Yellow Dog Consulting

Sales & Marketing Consulting for solo-preneurs.

Why Your Follow Up Lost You the Sale

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going-extremely-busy-until-flirting-ecard-someecardsI got an email yesterday from a media company who has a “GREAT” opportunity for one of my clients. Yesterday I was out in meetings all day. I saw the email, and decided I’d forward it to the client today. No problem, I’m in no rush, not my money, and in the quick skim of the email I didn’t recall seeing a “I need an answer tomorrow” kind of push.

This morning I have ANOTHER email from the sales rep. “Just checking in, we’d love a decision soon.”

Me: “I was out all day yesterday so didn’t have time to deal with this. will get it over to the client today.”

3 Minutes Later: “Wonderful!  Let me know if there is interest as soon as possible. Happy to help with questions.”

DUDE, chill out. You are clearly desperate for this sale. Which is NOT my problem. Your desperation reeks, and now when I email the client about this “amazing opportunity” I’ll make sure to tell them how desperate you are and how much you pester clients.

Chill out, give me 36 hours to respond. I do my best to respond within one business day. If I need to send something to a client for their review, I’ll let you know when I’ve done that and what the next steps are. But good grief your desperation is losing you business! I know I’ve written a similar blog post to this before. Evidently it needs repeating.

If you’re in sales, calm down and give your customers time to respond. Sure voicemail response is low, and sometimes you have a deadline to meet for your sales. Fun fact: I don’t have your deadline, and it’s YOUR problem, not mine. Plan your sales strategy out to give clients time to make decisions, especially with big ticket items. She’s not asking for $35, she’s asking for $3500, and for a small business, that may not be in the budget.

Calm Down, you’re losing yourself business.

Ask Yellow Dog: Learning to Grow Your Biz

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imagesI got a note from an old friend the other day asking:

“Ok, so I have a entrepreneurial idea, want to read and learn more about growing biz. What’s your fav resources?”

Great question! And one that I responded with “I’m not much of a reader-more of a listener. For me the answer is events, pick people you know/like/trust & ask how they did it.” (note, we were sending DM’s through twitter)

So to expand in more than 140 characters…

I know a lot of folks like to read, and I know a lot of folks (myself included) like to write and share their knowledge and wisdom and tell you what to do. But can we all be honest? Not everything works for everyone. No one has the “five things that will change your business” or “3 steps to make a million dollars this year.” I have heard more speakers than I care to remember throughout the years. And most of them had some book or program I could spend a lot of money on. And I haven’t. Why? Because half their stuff is crap, and the other nuggets of information I either wasn’t ready to act on, or were simple enough I could execute myself.

If you want to learn about growing your business, talk to people who have. Ask your friends, reach out to successful folks and ask to talk on the phone for 15 minutes. Be respectful of their time, but ask questions! I have a great network of friends and colleagues that I can ask one off questions of and get a quick and thoughtful response.

And in that Q&A time at a speaking engagement? ASK QUESTIONS. If there’s a free follow up, or they give you their email, USE IT. Sign up for their newsletter. Don’t harass them,  ask them. Don’t sell them your product or service,  ask their advice. Build a relationship, don’t have a transaction.

Two of my favorite newsletters/blogs are local friends and colleagues of mine: Clise Etiquette & Heinz Marketing. Great content, great ideas for growing your business, and great recommendation on how not to screw it up in the process.

Take Advantage of Your Sponsorship

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imgresA few months ago I was flying through the Portland Airport. As I was waiting for my flight, another flight was starting to board. And the Alaska Air plane they were getting onto was the Portland Timbers plane. The flight attendant came on to start the pre-boards, and said “as a proud sponsor of the Portland Timbers, if you are wearing Timbers Gear, you can board early.”

GENIUS.

How simple was that? It cost them nothing, except a cool reminder that they sponsor the local team and support those who support the local team.

I’m involved with a lot of groups who work with sponsorships. If you’re giving a company your money for a sponsorship, don’t just think about what they can do for you, think about what you can easily do to increase the ROI from your sponsorship. Maybe it’s an introductory offer, or a small free giveaway if they’re wearing the shirt of said organization. Think about this as a member of an organization as well. Is there some way you can give back to other members, simply because you’re both members? The next time a sponsorship opportunity comes up, think about cool ways you can give back in the long run too.

Here’s a few key questions to ask:
  • What does this audience need? (to get on that plane and get home)
  • How can I make it easier for them? (boarding early because we like the same thing)
  • And make it a better experience? (free NW wine and beer on Horizon baby!)
  • And get them talking about me (hello social media!)