Stay Connected With Your Customers
By · CommentsYou know all those emails you keep getting from people you’ve bought from or expressed an interest in buying from – the one’s with special offers, coupons, and general information that you find helpful?
Those businesses are staying in front of you – many for pennies a pop.
Are you doing the same with your customers and prospective customers?
Over the last few posts, we’ve talked about targeting the right kind of people and keeping them in one place so you can begin to use some of the new technology to both retain current customers and get new ones. In this post, let’s talk about the technology that keeps you in front of them on a regular basis.
Before we jump in to the technological backend, let’s look at a few things you’ll need to think about in terms of what you’re going to say to them.
A great way to do this is to sit down with a calendar and look at what is happening in the world and in particular with your customers. For example, if I were a CPA, January is a time for getting documents together and setting an appointment to get your taxes done; it also ties in with the New Year and getting the year started off right. February is Valentine’s day – fall in love with your CPA and get your refund fast!
Each of you has something to say about the season and how it can positively impact your clients. You may even offer incentives to people who normally procrastinate (if that’s a trend you see). For example, a floor cleaning company sees people put off until the last minute cleaning their carpets before the Winter Holiday Season. The proprietor may offer a 10% discount for anyone on their list who gets their carpets cleaned by the 10th of November. This drives people into earlier time slots, creates more room for appointments later in the month, and increases revenues.
So sit down and create a calendar of what you want to say and offer to your clients for every month of the year. Even if you decide to only touch them once a month, chances are you’ll be in front of them closer to them time they really need your services and you will be at the top of their mind – the key to winning more repeat business.
Think about this – the most expensive thing to do in client development is to get a new client. Once you’ve got them, chances are they will need your services again. By staying in front of them regularly, you’ll drastically reduce your overall cost per new service sold.
Now about the technology. There are all kinds of software and online services that offer ways for you to stay in touch with your customers via email. You can schedule email campaigns, send electronic newsletters, offer surveys, etc. The technology behind these systems are generally called auto-responders. They are very powerful tools to keep and get new customers. Here’s a link to a few of the most popular. Alternatively, you can always do an online search for “auto-responder” and choose the one that best fits your needs and budget.
Many auto-responders have built in templates which allow you to plug in your text and pictures, upload your list, and be off and running. Choosing the right one can be a bit tricky, but with some research, some testing, and some good old fashioned planning and execution, you could easily up and running in a few hours.
In upcoming posts, we’ll talk about blogs and Social Media sites like Facebook®, LinkedIn, and Twitter® and how to tie them into the various features of your auto-responders. So don’t be shy – jump in. The water’s fine.
If you need some guidance, don’t hesitate to reach out to me and schedule some time to get you set up to stay in touch with your customers via auto-responder.
There’s Magic In Your List
By · CommentsYou know all those people who’ve bought your products and services? We talked about them in a previous post – they’re your customers.
But do you have them all in one place?
Do you have a database with their contact information – email address? Home address? Phone number?
If you answered no – why not?
Chances are you never got around to it. Or you’re not sure about the best place to start or how to even capture that information.
Starting from scratch, I advise my clients to start with what they have. Most have Microsoft Outlook already on their computers. While it’s not the optimum platform for getting online, it works to gather all the information you already have from various sources (spreadsheets, business cards, emails, etc) and get them all into one place. There are tools which can help you grab addresses from emails. Simply Google “address grabber” and there are pages of them. You can then easily export that data into a format that can be moved to any online system you end up using. It’s difficult to use social media tools like Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook without at least a database of First Name and email address. It’s impossible to email market without this data.
I recently worked with a law firm that had some client and vendor data in paper files, in emails, and in their billing system. But nowhere did they have ALL of the data they needed to consistently reach out and communicate
If you answered yes – you’re doing great! And there’s much more you can be doing with your information.
Once you have basic contact info for your list, you can begin to use the new media tools, like newsletters or email marketing, to be in front of your customers and prospects on a regular basis.
And once you get going, you can always get more sophisticated. There are even services which will help you “clone” your client database and help you market to them offline to bring them into your pipeline online.
People ask me about buying lists, and this can be a great way to build your business – if you are working with a reputable list broker and you know what you are doing. I always recommend that you start with what you have. Figure out what’s going to work marketing-wise with your current customers, and then think about expanding outwards. At least that way you are not wasting valuable time and resources on a hope or a prayer.
Ask yourself this question – How many people have done business with you at least once? How many of those have come back to you a second or third time? What if you could double that number? You already acquired them once. You lost a large number of them the next time around because you didn’t have a system in place to STAY in front of them until they needed you again. It’s a costly mistake. One I myself have made in the past.
It can be daunting to get started. The number one thing I see with small businesses is that they simply fail to get started because they don’t know what they don’t know – so they do nothing. If you find yourself in that place, please reach out to get some help. Because the only thing standing between you and increased profitability is your inaction.
Contact me to find out more about getting your project started.
Building Business Is Still About Fundamentals
By · CommentsIn these challenging economic times, we’re all facing the same question – How do I get more new customers and cut my expenses?
My Answer – Go back to fundamentals.
In the next several posts, we’ll explore how to take time-tested client acquisition fundamentals and apply them to new media tools that can help you grow your business, and have it be even healthier than it was when things were “booming”. There are lots of digital marketing tools to help us LEVERAGE fundamentals once we figure out what they are. And they cost much less than you think.
Let’s start with the basics – Who do you want to be working with?
It’s easy to find yourself all over the place trying to get business in the door it you aren’t crystal clear who you want to be working with. In fact, most of us started out with the “y’all come” strategy. And our customer base reflects that.
Unfortunately, when times get challenging, it’s difficult to spend resources to attract “everyone” and “anyone” because our marketing messages don’t attract as powerfully from that huge pool of customers with limited resources. It’s one thing if you’re a large corporation with a huge advertising budget – you can afford the “shotgun” approach. It’s quite another if you are a local business with limited marketing dollars.
So figure out who your Perfect Customer is.
Who’s your bread-bread-and-butter? Who is your most profitable customer? Create a profile capturing the essence of the clients who make your business profitable in this economy. You can download a worksheet from my website that will help you nail your profile down. Find it at here.
Once you know this – options begin to open up in terms of finding these folks and getting them into your sales pipeline. Additionally, you can focus your marketing time, resources, and messages to appeal to that Perfect Client.
In upcoming posts, I’ll discuss how to apply this idea to your digital marketing – such as drip-marketing via e-mail, blogging, tweeting via Twitter.com, using LinkedIn.com, Facebooking, and more.
Let’s look first, though, at what you’re currently doing – How do you get in front of people? Where do your leads come from?
Examine my first stab at a list of common lead generation strategies.
Imagine how effective you would be if you got crystal clear who you were trying to attract and applied it to what you were already doing. It alters what you say. It alters where you advertise. It alters where you network and how you network. It makes it easier to ask for referrals. It tells you what to say when you write an article, blog, tweet, or post on your Fan Page. Focus gives you insight into the psychology of your client, so you know what to write in your e-mail drip campaigns.
Spend 30 days and learn everything you can about who your Perfect Client is, what their issues are, what problems they have, what keeps them up at night, what groups they belong to, what websites they frequent, what publications they read, etc., and watch how it influences your interactions with and marketing to them.
Doing this work will prepare you to bridge the traditional and technological marketing gap.
The Power of Planned Serendipity
By · CommentsIt struck me today, while working with a client, that the work you do on your LinkedIn profile and with your LinkedIn account is really about planning for serendipity.
There’s a Woody Allen quote that "80% of success is just showing up."
In the world, that means getting up, getting to work, getting to your appointments, and executing what you do well.
Online, it’s staying in front of your markets, clients, prospects, referral sources, and key influencers.
Within 10 minutes of updating their "status update" feature on LinkedIn, this client heard back from a key influencer whom they had not been in contact with for months. The influencer had seen the update and reached out to connect and re-establish their relationship.
Social Capital at work – online.
Imagine the impact on your bottom line if this were happening regularly – with the key people in your Business Development Network.
Are you set up for Serendipity?
Increasing Demand for LinkedIn Training
By · CommentsIt seems that as the economy continues to tighten that people are waking up to the fact that they need to ratchet up what they are doing something proactively to reach their personal and business goals.
I’ve been receiving lots of emails and requests from people and groups to do presentations on using LinkedIn to achieve personal and business related goals.
So I’m setting up a special section on my website called Social Media Savvy where I’ll be posting where I’m speaking both live and via teleseminar or webinar. I’ll also be posting links to other training and events which help our readers sharpen their social media skills to really make the most of the tools and opportunities that are just waiting for you to master.
I’ve also just released our first of a series of LinkedIn eBooks. Check ‘em out!
If you have events that you’d like me to promote to our readers, please reach out to me via our Contact Page.
If you’d like us to speak to your group of 30 or more – live, via teleseminar or webinar – reach out to us.
And, as always, if there’s any way I can be of service, I’m here.
Economic Changes Call for Tactical Adjustments
By · CommentsEspecially Now, Relationships Are the Key to Good Referrals
In these uncertain economic times, my experience tells me that there are still people out there who need your services. But because they are more concerned with getting the best value for their increasingly scarce resources, they turn to the people they trust to introduce them to professionals who deliver value.
Said another way, referrals are how good business gets done when times get challenging.
Who are your best referrers?
Have you thanked them?
Have you reached out to find out how you can help them?
Are you relying on a small group of people to refer you or have you systematically positioned yourself to be the recipient of your perfect referral over and over again?
Or are you still relying on a random stream of referrals?
I’ve been advising my clients to get proactive. Especially now. Because even if only 25% of their business comes from referral, if that business dries up and goes to someone else, they are in trouble.
Take action now!
1. Audit your last 3 years of clients.
Determine to the best of your ability where each piece of business came from. What did it add to your top-line revenues? What did it add to your overall profitability? What source stands out as needing immediate attention? If it is a person or a firm, what’s the current state of your relationship?
One client who did this exercise noticed that there were several distinct groups of people who referred him business. He broke them up into areas – real estate, import/export and invited them to a luncheon at his office. He introduced them all to each other and had them share what they needed to be successful – resources, contacts, etc. He shared the same thing – and his practice grew 30% in under 6 months.
2. Connect with your referral sources.
Cement your relationships. You know what needs to be done. Do it. Don’t put it off. In the current economic climate, those relationships can be the access to your very best clients – because those sources have social capital behind their recommendations and provide social proof that you are the attorney with whom they should be speaking.
I spoke on the phone this morning with another client who had changed firms and never reconnected with old sources of referrals. She shared that just by picking up the phone and reaching out to people who used to send her cases, she increased her business immediately – one sent her a new case that morning.
Connecting frequently and consistently is the key to staying top of mind. Enlist your staff to help you make this happen.
3. Actively reproduce your best referral sources.
Take a look at the characteristics of your best referral sources. What is their profession? Do they belong to a specific professional association? Get clear about which are your best sources and begin recruiting new ones just like them. LinkedIn® is a great resource for this project. If you don’t know how to use it – Learn.
Think about what would happen to your practice and your pocketbook if you added a zero to the number of people who actively refer you your ideal client. Come up with a project to build 20-30 relationships who can keep you and your firm busy and profitable.
4. Develop a regular touch strategy.
I know you are busy. All professionals are. But the most productive have systems in place that allow them to accomplish the repetitive tasks that create continuity in relationship. The old adage “Out of sight, out of mind” can wreak havoc on your referrability. Set – or have your staff set – lunches at regular intervals. Get a system to regularly send out birthday and anniversary cards. Involve your support staff in collecting and sending clippings of pertinent articles or snippets of what they read in on-line news. The key here is to stay ‘top-of-mind’ while you deepen the relationship.
5. Train your referral sources
You know what you do. But do your referral sources? Really? Ask them what they think you do. You’ll be surprised at some of the responses. If your sources don’t know what you do and who is best to send your way, chances are referral quality is poor.
Most importantly, get clear which problems you solve that keep your clients up at night – from their perspective, not yours. “I’m a intellectual property attorney” is very different from “I help the creative protect and defend their million dollar ideas.”
Draft a document which illustrates what you do (not just a list of services) and for whom. Clearly articulate who your ideal clients are and then share that with your sources. Encourage them to do the same for you.
Building reciprocity builds relatedness. Relatedness is a trigger for referrals.
6. Develop a stable of professionals that you can refer – and refer them.
Referrals out can be tricky for some attorneys. The concern about liability is one I often hear from my clients. However, reciprocity doesn’t work if you don’t refer out. One of my clients dealt with his concern this way – when he passes a referral he uses this disclaimer – “I recommend X – s/he’s done a great job for my clients in the past. You should do your own due diligence, though, as s/he’s not always a fit for everyone.”
You do not serve all your clients’ needs. You can position yourself, in their minds, to do so by developing a stable of reliable professionals who serve those needs which you do not, and educating your clients as to their availability. Listen for opportunities to refer. Be known as a resource for your clients AND as a referrer by your key sources.
7. Repeat this process
Referral development is a process, not an event. Relationships are not event driven and credibility is something that is built – over time. If you have three to five hours a week – think lunches and breakfasts – you can easily roll this out over a year long program. It takes some planning and discipline, but the payoff far exceeds the perceived pain.
It takes something to alter results you are currently getting. The biggest hurdle you will have to conquer is the belief that you “don’t have the time” or that you are “too busy” to do something different.
The most productive and profitable firms have handled these conversations and developed the skills and the networks to consistently land the right kind of profitable business.
I encourage you to do the same.
Raymond Chip Lambert
Network 2 Networth
Your Outsourced Business Development Training Partner
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Expanding Into the Twitterverse
By · CommentsI recently spoke at the Increase Sales with Social Media conference in San Diego with David Carleton (@DavidCarleton) Denise Wakeman 
(@blogsquad) of the Blog Squad, Mari Smith (@MariSmith) of Facebook fame, Paul Colligan (@colligan) – Social Media Strategist, and Warren Whitlock (@warrenwhitlock) of Twitter fame. I’ll write more about what I learned in a future post.
But the thing that sticks in my mind was that the place was "tweeting" like mad.
Now, I had been on Twitter.com for some time. But I had no idea about the power of the platform.
For those of you new to Twitter, it is a micro-blogging platform (you have 140 characters to get your message out) which allows you to follow key people in your networks and to build a following of friends, fans, customers, and partners.
Imagine this – as each speaker was presenting, people from the audience were taking the gems and sending them out to the people in their Twitter network. And a buzz got created out in the real world about what was happening in a conference center in San Diego.
Think about that. People built a following on Twitter, and then fed them with valuable information that they were getting at a conference which their followers couldn’t or didn’t attend. Talk about delivering value & building customer and partner intimacy.
This is something that savvy business development people have been doing for years offline – and now they can do it online – and deliver incredible value to the stakeholders in their success.
I also learned about a few cool management tools to keep up on what was happening in the Twitterverse.
- Tweetdeck – this platform allows me to search for exact terms out in the Twitterverse and respond personally to people who have an interest or ask questions in my area of expertise. I have been steadily building a following by doing just that. One of my students, Anita Leafty, introduced me to it.
- Twitter Search – Search allows you to do much the same as above, but doesn’t update automatically like Tweetdeck. Very powerful, however, to find people who are interested in areas in which you have interest.
- Hash Marks – If you want to be able to easily aggregate information or a flow of information, us the "#" followed by a short moniker. For example, the ISSM conference was #ISSM (go ahead, Twitter-Search it). I’ve started #LinkedInTips, #BizDevTips (go ahead, check them out too)
- Direct Messaging – While some people dislike it, DM, as it is referred to, allows you to send a special message directly to someone on Twitter, much like an email. This helps when you have something private to say and don’t have their email address. Very Useful
- Socialtoo.com – This service allows me to follow the people who follow me and to send them a special thank you message. As my following grows, it can be time consuming to do all the followup. This program automates the process. Now I just go and change the message every few days.
- Mr Tweet – A very cool service that tells me who I should be following given my "tweet" content and the people I follow & who they follow. Very good for network building and visibility.
Results, you ask?
I’ve been booked to speak at several more conferences (I’ll keep you in the loop); I had more sales come through for our LinkedIn Training Webinars from people who have followed me; Jack Canfield is now following me (wow – what an honor!); And with some generous help from Mari Smith and folks in the Twitterverse, I now have close to 300 people following me – in less than a week.
And I’m just starting to get the hang of this.
I HIGHLY recommend that you start to learn about Twitter. It can revolutionize the way you interact with, build, and leverage your network.
Find me on Twitter at www.twitter.com/chiplambert73
Raymond Chip Lambert
Network2Networth
Your Outsourced Business Development Training Partner
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