Attracting Profitable Clients...

We all approach sales differently and yet the same. I assume our common goal is to attract profitable clients and close sales easily. As a matter of fact, that is one of my daily mantras.

How do we do that? It’s not an easy answer because sometimes we may close sales easily only to find out that the client isn’t very profitable. Other times the process may takes weeks, months or even years to close a profitable client.

So, while it is a common goal, it may not be an easy one to master.

Fire Clients that are NOT Profitable

I have been fortunate (or not) in some cases to hit a homerun and secure new clients easily. At the same time, I have also had to “fire” clients because they just weren’t worth the time and effort we spent on them. Endless quotes and sample requests only to purchase the bare minimum. It’s best to cut the chord quickly with those in my opinion. Because your time is truly better spent on finding clients that are a better fit.

And sometimes, fortune comes to those who wait. Because there are opportunities that do take time to secure. I worked on one potential client for almost 3 years before I finally got a chance. My first meeting went very well, got an opportunity within a few weeks and an order shortly thereafter. Stayed in touch, had a few other opportunities come my way. I assumed I was on my way to a profitable on-going relationship. And then they vanished.

I had asked to meet others on the team and in other departments. Had been given e-introductions and followed up repeatedly to be given only silence. My main contact moved to a new purchasing role and he promised to help but he had other duties than to be my champion. I continued to follow up on a regular basis with my “champion” as well as those he had introduced me to for months.

Don’t be a Quitter for the Right Opportunity

I have to admit, I regularly thought, “what is the point, stop wasting time and move on”. But on my wall, I have a statement that says most people give up after three attempts when in reality it takes eight to twelve attempts to make a sale (or in my case get their attention). Every time my outlook reminder “tickler” alerted me it was time to reach out I had to stop myself from saying, “what’s the point?”

The point is, I’m not a quitter. It’s probably why I’ve been in business for so long. Failure to me has never been an option. Most everyone hit some hard times over the last two years. I would venture to guess we’ve all learned some new lessons about ourselves, our employees, our clients and how we do business. I know I did.

Listen to Your Lessons Learned

I’ve learned a lot of lessons over the course of my business. After 9/11/11 I lost 80% of my business overnight because I was highly concentrated in the travel & tourism industry. I had a great team at the time and kept them on way too long. I went into debt to pay my employees without regard to my own needs.

When the pandemic hit, I promised myself I was not going to repeat that old mistake. While I took advantage of the PPP loans during the pandemic, I didn’t hold on to the team beyond the PPP help. And those that had to move on are happy in new positions (granted out of the industry). And I don’t regret keeping myself out of debt.

Another lesson learned long ago was diversification of clients. And I am diversified, but during the pandemic I realized I needed to diversify even further. As all industries reacted differently during the pandemic.

Now We Know, No Industry is a Safe Industry

For years I had been growing my business within the healthcare industry. The industry seemed to be impervious to economic issues and downturns. Everyone would always need healthcare, right? Well, yes, but all my healthcare clients (big hospital networks included) had many hurdles and issues during the pandemic. And mine stopped spending. Why? Because many people were afraid to go to the doctor or hospital, so fees weren’t being earned. International travel wasn’t allowed for elective surgeries (very profitable for hospitals). And the list goes on.

Another lesson learned. No industry is without possible peril.

So, I continued my outreach to new prospects and the one I had thought of giving up on so many times, finally came to fruition. My “champion” called me from his car one day asking if I could help with some PPE’s. Unbeknownst to me the head of procurement was in the car. My “champion” also asked about one of the buyers he had introduced me to and I mentioned I had never had the opportunity speak with them. They never replied to any of my inquiries.

The head of procurement at that point spoke up and said, “we need to set up a meeting”. And to my surprise two days later I had a zoom meeting not only with the buyer but with the head of procurement too!

Being Proactive Leads to More Sales

It was a most productive meeting. I learned the opportunity was much larger than I had imagined and that they had been working with companies from all across the country and wanted a local resource.  Hopefully I will be that resource.

We have already completed a couple of projects and have many more in the pipeline. However, their biggest request was that I be proactive in presenting them with suggestions.

I have always prided myself on being proactive but it made me realize that during the pandemic I was more reactive than proactive. Not only for them, but for all our clients and that needed to change.

So, I have been meeting with each of my top 5 supplier partners to determine how they can help develop new programs and custom products, not only for this client but all my clients. I am finding out how they we can be better proactive partners.

Tap Into Key Supplier Partners

Which is another lesson I’ve learned over the years. You don’t need to go it alone. Reach out and work collaboratively with your supplier partners. That’s what they are there for. Get to know your vendors, understand where their strengths are and then tap into them when you can.

Set up regular in-person or zoom meetings. Discuss your client short and long term goals and needs. Ask how they can help? Do they have industry case histories? What are others in similar industries doing?

Business and sales can be very rewarding. Yet, we have to work at every day and use all our resources to be successful.

What Lessons Did You Learn?

I think the last 19 months have taught many of us new lessons and reminded us of old ones learned. As we come into the end of the year and look towards a better year next year it’s the perfect time to reflect on those lessons learned and how they can help us going forward. Use them as a guide to evaluate your business and make the necessary changes.

o   Are there any clients that need to be fired? Or at least worked with differently

o   What clients need more attention? Are we as entrenched as we should be? What about other departments we can do business with? Referrals?

o   Who in our “sphere” can we target as a new profitable client? What’s our plan of attack?

o   Who are my top suppliers and how can they help me? Am I being a good partner to them too?

These are just a few of the lessons learned and the questions we may want to ask ourselves while thinking about the primary goal of most successful salespeople; how can I attract profitable clients and how can I close sales easily?