Getting through the door

Monday, 30 November -0001 11:39 Written by Linda Julian

By Linda Julian

We're often asked how to get through the door to win a new client. While there are innumerable techniques, both our research and our experience show that there are some great ways, other right ways, some ineffective ways, and downright wrong ways to get through the door if business development is your goal.

Getting through the door the right way makes it much more likely that you'll succeed in engaging with sought-after prospective clients, showcasing your expertise, establishing meaningful dialogue, and ultimately converting a possibility to a client.

Our ratings of the various techniques are based on propensity of the professional to achieve their selling objectives.

In more-or-less rank order, here's what gets you through the door the right way:

an invitation following personal recommendation
referral from a trusted source
strong word of mouth and a great reputation which precedes you
original research and analysis
authorship of a well-known book
whitepapers
authoritative articles
published opinion pieces
helpful tips and knowledge pieces
well-crafted direct mail promotion
conference speaking engagements
your website
targeted email pieces
awards
directory listings
sponsorships
memberships
shared not-for-profit causes
rankings in league tables
entertainment
advertising.

Getting through the door the right way will also mean you get in front of the right prospective clients much more easily and often.

While I'm reluctant to ever say "never", these mostly get you through the door the wrong way,
or not at all:

telemarketing
cold sales calls
yellow pages
Google adwords.

Getting through the door the in the best ways sets you up for success - the wrong ways lead to disillusion or failure.

For expert advice and help to get through the door more often and the right way, please get in touch.

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