3 Strategies to Stop Inviting The “Other Guy” To Dinner
When is the last time you made a call to your existing clients? No, I don’t mean saw them in person, said a quick hello, or invited them to an event. I mean really made a call. You actually scheduled the appointment, prepared for the conversation, sat down, and asked well thought out questions. You invested the time to learn what is going on with them, about their challenges, and their goals.
My husband and I just had our financial review with our bankers. You know, that twice a year meeting you have to go over your accounts and your investments. It was a great meeting and we talked in detail about our accounts, our next steps, and future goals. As we started to wrap up, our banker, sort of off the cuff, asked when was the last we had our insurance policies updated and reviewed? Meaning our home, our office buildings and our cars. Over the course of our conversation, we shared we were adding on to our home, had purchased two new cars, and had laughed about how we would be in desperate need of an upgrade on our homeowners policy one this edition was complete.
The moment he asked the question, I thought to myself, “Wow, our current insurance agent just kicked the door open and invited his competition in to take his business.” He made it so easy! While we like our insurance agent, see him at events and talk to him on occasion, he never, and may I repeat never, proactively has a meeting or a call with us to update or review our needs. He doesn’t work on our business relationship. In other words, he left the door wide open and invited the competition in to take his business, his fees, his commission, and any opportunity to grow this relationship. Not to mention future referrals.
Here Are Three Strategies You Need To Keep The Door Closed And Your Competition Out:
- Don’t Assume – Your existing clients are your best sales force , and your easiest way to grow your business or portfolio. Never assume they are well taken care of, that they are loyal to you, or that they cannot be taken by your competition. You need to “re win” your existing business on a quarterly basis, and treat them as if you are constantly trying to win their business – because you are..
- Be Proactive – seeing clients at Rotary, on the golf course, or at a party does not count as a proactive sales call. It is your job, not theirs, to ask the great questions and find out what they really need. Asking good, solid, and well thought out, open-ended questions will ensure that your clients know you are interested and that you care. It will also keep you on your toes to be one step ahead of your competition.
- Call Anyway – Even if clients say they don’t want to see or talk to you, make the call or find a way to be visible with them anyway. If they are good clients, everyone wants their business. If you are not out there caring for that relationship you are just opening the door and inviting your competition in.
Put these three strategies into place, and you will not only close the door to your competition, but you will put yourself in a position to Win In The Trust & Value Economy.
Motivational Keynote Speaker & Business Growth Expert, Meridith Elliott Powell, works with clients to help them instill ownership at every level to ensure profits at every turn. Click here for 3 Sure Fire Tips To Get Your Team To Instill Ownership At Every Level, To Get Profits At Every Turn!Meridith is the author of several books, including her latest, Winning In The Trust & Value Economy: a professionals guide to business and sales success. When not keynoting and leading workshops, she looks for inspiration cycling, golfing or hiking her favorite trail.https://meridithelliottpowell.com
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