Here's my final instalment of Sales – A Wake Up Call series. In the previous instalment, I talked about avoiding "Black Dot" days and making sure you have a reliable, trackable sales system.
Here are my final tips for the sales folks out there:
10. Call at least two current customers each and every day.
- I have always contact all my customers at least once every three
months. Whether I am doing active business with them or not. A note, an
email a phone call (the best) just to say hi. - The best thing is to sort by industry and in your reading, find two
or three items per sector that you can start off the conversation with:“Hey
Sally! How’s tricks? Great – Listen, I read that Blogtastic.com just
purchased www.Ihavenoclue,.com? Does that impact you? What did you
think about that?" (Oh and then let em talk.) You have two ears and one
mouth. Listen twice as much as you speak!
11. As above, have a communication process for contacting all of
your prospects – a note, an email, a letter … have something.
- Do it so your customers are contacted at least twice a year. Better
still get them something of value. No, not logo’s golf balls! A report,
some research, an interesting find. - You have to keep in front of folks. Squeaky wheel and all that. It is important to stay in touch. Out of sight – out of mind.
12. Further to the above – Get your best customers some "New
Customers". Introduce them to someone they want to do business with.
- One solid strategy I have always found: find out who your
customer’s best customer could be. Set up a lunch or dinner with that
“potential customer” and invite your "current" customer. Talk about
fertile ground. I like to be a fly on the wall and not manipulate the
meeting. - Better still, for my personal preference, I use a golf game. Golf
is a “contact sport”. In all my years I have NEVER come off a golf
course with a group like this without a solid appointment, a sale or at
the very least, a plan to move forward on something we – the three of
us – had just discussed.