Do you need to get back in the swing of things with your
business after the holidays and not sure where to begin?
Are you feeling stuck on what to do or where to do it?
Well, the first thing I would tell most of you is to get
networking! Jump right up from your desk, bring a stack of
business cards and attend some events pertinent to your
business right off the bat. This is the best way to
generate new leads and new contacts; just do it, don't
think about it. This might be tough or uncomfortable and
you might want to 'ease' your way back into those circles,
but don't do it. Otherwise it could take you up to three
months to get back on track.
Get networking now to chamber events, trade or association
meetings, business events or expos - anything where your
target market will be. Afterwards, you'll be forced to
follow up and the whole marketing cycle begins again!
Follow up you say? What's that? Well, in my experience
only about 5% of small business people do this on a regular
basis, however it can be the single most effective way to
attract and retain new business and referrals. What are
you waiting for? No one is going to do your networking or
your follow up for you.
To effectively follow up with new prospects, new contacts
or anyone in general you can do any or all of the following:
1. Mail a handwritten note with your business card
"It was great to meet you, let's get together for coffee to
see how we might be able to work together. When are you
available next week?"
2. Send a personal email
"It was great to meet you, this is what I do now tell me
what it is that you do so that we might be able to refer
business to each other."
3. Make a phone call to say
"It was great to meet you, how could we help refer business
to each other?"
Not only do you need to follow up with these people within
48 hours of meeting them, but you need to follow up again
and again and again. Find new approaches each time, ask
them questions, ask them for coffee, mail them a list of
your services, drop off a promotional item and your
brochure or email them an article you read that you thought
they might be interested in.
Persistence is the key. If a lead is really warm to hot,
you will want to follow up or contact them at least four
times. If they turn you down at all or tell you no, keep
trying different angles, kill them with kindness, refer a
potential client to them, show them you give without
expecting to receive. Most of the time, with persistence,
you can win the sale or meeting.
Now, I can hear some of you thinking, "Ok, the follow up
isn't the problem, it's the actual networking, talking to
people I don't know in a big crowd."
Well, what I say to that is get over it!
Take some public speaking courses, do a lot of practicing
in front of the mirror or a friend, or you can even join
Toastmasters or a business referral organization which will
help you fine tune your 10, 30 or 60 second commercial. If
all else fails or none of this appeals to you, too bad, do
it anyway.
Let's face it, running your own business is tough, you
don't always get to do the things you like to do, sometimes
you have to do the things you don't like to do - so get
used to it and fake it 'til you make it.
The trick to networking for those who are shy or who don't
like crowds or small talk is to ask a lot of questions and
ask for other people's business cards. Don't worry about
talking about yourself or passing out your cards, just
worry about the other person and getting their card. Ask
them lots of questions about them, their life, their
business, their target market, what kind of referrals they
like to receive, etc. Because you can always follow up
later and send them your card and info!
An important thing to remember when networking is to make
sure you wear a clear, professional nametag so when you're
busy talking about other people and what they do at these
events, they can still read your name, business and what
you do on your shirt so in case they are interested in what
you do, they will ask.
So, now that you've started networking, doing your follow
up and the leads and referrals might be starting to trickle
in, what else is there? How are you marketing your
business? Do you have a written marketing plan that you
refer to and update on a regular basis? If not, write one.
There are free seminars offered in most cities by the SBA
or other Business Centers who are there to be a resource to
small business owners or of course that's something I can
help you with too in my 1-On-1 Marketing Planning Meeting.
For those of you who really need some alone time to
rejuvenate and prepare to get back to business, try a
weekend retreat for yourself. Go away from your home and
your office for 2 days, stay over night if you can in a
hotel or spa retreat to gather your thoughts and plan the
coming year.
During this retreat, you will want to write down every idea
or creative thought that comes into your head. Then you
want to plot out on a big calendar any annual events,
promotions, sales or focuses for your business. Along with
those, you will want to outline timelines or deadlines for
needed tasks or items in order to accomplish those such as
book a hotel conference room for the client appreciation
event and order and send invitations. Plot those on the
calendar too allowing ample time to accomplish each item.
Don't forget to add in your personal vacations and family
time too - you have to do this to keep balance in your life
for sure but if you don't calendar it right off the bat,
that time gets eaten up doesn't it??
Your client base is your most valuable marketing resource
so keep adding to it, following up with everyone on it and
work them for repeat business and referrals and you will
succeed. If you keep reaching or spending money trying
only to get new business and forgetting about the old
contacts and clients you will most likely fail.
Now, get networking!
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© Copyright 2008 K.Sawa Marketing
Katrina Sawa is an Award-Winning Relationship Marketing
Coach who's helped hundreds of small business owners take
dramatic steps in their businesses to get them to the next
level in business, revenues and life. She offers one-on-one
coaching, group coaching and do-it-yourself marketing
planning products. Go online now to get started with her
Free Report and Free Audio at
http://www.jumpstartyourmarketing.com !
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