Archive for the ‘Relationships’ Category
The second function in your client development process is . . . QUALIFYING.
Having The Right People Is a Good Thing
As you know, the real difference between your potential and your profits are the people you serve.
In terms of people, there are two key factors you’ll want to use to help you decide who is ‘qualified’ to take your time, money and energy for your business or practice.
1. Can someone BUY the products and services you offer?
2. Can Someone REFER or INTRODUCE you to people who can?
That’s it. Don’t make this complicated, my friend!
“Can You Buy From Me?”
This is an obvious criterion. If you’re not connecting regularly with people who will, sooner or later, want the kind of products and services you offer, you’ll never generate any revenues. And that’s unacceptable. So knowing whether someone can buy what you offer is a key to your success.
“Can You Refer People To Me Who Can Buy My Products or Services?”
Next to finding you have a viable prospect for your products and services, learning that someone is willing and able to refer people to you (or, introduce you) to people who can best understand, desire and afford the services you offer, is the next best thing.
People who are referring others to you are demonstrating their TRUST and RESPECT in you. That’s not to be taken lightly. Nor is it earned easily!
Ideally, you want to find people who will both BUY and REFER. But at least one of these two criteria is required to have someone ‘qualify’ to get into your Client Development System.
So Again . . . WHY Are You Qualifying People?
Building your business or practice requires clients –– and the revenues they suggest. Clients come from people who’ve come to know, like and trust you. Some of these people may need your services themselves. Others, for any number of reasons, may not need the products and services you offer. But they may still be able to refer people to you who will.
Regardless of what someone may be able to do for your ‘bottom line’ . . . if you can’t see how they can help you by buying and/or referring you to others who can . . . you don’t let them ‘in’ your Client Development System. Period.
KEY POINT:
Building relationships is the basis for building revenues. However, if you’re working with people who cannot (or, will not) buy from you and/or refer to you . . . you’re burdening your social relationships with a business expectation that’s simply not going to happen. Don’t do it!
So it’s a NEW YEAR . . . and you may have made a resolution to use your social networks more in 2012 than you did in 2011. Good for you!
Keep It Simple . . . Join Groups and Discussions / Make Comments and New Friends
While there are many things you could do to leverage LinkedIn, a very basic (i.e. easy-to-do) tactic that is also highly effective is to:
1. Join / Explore relevant groups that interest you
2. Observe what people are talking about in the group’s Discussions
3. Comment when you feel you have something to contribute
4. Follow-up any meaningful response with a direct message
5. Invite the other person to connect with you
This is a very basic and DO-able process that will help you build your LinkedIn network with people whom you have connected to in a meaningful manner.
An Example:
Recently, I saw a post by someone in a group where I’m a member, made a comment and received a very nice response.
Here’s a follow-up message I received from another (new) connection after we connected on LinkedIn:
This happens far more often than most people realize. If you’re so inclined to grow your LinkedIn network, do it gradually. Set a goal to find and comment on someone’s post on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. When someone responds, if it feels right to do so, invite them to connect — and cite the common connection you both shared. Slowly but surely your LinkedIn network will grow — as will the opportunities your LinkedIn community generates for your business or practice.
KEY POINT:
Growing Your LinkedIn Connections isn’t hard . . . just do the ‘basics’ consistently!
Occasionally, far too rarely actually, I come across a truly brilliant marketing campaign that benefits not only the marketer but everyone else involved.
Enter . . . the Fourth Annual Holiday Feed It Forward™ campaign of Restaurant.com:
Here’s the Deal . . .
Each year around the holidays, Restaurant.com enables anyone to ‘give away’ $10 Gift Certificates to anyone they like . . . as a gift . . . absolutely FREE!
How / Why It Works . . .
Restaurant.com is a firm that helps roughly 18,000 restaurants generate customers. It does this by allowing people like you and me to buy its ‘gift certificates’ at a discount and these 18,000 restaurants honor the ‘face’ value of each certificate. The restaurants get more traffic, consumers get a good value (and, hopefully a good meal) and Restaurant.com gets a nominal fee for each transaction
That’s smart. Afterall, each participating restaurant only incurs a ‘cost’ of sales (the discount and fee) when this promotional tactic actually pays off. I love anything that changes the ‘pay now and pray later’ marketing media into one you only need to pay for when it actually works! That’s what Restaurant.com does — very nicely.
The 2012 Restaurant.com Holiday Gift-Away . . .
For the last four years, to help all the parties in the equation — restaurants and consumers — Cary Chessik, CEO of Restaurants.com has allowed anyone to give a ‘gift’ of $10 to people they know as a simple act of ‘feeding it forward’.
This is altruism and commercialism as it helps Cary’s restaurant clients by putting ‘butts in the seats’ for them. At the same time, it provides people like you and me with an opportunity to say, “Thanks” to many people in our lives in what may find this is a time that’s more financially difficult for more people than we may ever know.
It’s 100% legit — I’ve used this myself already — and I hope you would use this opportunity to give a $10 Gift Card to up to 40 people each day between now and Christmas.
KEY POINT:
Marketing makes a difference in the lives of people by connecting us all. Use this ‘Feed It Forward’ opportunity to do the same with people in your world . . . all you’ll feel is good . . . and appreciated!
