Courting a Client: A Business Meeting Primer

Aug. 15, 2010 - PRLog -- August 16, 2010, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL…"It's easier to keep a client than find a new one." Yes, it's a cliché, but it's a cliché because it's true. The key to long-term success is investing in your client base to retain and increase its members' financial commitment as loyal buyers of your goods or services.

Although this should be common sense, I have found it is rarely common practice.
I was recently in a situation where the presenters did the opposite of every piece of advice enumerated below. Although the presentation was being made to an existing client, the purpose of the meeting was to introduce a recently promoted vice president who is the key contact and, more important, the final authority for making any further financial commitments. Albeit unspoken, this was more than an initial meeting between the two entities: It was also to interview the presenters and learn about their offerings for future endeavors.

I was absolutely baffled and embarrassed, especially considering the monetary value on the table. That's what moved me to write this primer for courting a client.

1.  If you are meeting at your office, make sure the clients have current driving directions. If there is construction nearby, make the clients aware of it and explain how to steer clear of any parking problems. You'd hate your clients to have to walk six blocks through the construction site in a business suit and dress shoes, coughing up a lung in construction dust.

2.  Shake hands, and make and keep eye contact. Greet the clients by name and don't sound as if you aren't quite sure you got it right or don't know how to pronounce it. An insincere greeting ranks up there with construction dust.

3.  Turn off your cell phone. Don't leave it on vibrate--turn it off. If your phone is gyrating on the desk throughout the meeting, that's just as distracting as having it ring. Better yet, leave your phone in your office.

4.  If you check your e-mail during a meeting of this caliber, you don't deserve this client. If you're experiencing a major family emergency, mention this as the meeting starts, setting the expectation that you will have to step away if an emergency call comes in. Have your assistant or another team member field any other calls or let them go to voice mail.

5.  Have an agenda, including the names of attendees and topics to discuss. An agenda illustrates that you are prepared, professional, have a plan in place and that you understand and honor the value of your client's time.

6.  The senior presenter should start the meeting promptly, welcoming clients and their guests, and initiating a round of introductions, beginning with herself and explaining a little about what she does. As each presenter introduces herself, she should hand the client and the consultant a clean, crisp and current business card.

7.  Do your homework on the client's organization as well as on the individuals in attendance. Determine the ultimate objective of the meeting and the desired outcomes. Investigate the client and the client organization's past and present, and forecasts for the future. Instead of spending too much time droning on about yourself and your company, focus the conversation around the trends in the client's industry, the client's company, and how your company can help meet her needs.
 
8.  At this first meeting, don't throw out dollar figures or additional financial commitments you're seeking, especially in the first 20 minutes. It is presumptuous and arrogant to throw out numbers when you don't yet know the clients' needs; it shows that your focus is the needs of your own organization. Short of signs that you and the clients were kindred spirits in another life or the clients are giving you overt, positive buying signals, you might want to invest a little more time in wooing them. Otherwise the clients are likely to politely excuse themselves, never to be seen again. (And if you mention the kindred spirits thing, they won't politely excuse themselves; they'll just get up and run).

9.  If the consultant is the one who referred the clients to your organization, don't refer to her as one of the organization's greatest "cheerleaders." It is sexist, demeaning and dismissive. Acknowledge the consultant in a more professional manner. Instead of "cheerleader" try something like "... is one of our greatest advocates and has been affiliated with our organization for more than 10 years serving on the board of directors, etc." Of course, it would be in the presenter's best interest to do some homework on the consultant as well.

10.  It's a blunder to focus solely on the clients and ignore the consultant. Include the consultant in invitations offered to clients to meet other members or join in other meetings, dinners, etc., especially if the invitations are made in front of the consultant. The consultant can defer if appropriate. Remember that your potential client is still depending on the consultant's advice and recommendations.

11.  Think of the consultant as an extension of the client. Treat the consultant as though she were a client, too. She has the ear and the trust of the client.

12.  Don't assume the clients are there to hear all about your organization. They are there to tell you about their industry and their organization, to explain the issues they are facing and to find out how you can help them. They're waiting for you to ask them these questions so they can share this information. Only then will the clients be willing to hear the history of your company.

13.  If you are asked to share the history of your company, don't apologize for telling a story that everyone except the client has already heard. Whether you tell the story of your company one time or 1,000 times, it should be with as much passion and excitement as you can muster. Be authentic and speak from your heart.

14.  As you tell the story of the organization, provide professionally compiled sales collateral.

15.  Watch the clock. Keep on schedule. Keep asking questions, making sure the clients' and consultant's eyes aren't glazing over.

16.  Go over next action points. Where do we go from here? Have a strong and positive close; don't fade into "whatever land."  End the meeting promptly at the scheduled time.

17.  If the clients had to park in never-never land, walk them to their car and take this opportunity to talk to them on a personal level about themselves, their family, their hobbies, etc. Make that connection, and then add this information to your contact database immediately after you return to your office.

18.  Pen a handwritten note, not an e-mail, thanking the client and consultant for meeting with you. Include an insight from the meeting and say that you're looking forward to continuing your partnership. This is how you'll stand out from the millions who are e-mailing this client.

It's a new day. There are new rules of business etiquette and a new level of global professionalism required for ongoing success. Now it's up to you to make this common-sense advice into common practice.

About Sheila Green and Green Productivity Solutions:

During her 23 years in public relations, market development and corporate organization, Sheila Green, founder and president of the corporate productivity and consulting firm Green Productivity Solutions has earned recognition as a leading consultant in productivity strategies and implementation. She consults with private and public sector organizations throughout the United States through executive coaching, training and keynote speaking.
For more information, visit our website at www.sgps.biz.

# # #

Green Productivity Solutions is a nationally recognized corporate productivity and consulting firm providing customized solutions to increase productivity. GPS: Navigating a Smarter Way to Work and Live.