Monday, August 31, 2009

How to Build your Clientele

The best way to get into a slump is to stop staying in touch with your network.

When friends lose contact with, or don't nurture their relationship, those friendships wither and die. And by the same token, when businesses fail to acknowledge their clients and important others in their network, even those companies with strong branding in place, those clients move to competitors, to seek better treatment. You build character through your attitude. Your attitude helps build rapport. Rapport builds credibility. And credibility, rapport and character all rest on the foundation of your actions. Staying in touch builds your network, strengthens your business and increases sales. Wouldn't you rather have repeat business from loyal customers, than having to go out and continually make one sale per customer?

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Provide Value to Others

People are often so focused on what they can get out of any opportunity, they forget to think how they can serve others at the same time. A lot of lip service is paid to win-win scenarios for both parties, but does anyone actually attempt to ensure it happens? Do givers actually gain or is that just a pie-in-the-sky ideal?

Well, think about the wealthiest people in the world, past and present, and you will also find some of the greatest philanthropists: Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, the Rockefellers, Warren Buffet and so on. They didn't suddenly become givers after achieving their wealth. Rather, they understood the law of reciprocity, the ten-fold law or karma. All these sum up to the same result: you get back in this world, what you give out. In fact, you get back more than what you give out to others.

Those who understand that before you take, take, take you need to serve others move forward faster and go farther than those who don't.

Find how to offer value to people in your network. You don't have to dip into your pockets to do so. What's required is to think about the other person or group, anticipate their needs, go out and get it, and give it to them. Hey! That sounds a lot like the basic premise of sales. And it's not a coincidence... sales is about service to others.