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Tuminello The Client Coach
How to build strong business relationships

July 13, 2011

The Client Coach: Good marketers focus on the finish

By Randy Tuminello
The Client Coach

Failure to follow through with the follow-up will forever stand as one of the all-time marketing tragedies. More potential clients are lost each day because of relationships that are initiated but not solidified.

Have you ever sat through a marketing meeting listening to excuse after excuse as people tried to explain why they didn't make the follow-up call they agreed to complete weeks before? I have. I also must admit that I have contributed my fair share of excuses as well. Consider these follow-up foibles:

1. After two months of hard work and persistence, a project manager finally gets the okay to meet with a key potential client. The meeting goes splendidly but nothing is done to follow-up, not even a thank-you letter. Three months later the project manager calls and sends several e-mails with no response. The relationship is now as cold as an iceberg.

2. It's been more than a month since a firm was notified that it came in “second” in an interview for a major project. Their only clue as to why they didn't succeed is based on assumptions. No one followed up with a debrief request. Will history continue to repeat itself?

3. It's been two months since another firm spent several thousand dollars and untold people hours for a booth at a trade show. Their raffle event was an astounding success, amassing several hundred business cards. Uh, it seems someone misplaced the fishbowl that still had all the cards in it …

The longer I work at this marketing thing, the more I realize it's not poor beginnings that mess us up, it's poor endings. Successful client development is a lot like life itself. It's not a 100-yard dash; it's a marathon. We start off well but lose steam halfway to the goal. It takes a serious amount of discipline, determination and drive to follow through on your follow-up all the way to the goal. Here's a few reminders that will help you to finish strong.

1. Keep the end in view. It's easy to get all jazzed up at the beginning. It's quite another to keep your batteries charged with the same commitment at the finish. The prerequisite for building relationships is maintaining enthusiasm every step of the way. The next time you strategize a pursuit, begin at the end and then gradually work your way back to the beginning. Visualize and proactively decide how you will follow-up throughout the process. To do this you may have to reverse your mental focus. Typically we spend more effort and energy thinking about how we'll get started.

2. Run the race with patience. All things considered, the race between the tortoise and the hare should have been no contest. Given his natural advantages, the hare should have won by a landslide. Unfortunately, this bunny had the gifts but not the gumption. How many people do you know who get out of the starting gate like a jet-propelled dragster then explode just before the finish line? Could this be you? If so, you need to slow down. You need to think before you act. Plan your steps in advance. Pace yourself. Prioritize. Limit your focus. Don't start anything new until finishing what's already on your plate. You've got the “start” down pat. Now learn to finish. Until you do, you will never achieve the results you're capable of.

3. Remember the cause. What drives you to initiate and build client relationships? Do the best interests of your clients motivate you? Are you compelled to give them their best chance to work with the best firm? A sense of urgency like this will give you the tenacity and energy necessary for effective follow through. Anything less may cause you and your client to lose what could have been a mutually rewarding relationship.

The difference between those who succeed at building influential relationships and those who don't is a willingness to consistently and fervently follow through. You can overcome a shaky start with a solid finish, but you can seldom overcome a poor ending.

As they say, “All's well that ends well.” Follow through on the follow-up to make sure it does!



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