrous, right?

Your results would be awful.

It's marketing with one hand tied behind your back.

But that's exactly what online marketing is like if you're not doing Email Marketing effectively.

You've got a great website full of useful content. You're driving traffic from SEO, social media, all sorts of sources.

But take a look at your website stats. How many visitors to your site are return visitors? How many come back after their initial visit.

Sadly, even with a great site, typically only 30% of hits are from returning visitors. Often it's a lot less.

That means the vast majority of your visitors turn up, but never come back.

And very often it's not because they don't like what you have. It's just that they're not ready right now. They make a mental note to come back when they're ready – but of course, being human, they never do.

Now if this was the real world and you met someone who could be a good client for you and you got on well but you didn't hear from them for a while – you'd give 'em a call. You'd proactively nurture the relationship somehow.

The same goes if they phone you to ask a question. You'd take their details and follow up.

And that's what email marketing gives you in the online world. The chance to proactively follow up.

I'm sure you've heard over and over again that in the world of high value services it takes 6, 7, 10 contacts before a potential client will be ready to buy.

We know how to make that happen in the face to face world.

But online a huge number of businesses just aren't doing this. They hope that visitors will become clients in one visit. Or they'll remember to come back.

The stats say it doesn't happen.

If you want to nurture a relationship online you can't rely on just your website. You have to have a way of proactively reaching potential clients who you know are interested.

Email marketing is that way.

Without it you're marketing with one hand tied behind your back.

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Three simple principles behind effective email marketing

Posted byIan Brodie on March 3rd, 2013.

If I had to give up every marketing tool in my arsenal – apart from one – the one I would keep would be email marketing.

Without a doubt.

Ask any successful professional what the most important element of their marketing is and the answer will almost always be some variant of “follow up”.

“Keeping in touch”, “relationship building”, “being top of mind”.

People don't hire us to perform high value services for them after the first meeting. We've got to build trust and credibility. It's follow-up that does that.

And email marketing is the only form of follow-up marketing you can do “en masse”. Do it right and you can build credibility and trust with large numbers of people with just a little work and by pressing the send button.

Nothing else comes close. That's why, when the Direct Marketing Association evaluated the ROI of different marketing strategies, email marketing had almost double the ROI of it's nearest competitor.

Yet so many professionals either don't do email marketing, or get it so badly wrong they don't see any results from it.

Here are the three simple principles I've found to be the real foundation of effective email marketing.

1. Email marketing is about relationship building not (just) selling.

Whether you sell high value products like me, or in-personal coaching consulting, training or other services; you need to build high degrees of credibility and trust before someone will be ready to buy from you or hire you.

So my email marketing is geared to build that credibility and trust over time. Step by step.

2. Email marketing is about me and you.

Most email marketing – even when you get it from small businesses – seems like it's been written by faceless corporates.

It puzzles me why so much email marketing feels so impersonal. Perhaps there are marketing agencies out there coming up with this rubbish and convincing their clients they need to sound “professional” or have a newsletter filled with fancy graphics.

It just doesn't work.

What works best is if your marketing emails read just like your normal emails. You're writing from you as a person to them as a person.

That way they read them properly – and not with their “oh oh, I'm being sold to” shields up.

3. Email marketing is about delivering REAL value.

Your potential clients have a huge dilemma. They have big issues and opportunities in their business they need help with.

But before they hire you they need to know you have the true expertise that will deliver results for them. You need to prove it in advance.

How can you prove you can get results for them.

Well, you could claim you can. You could offer a huge guarantee. You could show them your qualifications or awards. Or you could show them testimonials from your satisfied clients (assuming they believe them).

Here's an alternative: deliver real value to them in your emails that allows them to get results before they ever hire you.

There's no better proof that you can get results by working with them than for your advice to have already delivered for them.

Makes sense, right?

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Get big wins from little steps

Posted byIan Brodie on February 24th, 2013.

No gardening disasters this time I'm pleased to report…

A while back I got a call from the head of a division of a large international firm. The conversation began…

“I've been reading your blog for a couple of years…I'm a big fan”.

As you can imagine, the chances of working together when the conversation starts out like that are pretty high.

For me, the most significant words in that quote are “a couple of years”. And they're important for two reasons.

The first is that it's often a very long time from when a client first starts paying attention to a problem or opportunity to them deciding to take action to fix it by hiring someone to help.

The second is that the thing that convinces clients to work with you usually isn't one big “hit” – it's the gradual drip, drip, drip of great content, great ideas, great stories.

When those two things come together, that's when the magic happens.

Most of us put the majority of our marketing effort into going for that big hit. Trying to make a tremendous impression with one meeting, one advert, one free report, one sales letter.

But as my example shows, what really counts is the day in, day out drip, drip drip.

Shouldn't we be putting more of our focus onto that?

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Dripping blood, sponges and something that may be holding you back

Posted byIan Brodie on February 17th, 2013.

Here's something that happened to me a while back that was painful at the time (literally) but taught me a valuable lesson.

I was re-glazing one of our greenhouses and managed to walk into a sticky-out metal bit that the door runs along. Man it hurt. Nasty cut on the side of my head.

Five minutes later I do the exact same thing again. Cut on my forehead this time.

Fast forward 15 minutes and I walk into it again.

Luckily by this time, Kathy had spotted the blood dripping down my temple, asked me what on earth I'd done, and had taped a sponge over the offending sticky-out metal bit.

So this time no injury (well, just to my pride).

It's funny how with many things in life we keep making the same mistake again and again.

Marketing that just doesn't work, yet we keep on doing it. Arguments with co-workers or employees or family we just keep repeating.

We've all got blind spots. And sometimes it takes someone looking in from outside to spot them for us.

Unfortunately, in business, the evidence of those blind spots isn't quite as obvious as blood running down your forehead.

For others to spot our mistakes we need to open up to them. Tell them what we're doing. What results we're getting. What we're concerned about.

And that's tough.

What if they see through our veneer of competence? What if they think we're no good? And what if they tell us?

It's a big step to open up like that. But if you're not doing it, you're missing out. You're bound to have at least a couple of blind spots that are holding you back.

So find someone you can trust to open up to. A friend, business partner, significant other, coach, mentor. Or a group you can speak to regularly.

It'll make a big difference to your business.

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How to get more marketing done in less time

Posted byIan Brodie on February 10th, 2013.

Like most people, I often feel as if there just aren't anywhere near enough hours in the day to get everything I need done.

I used to think the answer was more efficiency. I've tried out pretty much every productivity system and “to do list” app under the sun.

And while these systems are helpful to keep your tasks under control and to make sure you don't drop any balls, I've found that any time I save with a better productivity system soon gets eaten back up with more stuff to do.

Have you found something similar?

I suspect I'm not alone. Many professionals I speak to have this same issue. The most common challenge I hear is “I know I need to do more marketing, but I just don't have the time”.

Well, what I've found that actually does work for me is what I call my “radical productivity system”. You might want to try it to see if it works for you.

Here it is….

….drum roll….

Stop doing stuff that doesn't work.

Yeah, OK, that probably doesn't sound very clever. You might even be thinking “come on Ian, I don't waste my time doing things that don't work”.

But have you ever really checked?

When I tracked back my very best and biggest clients to where they came from, there were actually a very few sources.

Some came from referrals from previous clients. Some were people who'd seen me presenting at an event. A lot came from people finding my website, subscribing to my newsletter and calling me when the time was right to do something together.

And some came from recommendations from people who might normally be considered my competitors but because I've built good relationships with them, recommended me when they thought I'd be able to do a better job for someone.

Networking? Not so much. I was spending hours every week at events, but it turns out that it rarely led to winning clients.

Surprisingly, despite the fact that many people will tell you that a great way to win clients is to establish yourself as an expert by answering questions on Linkedin groups and forums, it didn't really work for me.

(Well, technically, it worked a couple of times years ago – but these days Linkedin groups seem to be more filled with vendors trying to pitch stuff than clients).

By simply cutting down on the activities that weren't making much of an impact for me I saved about half a day per week.

Some of that time's been taken up with more effective marketing. Some of it I've saved for myself and my family.

Of course, the things that really work will be different for you. But the key is to make sure you really know what does – don't just assume – check.

Then grit your teeth and cut back on the stuff that doesn't work.

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Spooked by Shadows

Posted byIan Brodie on June 17th, 2012.

A while ago I did a “strategy workout” with one of my clients. An intense day blasting through all the key factors to build them a powerful marketing strategy and action plan.

One of the areas we looked at was their approach to large clients. And creating a strategy for one of their “gold star” clients in particular

The firm has a huge contract with them, one they can't afford to lose when it comes up for renewal.

One of the advantages her firm had over the majority of their competitors is that they have locations and staff all over the country, matching this client's locations and able to deliver training courses to them locally.

“But”, said my client, “one of our big competitors could say that too”.

She was right.

But here's the thing: just because they could say that, doesn't mean they will.

When you're planning your strategy you can't back away from talking about something that's of real value to your client just because someone else might be able to say the same.

The chances are, they won't.

(And even if they do, you're still better off than if they talk about it and you don't).

Sometimes we overthink things. We end up being spooked by shadows. Imagining that our competitors are super-marketers able to respond to our every move.

And so we end up being paralysed. Searching for the perfect strategy.

But we're much better off taking action on a good strategy.

Look at Dominos for example. Often lauded as an example of a brilliant Unique Selling Proposition (USP).

But really, just how unique is “fresh, hot pizza delivered to your door in 30 minutes…or it's free”?

Pretty much any pizza delivery company could make that promise.

It's a strategy that's almost trivial to copy.

Yet back when they came up with it, no one did copy them.

Dominos' real secret was that they were bold. They spotted something that was valuable to customers (fast delivery) and they marketed the heck out of it.

They stuck a guarantee behind it. They made sure everyone knew about it. They infused everything they did with that positioning.

What they didn't do was sit around worrying about whether anyone might copy them. Trying to come up with something that was so unique to them that no one could ever get near it.

They spotted something clients valued. They focused on it and took action.

And that's what we should do too.