Reduced commissions, competition from similar businesses and the Internet, new-technology overload, and changing products and regulations — all these things and more can keep you from achieving your larger goals.
Adding to the myriad challenges you face is the question you should keep asking yourself: Why am I spending so little time with my existing customers and so much time chasing new business? You have already invested your time in having your clients get to know, like, and trust you. The rewards might be smaller for focusing on those you already serve, but the prize is easier to attain: keeping that business and obtaining referrals from your client, who must become an advocate for you.
It has been proven that 70 percent of a salesperson's time is spent looking for new business. Depending on the size of a target organization, there may be close to seven distinct individuals that must be "touched" before a buying decision is reached. This "people factor" does not include the "process factor" that must take place with each of those individuals and the inevitable hoops that one must jump through to get to the next decision-maker.
Consider for one moment the simplicity and value of using the telephone to contact all of these individuals and establish early qualifications — are they really worthy of your time? Imagine the value of being able to answer some of the most important questions that are vital during the early stages of any new business relationship: Is this person an influencer? If so, how? Who do they influence? What portion of the budget are they responsible for? How are they affected by not using your service(s)? Who else should you be reaching out to? Who will be a trusted ally in the targeted organization and ultimately value and support your efforts? For individual, rather than worksite, sales, the same questions apply with family members that you come in contact with.
Your Web site, which your prospects will usually see before speaking with you, must be the best representation of who you are, what you are about, and how you meet the needs of current, former, and prospective customers. Using your Web site to talk about your business is critical; it's a valuable branding tool that should represent all that is good about your company and why someone should do business with you. Your landing page should make it easy for a prospect to get in touch with you, either by email or by phone. Immediate contact information is incredibly important as a potential customer wants to know that they will be a priority should they choose to do business with you. It cannot and should not be difficult to speak directly with you.
One of the most important things, then, is the placement of your telephone number. When a phone number appears on a Web site, collateral piece, mailed letter, or email, a prospective client expects that someone will be available at this number.
At your place of business, make sure that anybody with whom a potential client speaks will answer the phone clearly and slowly.
This person — whether it's you, another agent in your office, or a member of your support staff — should invite the caller into the business with the right tone and the right level of interest. This level of interest can be demonstrated by asking the right questions and having the right person available to talk with — not a voicemail message that says, "I am either on the phone or away from my desk." This type of communication really says, "I may call you back. I do not know when, nor do I know how important you are, but that doesn't matter to me."
A recent report in The Harvard Business Review stated that 65 percent to 80 percent of customers will move on within one year of expressing satisfaction with a business. Why do they leave? It's not because of price, as you would imagine. Customers leave because of an unsatisfactory experience with an organization that can be as small as an invoicing issue, or not being told about a better, faster, safer, or easier way of doing something. Your clients who leave are not trying jump ship — they just do. They even put out warning signs, but you don't listen.
So what can you do to change this? Talk to your customers. Talk to every decision-maker — and often. Find out what challenges they are facing, learn what their goals are, and be aware of how you can help them find success through the services that you provide. Talking to clients gives you the opportunity to enhance the services you provide. You may learn that they have plans to expand their business, or buy another one. You might even speak with individuals or families who could be valuable sources of information about local business opportunities. These opportunities can often fall in your lap by maintaining that dialogue — two-way communications.
All in all, there are many ways to offer information about your business and receive prospects or customer requests. The fastest and easiest way of touching base with prospects is still very basic — be accessible, talk to them, and, most importantly, listen. Ask the right questions that will ensure that you are valuable to everyone you touch.
Kathy Pabst Robshaw is the president and founder of Telephone Effectiveness Co. She can be reached at 727-421-8818 or kathy@telephoneeffectiveness.com.
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