If you’re a small business owner how much money and time do you spend on marketing? Trying to generate more leads. And how much effort do you put into sales, actually converting leads into clients and then farming them for repeat business and referrals?
Transcript
If you’re a small business owner how much money and time do you spend on marketing? Trying to generate more leads. And how much effort do you put into sales, actually converting leads into clients and then farming them for repeat business and referrals?
My name’s Rashid Kotwal.
I’m going to be controversial. I’d say that most business owners spend way too much time and effort on marketing. Trying to generate new leads rather than working with what they’ve got right in front of them, their existing clients and relationships.
Relationships where you’ve already built up a level of respect and trust. Where people are happy to take your call – you do call them don’t you? And discuss opportunities to work together and refer you on.
Contrast this with traditional marketing focused on attracting cold prospects who have no idea who you are and what you stand for. Where you’ll have to invest considerable energy building a relationship and warming them up in the hope of doing business down the track.
Please understand I’m not saying marketing isn’t necessary. Far from it. Marketing helps bring people to your door and done correctly positions you as an authority in your space.
But its sales which converts these people into profitable clients. That’s where you get your ROI.
So if you’re in the I need to generate more leads camp, stop and look at your existing relationships. Who could you tap into? Who could be a good referral source, if only you asked the right way.
Then call them!
But that takes courage. As someone put it to me recently, they hate the thought of calling someone and being rejected.
Which is a pretty normal reaction.
So here’s what I put to her.
Think of selling as serving. If you genuinely believe what you have would be of value and would help your prospect achieve their outcomes, you owe it to them to reach out. Anything else is doing your prospect a disservice as they’d never know a solution existed.
And stop thinking this is a sales call. Your goal is to start a conversation. Find out more about them and if there is something you could help them with, ask if you can suggest a way forward.
Be genuinely interested in them. By not trying to sell something you take the pressure off both of you.
So pick up the phone. I can tell you from years of personal experience, most people will happily talk to you. And if not, so what? Go next!
Tell me what your experience has been in the comments below.
And finally, if you feel stuck as to what to say and how, give me a hoy. I’ll give you some quick tips on how to proceed.
Till next time, this is Rashid Kotwal.
