Finding Clients
Neil Bromage has run his own small business and is a freelance business writer working on a range of newspapers including The Times, Sunday Times, Telegraph and Financial Mail on Sunday. This book is based on a wide range of columns and Q&As written and answered by Neil for Business Link over a number of years. He is based near Preston, Lancs.
Most businesses will tell you that word of mouth soon carries the good news to others and leads to more business and bigger fees simply because customers will pay for quality service. Happy customers mean you have to be prepared to go the extra mile and work that little bit harder.
Finding them
Keep a record of where your new customers come from – was it from a recommendation by an existing customer or did they see you at an exhibition? This is vital information; it helps you focus your resources on communication channels that work for you. Experiment with low cost ways of creating customers. For example, visiting exhibitions, sending out press releases, mail shots, etc. Generally the most direct methods are the most effective. So pick up the phone rather than place an ad.
Use your existing customers to help you create new ones by asking for a reference or personal recommendation. Be passionate about your business: customers like passion and energy. Demonstrating genuine interest in a customer’s business is very persuasive and attractive, and a common complaint from the customers of service providers is that ‘they do not show any real interest in our business’.
Find out something about potential customers beforehand and appear informed. Be persistent when chasing customers. Remember, buyers expect to be courted and often make you work to get their business.
Keeping them
Remember people buy people, not products, so...
- Pay attention. Consider the person you are with as the only one in the universe who matters.
- Don’t talk – listen. It’s better to laugh at somebody else’s funny story than tell your own.
- Empathise. Watch body language to assess how the other person is feeling. Try to match those feelings.
- Be enthusiastic. Use your face and body to convey emotion. If you don’t show you are interested, people feel as if they are talking to a brick wall.
- Be approachable and not at all aggressive.
- Be authentic. Be honest and straightforward with people at all times. Honesty builds trust, trust creates customers.
