meetings can be hard to get. don’t waste them.
by ty hendrickson
every single day you are selling. it could be an idea, a product, an action or even selling yourself. it’s easy to agree that, yes, you are always selling something.
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however, you may not intentionally approach each one of your client meetings as a sales call. by spending three to four minutes preparing before each interaction and by working through the three steps below, you will find your clients agreeing with you and buying into your ideas and services.
have a clear understanding of what you are trying to accomplish.
before you engage in a conversation with a client, make sure you know the goal of why you are meeting them. it is a simple one-liner of what you are trying to accomplish. an example may be something as simple as “schedule a meeting for next month” or “ask for a referral for our services.” thinking about this first will help focus your conversations and give you a clear purpose during the meeting.
what is in it for them?
always approach your conversation, thinking of why this should matter to your client. for example, if you are selling them an idea, why would it be in their best interest to listen and consider it? an excellent way to check and make sure you are doing this is to look at the “i” vs. “you” ratio. when talking to them do you say “i think it would be a good idea” or do you position it as “you would benefit from this idea because of xy and z.” take the time to look at things from your client’s viewpoint and understand why this is important to them.
ask them to take action.
if you don’t know what you are trying to accomplish, and you don’t know what is in it for your client, you won’t get to the third and most crucial step, taking action. each one of your conversations should have a call to action for your client. what is a call of action? it can be as simple as asking them to schedule their next appointment or even asking to buy additional services. the third and final step is the most important because if you don’t have an explicit action for your client to take, your client won’t know what’s next.
these three quick steps may take a few extra minutes before each meeting, but the results will be significant. if you are clear with your intentions, you will save time and have more success in your daily interactions with clients and prospects.