When a client tells you about the project they want completed, what is your reaction?
Do you say, “Great! We can do that. Here’s how we’ll get you the results you say you want,” and begin to prove how talented you are to secure the project?
Building business relationships is similar to gardening in a lot of ways. It takes time and dedication.
The actions required for the payoff rarely result in an immediate or obvious change — they need to build up over time. A relationship which is started, but not maintained will wither and die — it is the natural order of things.
I would like to personally invite you to an upcoming workshop that will completely change the way you develop accounts.
This isn’t a sales training workshop. It’s not a personal development seminar. It’s an intense 2-day interactive event in Houston that will change the way you think. And it’s limited to 15 participants.
In this month’s video, I talk about one of the most important skills relevant to shaping work: the ability to facilitate decision-making.
So often, we tend to want to move quickly to a “closing” mentality as we move work through the sales pipeline. And this leads to conversations around price and scope.
What our team has learned from coaching the owners of decisions, is that they their decisions are rarely stuck on price, but rather a deeper discomfort or fear about a broader decision they are making. And, those fears rarely have anything to do with the price or scope or your deliverable.
Watch the video to learn more.
Messaging is so pivotal to leveraging The Connection Process. Specifically, how you message your impact. It’s a subtlety that most people miss.
One of my favorite videos is from Simon Sinek, where he talks about the difference between the way Apple goes to market and the way everyone else goes to market.
Say you’re just learning how to golf. You’ve signed up for some sessions with a golf instructor. You’re ready to hit the green for the first time.
Would you wonder, When am I going to win a tournament?
Probably not.
You spent a fortune on a coach to push you and your team through a mindset shift or a business process change.
The coach shares a methodology with you that will change everything about what you are doing.
It feels like base jumping. Right? Or worse – jumping without a chute.
Well, it shouldn’t, because the idea of changing everything you’re doing is going to backfire on you.
In this month’s video, I talk about the importance of being persistent and consistent with your messaging and follow-up. And no, you’re not being a nag when you call, email, or text a potential client. Well, as long as you’re not sending the standard, “hey, I’m just following up to see how you’re doing.” Or, “I just wanted to check in on the next steps.”
Check out the video to learn more about the three important phases of connecting with a potential client, and how being persistent and consistent can help you deliver impact when and where it has the potential to create momentum.
The P3 Connect organization is unique in that it combines the financial perspective and the client perspective. What I noticed right away is that the discussions were much more focused on solving the business problem than simply using the public/private structure.
If you’ve been following this blog, you now know how to spot a champion and a navigator within your target client organization. The next most important person to identify as you’re building relationships within the organization is the decision maker.
