17 Jan What’s a girl to do?

We lose a few. We gain a few. We lose a few. We gain a few.

No, I’m not talking about weight. I’m talking about clients. And unlike weight, the goal is to make sure the gain column is bigger than the lose column.

Here are some ways to make sure that happens.

1. Mine your old clients first. Not only may they be interested in doing business with you again, they are in the best position to recommend others who might need what you offer. Pick out the best and do in-person catch-up coffees or lunches, send them interesting info about their business, or your business. Do your best to maintain those relationships. And ask for those referrals.
2. Attack close in prospects. Make a list if you don’t have one. What can you do to sweeten the deal? Do the coffee or lunch thing and make sure you ask for the business.  So often we forget that one last step. ASK!
3. Maintain those further out prospects. Try Google alerts for their companies and use articles as reasons for contacting them. Find out if their situation has changed. Think about how you create urgency needed to get them closer to closing. Run a sale? Tie it to tax time or other time based deadline? These are just a few examples.

Mine.  Attack.  Maintain.  And skip dessert.  This way we gain and lose at the same time.