Follow-Up - The Essence of Creating Professional Relationships

Building Business Relationships

Successful relationships are the foundation of all success in life: both professionally and personally.

Professionally, effective relationship-building skills can mean the difference between triumph and defeat, particularly in a sales and/or service-based environment.

Long-term Professional Relationships

The importance of building strong, long-term professional relationships by taking the time to effectively follow-up, cannot be overstated.

Yet many sales specialists such as realtors, pharmaceutical sales representatives, and small business or home-based business owners simply fall short in this area, not for lack of trying, but simply because they lack guidance and expertise.

Follow Up

Following-up is an art form that once mastered, will be an invaluable element for sales success.

As Robert Collier once said,

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out."

The Importance of Follow-Up

Everyone wants to feel special, valued, and remembered.

Our frenzied schedules often leave very little time to think about, appreciate or thank anyone in our lives, especially new contacts.

However, that's the essential ingredient to successful business relationship building.

By taking the time to make someone else feel valued you make yourself stand out in a crowd, helping to build a positive rapport of trust and respect with prospective and existing clients.

Law of Attraction

To paraphrase the principles of the Law of Attraction, whatever you put out into the world is what you will get back in return.

Thus going the extra mile, which might only take an extra few minutes a day, to appreciate your clients and/or prospective clients is a must to attaining your goals.

Focus on giving instead of getting and remember that business relationship building takes time, organisation, and perseverance but it is well worth it in the end.

Always Follow-Up

It’s always a nice touch to follow up in both your professional and personal life.

However, sometimes it's hard to follow up with absolutely everybody.

Thus, professionally you’ll want to do so with

associates
people you meet at seminars and events
existing clients i.e. on their birthday
referrals from existing clients (make sure to thank the source of the referral as well)
prospects from sales meetings
co-workers who have assisted you in some way
friends
people who may have sent you a compliment or congratulations on a sale/accomplishment, or remembered a special event, anniversary, or holiday

Think of how nice it feels for you when you receive a follow-up call, email, note or card. The same is true for everyone else as well.

The Elements of Flawless Follow-Up

Set defined professional goals prior to attending networking/connection events, prospect meetings and collecting business cards.

Some people you meet will be good for business leads and referrals, while others might act as mentors and/or coaches in the future.

Active Conversation

Thus, take the time to have an active conversation with new people to find out more about them and their interests and expertise.

When you make a new contact, immediately afterward, make sure to take notes regarding why you want to contact them in the future, make a note of something specific you discussed, and how best to follow up.

This will help you stay organised and will allow you to maintain a personal touch in your follow-up. It lets the other person know that you were actually listening and were genuinely interested in learning more about them.

Ongoing Contact

Stay in ongoing contact with your new prospects - in fact, think of them as new friends. Consistency is key to building a positive rapport.

The more of an effort you make to stand out, the more likely that they will remember you, your company, and services/products as a resource for their own personal or professional needs down the line.

Type of Follow-Up

Most important is the type of follow-up you choose and there are quite a few options.

Use the annotations you made after your initial meeting to assist in choosing the appropriate method of follow-up.

The following are the tried and true of sensational follow-up:

Thank You Notes

Take the time to show your customers your appreciation.

Not only will they feel great, they will also almost certainly refer other clients your way. Poor time management often leads Entrepreneurs to neglect this small but effective touch so if you follow through you’re one step ahead of your competitor.

Consider opening an account with an online greeting card company that will stuff, stamp and mail for you. This is a fantastic and more cost-effective way to track contact information, set scheduled mailings, set reminders all while providing that extra special touch.

Special Occasions

Keep a database to track client information (online greeting card companies allow for this and will automatically remind you of your clients/prospects special occasions).

Birthdays, anniversaries, baby on the way, and the like, are important to your customers, so they should be important to you as well.

Remember their special day with a greeting card and they won’t soon forget you!

Send a Thoughtful Gift

For an extra-special thank you, consider sending a well-timed gift.

For instance, following a real estate transaction send a personalised greeting card along with a gift card for a home remodeling or design store.

Or send a gift basket that includes a restaurant gift card, delivery menus for the area, and a free movie rental to welcome new homeowners.

Going the extra mile will engender lifelong loyalty.

Once again, certain online greeting card companies provide the gift card option right on their website, thereby saving you time yet allowing you to go the extra mile without actually having to physically go that extra mile!