Post by RSW/US Owner & President Mark Sneider
For those of you following these posts, this is the Chapter 16 summary from our soon to be released, 17 chapter Agency New Business Handbook titled:
Put on that $%*! Sales Hat! The Hardest Part of Agency New Business.
The 17 Chapters talk about why you need to wear your sales hat at every step of the process, from pre-prospecting preparation to working opportunities to close.
The majority of the book focuses on elements that Agencies either often overlook, are too busy to consider, or are simply too lazy to pursue.
Chapter 16: Impress, But Don’t Overwhelm!
OK…so the presentation is over or the intro phone call is over or the first meeting is over…now the waiting begins…and it sucks!
If it’s a meeting or a call, the prospect gives you the proverbial “let’s stay in touch”. They really did seem to like you. You seemed to impress them, and you feel good about your chances of doing business with them, but you’d rather being walking out the door with the equivalent of a P.O. right now!
So what do you do?
Do you sit around and wait for the phone to ring?
If you do, they will forget you!
Or do you keep it moving and continue to try and impress?
Wrote a post a long time ago titled “The Second Hardest Part of Prospecting…Closing the Deal” and that’s where this kicks into gear.
So let’s get back to that prospect that told you to stay in touch…
Again, he seemed to like you. He says he has nothing now, but wants you to stay in touch. You ask when you should re-connect and he suggests that you do wo 3-4 months from now.
I say, don’t wait 3-4 months. Every 3-4 weeks send him/her an interesting article, new work, or a post that you’ve crafted that is central to this prospect’s space.
Stay on their radar and continue to impress them. Consider throwing some ideas out to them to show them you’re continually thinking about them.
You want to impress them, but not overwhelm them. Don’t just call to call or don’t just email to just check in. Keep the value up, keep yourself on his radar.
Always remember that the bottom line is the engagement doesn’t stop when the meeting or call or pitch ends. This is just the beginning!
