6 posts from January 2010

Client, Will You Marry Me?

29

Jan

Posted by Robert Bylett at 7:55 AM in Business Owner, Client Relationships, Clients, Happy Business, Small Business

When you ask a prospect to become a client, do you treat it like a marriage proposal?  You should!  The foundation of building a happy business is relationships.  Relationships with your family, staff, suppliers, vendors, AND clients.  Before popping the big question, imagine you and the new client working together a year from now; then 5 years from now; then 10 years from now!  Is that someone you want to still be working with that far in the future?
Marry

In the race to build our businesses, we often find ourselves willing to take money from anyone who wants to give it to us without fully sizing up the client and the potential – both good and bad – they have for the future of our business.  This is the #1 way to find yourself with a business full of toxic customers, stuck in lawsuits, and hating the day you had the brilliant idea to start your own company.  We get so focused on the money that we never really look at the person giving it to us.  The problem is that we actually have to work with the person – the money just sits there or is gone before we’ve barely had a chance to look at it.  So, do your due diligence by getting to know the client before asking them to work with you, and make a conscious decision that you want to keep this client for better or worse (‘til death do you part isn’t necessary, but you shouldn’t just cut and run when problems come up; you have to try and work through them first). 

Now that you’re married to your client, you still have a lot of work ahead of you.  Just like any marriage, you have to nurture the relationship.  When you make promises, keep them.  Frequently show your appreciation.  Openly communicate so that the client knows what is happening.  Make sure that every time they interact with you or your company that they walk away smiling and looking forward to your next encounter.

While perfection is our goal, I do recognize that it is rarely found in our reality.  However, the more you strive to do the best work for your client the less likely you are to falter.  The beginning part of the relationship is crucial to the long term success of the business relationship.  Do everything possible to avoid errors and mistakes during the “honeymoon phase.”  This will allow you to build a solid foundation of trust so that when the inevitable slip-up occurs, it will be easier to overcome and the relationship much more likely to hold.

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You Don’t Like to Be Sold To, So Why Hard Sell Your Own Clients?

23

Jan

Posted by Robert Bylett at 2:19 PM in Business Owner, Client Relationships, Client Satisfaction, Happiness, Happy Business, Marketing, Profitable, Small Business, Values

Death_of_a_salesman Selling has changed a lot since the days of Willy Loman.  Consumers are much more knowledgeable and sophisticated and they can see a sales pitch coming from a mile away.  And consumers aren’t only the prospects and clients you’re trying to sell to, they’re you too!  You’re a consumer, so you should ask yourself, “How would I feel if someone was making this sales pitch to me?” 

What exactly is the difference between traditional sales and attraction marketing? 

Traditional Sales

  • You’re in control.  You decide who you approach, who you pitch, and what you offer.  However, the prospects usually aren’t interested at first so you have to start the sale by building interest before you can try to sell.
  • ABC – Always Be Closing.  The goal is to make the sale; get the prospect to say, “Yes.”  Then move on the next sale. 
  • You’ll get a lot of “no’s.”  However, numbers are always on your side.  As long as you keep finding prospects – no matter how ideal – and keep asking, you’ll get enough “yes’s” to be successful. You just have to be strong enough to withstand it.

Attraction Marketing

  • You can only control the message and materials you send out.  For the most part, prospects will self select themselves and come to you.  The great part is that you know they’re interested before you start.
  • Establish yourself as an expert.  When you are seen as the expert in your field, prospects close themselves because they want to work with the best. 
  • Relationships are everything and good client service is crucial.  The worst thing that can happen is that clients and prospects openly speak negatively about you.  The damage to your credibility as the expert can be enormous and you may not recover. 

The biggest difference is that one is positive and the other negative.  The approach you choose to take affects how you feel as a person and a business. 

With traditional selling, you deal with “no” every day and you spend your time convincing people to buy something in which they may have not been interested or even needed.  The result is that you’ll get customers with buyer’s remorse who aren’t happy and want refunds.  Will you be happy spending your time in this manner?  At the end of the day, can you easily recover from being beaten down and rejected?

With attraction marketing, you’re working with people who want to work with you.  You’re also improving prospects lives – even if they don’t become clients – by educating them on important topics and issues that can help them.

It’s easier and quicker and you’re much more likely to make money right away using traditional selling techniques.  The question is which is more important to you – making money or being happy?  There’s no right or wrong, and if you’re getting started you may have to utilize some traditional selling to get money coming in.  Just be careful that you don’t damage the long term goal of establishing yourself as that expert.

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Is Nike Right? Should You, “Just Do It”?

20

Jan

Posted by Robert Bylett at 8:13 AM in Business Owner, Efficient Business Systems, Small Business

We last talked about taking action on a project to improve your business when you’re either overwhelmed or afraid to fail.  The message I left you with probably sounded like I was telling you to, “just suck it up and do it!”  Well, in a way I was, but it’s not that simple.  Don’t get me wrong, taking action is a great motivator and could definitely be moving you in the right direction.  However, blind action – without a plan – could result in you being further away from your goal.  So, what should you do?

Just_do_it_wallpaper_just_do_itFirst, don’t let yourself freeze up again!  It’s taken some energy to get you defrosted, ready and motivated to take action – so hold on to it!  Then, funnel it into the following process:

Step 1:  What do you want to do?  Be very clear and definitive about what it is that you want to do.  Do you want to implement a new software system?  Do you need to make a change in your staff? 

Step 2:  Why do you want to do it?  Be truthful here!  The reason could be big or small; it could be petty or deep.  It doesn’t matter.  All that matters is that you understand and own the reason – even if it’s as simple as a personality conflict.

Step 3:  Write out an action plan.  Make it as detailed as possible and it will be easier to follow.

Step 4:  Feel the fear or overwhelm.  There’s a reason you’ve been procrastinating taking action and it likely has something to do with fear or overwhelm.  Allow yourself to feel it, acknowledge it, and then you’ll be able to move on.

Step 5:  Why are you afraid or overwhelmed?  This “why” is very important because it’s likely keeping you from taking action on other projects.  Is it a fear of failure, afraid you’re not capable of doing it, or don’t have the knowledge or skill to get it done?  The why could be internal or external.

Step 6:  Do it anyway!  Now that you understand why you’ve been procrastinating, you may start to have second thoughts.  Don’t listen to them!  Take the first step of your action plan within 24 hours.

Step 7: Celebrate!  No matter the outcome of the project, celebrate that you took action and took a risk.  This is especially true of long term plans because it will be a while before you know the outcome. 

So, Nike’s right.  You should “Just Do It!”  Just do it in steps and you’ll definitely be moving in the right direction.

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Business Paralysis – Too Much of a Bother or Fear of Failure?

13

Jan

Posted by Robert Bylett at 4:34 PM in Business Owner, Profitable, Small Business

 

The New Year is a big motivator to take action on projects we’ve been putting off for a long time – both business and personal.  Why does it seem that we need something as momentous as the start of a new calendar year to get us going?  The real question, however, is what was preventing us from taking action in the first place?

OverwhelmAs business owners, we know that our businesses need to always be innovating, changing and growing in order to thrive.  Yet, we can tend to procrastinate the implementation of projects that will improve the company.  Why is that?  Even when we know it’s a change for the good?

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How Much Trust Is Too Much? – Oversight In A Small Business

07

Jan

Posted by Robert Bylett at 8:42 AM in Business Owner, Courtesy System, Employees, Small Business

Blind Assumptions A common mistake of small business owners is too much trust.  As small business owners, we always take on more than we can chew.  Things start rolling like gangbusters and we finally get to the point where we can afford to hire some employees.  And, which employees do we always hire first?  The employees that do the tasks we either hate to do or cannot do.

The problem is that once we hire these employees, we can tend to wash our hands of these tasks.  We either don’t want to deal with the tasks and issues or we don’t know enough to ask the right questions or provide oversight.  Without realizing it, we end up placing a level of trust in these people that we don’t even give to family members.  That trust isn’t there because it’s been earned, but because it’s convenient.

That trust could be the end of your business.  I’m not saying that because I believe your employees are untrustworthy, but because you never know that they aren’t as trustworthy as you believe until it’s too late.  Further, they could be the most trustworthy people in the world, but could be incompetent. 

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A Small Business is Always a “Family Business” – even if no other family members are employees!

05

Jan

Posted by Robert Bylett at 8:34 AM in Business Owner, Economy, Small Business

FamilyStudies When most people think of a “family business,” they usually get an image in their head of a business employing multiple family members of more than one generation.  Often there is even an importance of legacy with the business passing from one generation to the next.  If you’re a small business owner, then that image in your head needs to change.  That’s because your business is a family business – even if you’re a business of one!

In this economy, many people are making the choice to hang a shingle for themselves; to start their own company or consulting business.  If you’ve never been a business owner before, I can assure you that this endeavor is much bigger than you can possibly imagine.  In addition to the “tasks” associated with your business, you also have to run the “company.”  It’s stressful, very time consuming, and not a decision you would want to be forced into. 

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