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6. Educate your audience with these informational messages, in any or all of
following ways:
- Articles
- Interviews
- Written guides, papers, and manuals
- E-mail newsletters
- Your web site
- Seminars
- Speaking
- CD audios
7. Continue to follow up with prospects by offering more education and information. Each time you do, you build more trust and credibility. Soon your marketplace will trust and know you well enough to consider you expert in field.
8. Be responsive when prospects and clients call. Make it hassle free for clients and prospects to reach you, and get right back to them.
9. When prospects meet with you live to get your advice, don't sell. Instead, ask about their situation, problems, goals, and what they want to achieve by meeting with you. Listen carefully, and check with prospect to confirm that you understand their priorities. Offer your experience about prospect's problems and, after you are sure you understand prospect's situation clearly, suggest potential solutions. At this point, assuming prospect is intrigued, you can talk about your background and how you have helped others with similar problems. Finally, let prospect choose what they want to do next, without any pressure.
10. Deliver outstanding results when you are hired.
11. Get testimonials that you can include with your marketing materials from clients, influential people, and colleagues attesting to your expertise and capabilities.
12. Ask for referrals.
13. Keep in touch with clients so that they call you FIRST when they need help. Do this not by selling but by offering valuable support, information, and follow up.
This simple plan will attract loyal clients to you, generate referrals, and establish your reputation as expert in your niche.
Andrew Neitlich is the Senior Editor of The IT Accelerator, a newsletter that helps IT consultants and professionals attract more clients and projects. Subscribe at www.itprosuccess.com.
