How far would you go on a first date?

In last weeks article I talked about how falling in love was similar to a business relationship – in this weeks piece I want to discuss what you would and wouldn’t do on a first date

So, my first question is:  Would you propose marriage on the first date?

 

I am guessing (and it is only a guess) that when you meet your ideal partner, even if it IS love at first sight, you probably wouldn’t propose on the first date – now, I could be wrong on this score, but I am going with my instincts here! 

 

But, even if you were confident enough that you had found the love of your life and you were sure that you were going to be together for the rest of your lives, asking this question on your first date is almost certainly going to get an outright NO! and quite rightly so!

 

Before anyone would make such a commitment, you need to develop your relationship and trust with them first - or at the very least, go out on a couple of dates, send some flowers, understand a little bit more about them – you get the picture?!

 

The same applies to your ideal client!

 

In order to get the best results from your marketing, you need to be nurturing and developing the relationship you have with potential prospects over time.   Now, don’t get me wrong here, I'm not necessarily advocating that you marry your clients (although you should never rule out the possibility), but there does need to be a relationship there before they hand over their details and commit to buying your services.

 

You see, a large percentage of what influences someone to buy is the relationship they have with you. They need to trust what you offer will get them the results they want, and they need to know that you are the right person to go to.

 

This relationship is built by utilizing several routes to market simultaneously 'touching' each prospect from several angles and offering them high value information that will help grow their business!

 

Here are four things you MUST do in your marketing, in order to develop a relationship with your prospects, so when they're ready to buy they come to you.

 

1.       Position yourself as a leader/expert in your chosen field (this makes you the "go to" person, so you're the one prospects people come to when they need help).

 

2.      DO NOT SELL - instead, give away high value content (everyone likes receiving 'gifts' and we are all taught to repay favours).

 

3.      Make regular contact...  And I mean REGULAR!  Providing a once-a-month newsletter is no longer good enough in todays fast moving, all you can eat data market. (Relationships are built over time - regular contact will ensure your prospects don't forget about you).

 

4.      Create adialogue - Listening can be just as important as telling (don't just speak at your prospects, encourage their response where possible to get the conversation going).

 

When you do this, not only will you see an increase in the amount of leads you are generating, more of these leads will turn into sales opportunities, so you can sign more clients and earn more money! And ultimately enjoy continued success – and that is what it is all about, isn’t it?

If you would like us to share some of our secrets about winning and keeping new customers, then you can email us at either enquiries@blueboxconsultancy.com or hello@blueboxrecruitment.com – either way, I am sure that your messages will get to us.  As always, you can call us on 084 3289 3288 (for Blue Box Management Consultants) or 08456 894 894 (for Blue Box Executive Recruitment)

If you want to learn more about what Blue Box WOULD do on a first date, and want to know the kind of businesses we like to ‘date’ then have a browse at our websites www.blueboxconsultancy.com and www.blueboxrecruitment.com

Until the next time, take care, be bold and do good business

 

The gentle (or maybe not) art of business seduction

You have probably met someone like this before – someone who is desperate to be in love and in a relationship?  So when they finally find that special someone, they think that their new love can do no wrong – they literally worship the ground that they walk on.  They idolise them in every way and consider themselves so lucky just to be in the same room as the object of their affection

Now, don’t get me wrong we have probably all been in this place at one time or another and there is no harm in being so devoted as long as this devotion doesn’t cause any kind of love-induced blindness (metaphorically, rather than actually, of course)

But the problem that I have with this is that when you put someone on a pedestal in this way, they have no choice but to look down on you – it is only human nature.  It may not happen straight away, it could take weeks, months or even years, but eventually they will start treating you like they are better than you – and you can’t really blame the, because it is what you have led them to believe

But this doesn’t just apply to romance and the art of dating – the same principles apply in business too

This is an area that so many business owners get wrong – they are so desperate for a client, when a new client comes along they quickly put them on a pedestal and start to idolise everything that they do – and so, eventually, they will get treated with very little respect and made to bend over backwards to meet the clients every need

There is nothing wrong with meeting and exceeding your clients’ needs or even pandering to their demands when it comes to delivering results – after all, that is what they are paying you for…

But everything else should be on your terms – and that includes how much and when they pay you, how and when you deliver your services, and whether or not you want to deliver your services at all to this customer – because at the end of the day, it is your choice about who you do and do not do business with

Also, it is worth bearing in mind (if you are one of our many followers who runs their own business) that one of the beauties of being your own boss is that you can make the choice as to whether or not you work with a particular customer

Customers have the choice to take it or leave it – but it should always be on your negotiated terms

All of this is absolutely fine – but it becomes impossible for you to enforce those terms with someone who thinks that they are better than you are

It is also far more likely that a customer who thinks that they are better than you will leave you for someone who they consider to be more on the same level as they are – the level that you have put them at

All of this is easier said than done –especially when you are desperate for new clients.  This is the reason why you should spend your time and energy mastering the art of business seduction (along with a fantastic sales and marketing strategy) – get these skills mastered and you will never be desperate for clients again!

If you need some help understanding where your business needs to get to, want to get more clients or would just like to master some new seduction techniques, the feel free to call us on 084 3289 3288 (or 08456 904 894 for Blue Box Recruitment customers) or email us at enquiries@blueboxconsultancy.com (or hello@blueboxrecruitment.com for our beloved recruitment customers)

If you would like to learn a little bit more about us, the things that we do, and the folks that we do it with – then check us out at either www.blueboxconsultancy.com or www.blueboxrecruitment.com

We look forward to speaking with you soon

Until then, take care, be bold and do good business

Too fat to work?

You know, sometimes I wonder what the world is coming to (and when I wonder this, it also makes me wonder if I have become a grumpy old man – this, I have to admit, is also possible)

Earlier this year I stumbled across an article on line that made me question all of humanity – or maybe just certain bits of humanity – I will explain later

 

I thought I had forgotten about it, but this morning I woke up and for some reason it came into my head again. The article was about a woman here in the UK called Jodie Sinclair. 

Jodie’s not like your everyday woman – No, sir, Jodie is 28 years old, weighs 28st, is morbidly obese, lives on disability benefits and has done since the age of 19. The only disability she has, is that she’s too fat to work.

 

But here’s the bit that made me shudder and doubt humanity

 

She’s been offered weight loss surgery to help her get back on her feet. Not once, but several times, AND get this – She has repeatedly turned it down! 

 

According to the article – Jodie states:

 

“I’d rather just go on like I am and be on benefits than go under the knife”

 

But, this piece is not intended to have a pop at Jodie, although I disagree with what she’s doing and I’d rather the tax we pay here in the UK went towards something else, it’s her life and if she chooses to end it prematurely due to overeating then that is her choice to make and I believe that it is her right to make it

 

You don’t have to be a doctor, a dietitian or any other medical professional to see that she’s eating herself into an early grave.

 

But my point is this;

 

Sometimes, Even though everyone on the outside looking in can see the destructive behaviour we ALL do, it’s hard to see the wood from the trees in our own lives and businesses.

 

Jodie is an extreme example of this, but I see similar things going on with the owners and managing directors that I speak to and that we work with on occasions

 

They’ll be quite obviously driving their business into an early grave by crippling their profits, working with toxic clients and undercharging for their services, but they’ll refuse to face the reality of it and go under the knife and change the way in which they do business

 

Sometimes the only thing that you can do – for the sake of the health and wellbeing of your business is ‘go under the knife’!  Sometimes drastic action is the ONLY action that you can take.

 

That’s why what we do is so powerful - because even if you don’t see what’s going on in your own business, me and the other members of our team will! And we care enough that we’ll tell you straight so you can do something about it.

 

 

A word of warning though - if you care more about not getting your feelings hurt than growing you profits then we probably aren’t right for you….!

If you would like to know about Blue Box (and our sister company Blue Box Recruitment) you can read about the things we do and the people we do it with at www.blueboxconsultancy.com (or www.blueboxrecruitment.com) or you can contact us by calling 084 3289 3288 (for Blue Box Consultants) and 08456 894 894 (for Blue Box Recruitment). You could also drop us an email at enquiries@blueboxconsultancy.com or hello@blueboxrecruitment.com  It would be lovely to hear from you!

Until the next time, be bold and do good business