Dig Out New Clients From Old Files
Most of us have files (hard copy or electronic) which we keep lying around - some will be clients, some prospects, some random correspondence. Some people you will know very well, others you may not remember at all.
Before you delete, throw away or ignore these names, take time to look through every piece of paper search every electronic file. Sort them into manageable segments, by date, location or industry and then review them with the following categories in mind:
Top Priorities:
Past clients, who you haven't corresponded with or spoken to for six months or more.
Past prospects who received a proposal or who you may have visited, but then there was no follow up.
Prospects who showed interest by saying come and visit us when you are next in the area, but without demonstrating any urgency.
Medium Priorities:
Past prospects who showed interest, but never reached the proposal stage.
Non-prospects who are nevertheless influential, such as academics, colleagues, industry analysts, journalists, etc.
Low Priorities:
Influencers and other non-buyers who you have spoken to briefly or e-mailed or written to, but without any follow up.
Leads which you pursued, but never took further.
Put all of these names and contact details onto a spreadsheet; it could start off as three columns headed Name, Company and Last Date Contacted, and then decide how you'll re-connect with each of them.
The probability is that you have dozens of these names, and some people will have hundreds or even thousands, so the probability of re-establishing connections with even a very small percentage of them is fairly good.
If you can only mange 50 names, and even if you only win business from two percent of them, then you have one new client, that you would not have had.
Now you may be thinking that this requires a lot of hard work, and is too time consuming and tedious to be worth the effort, and you are right.
But if you are in the business of marketing, then these are marketing opportunities that cost you virtually nothing, can be done over a period of time and you will not have to travel anywhere to get them.
If the prospect is still too daunting, then pay someone else to type them up for you and look on it as an investment in your future.
There are people out there who legitimately wanted to do business with you, but who could not use your services at the time; others who have lost your contact details; and others who could use your help but simply don't know that you're out there.
About the author
Sara Paine is a PR and marketing consultant, who provides advice, coaching and hands-on support to businesses who want to attract more clients, grow their business and reduce the uncertainty of future income.
Contact her
Source: http://ezinearticles.com/
Added: May 18, 2008
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