Why are Hustlers Always Hustling for New Clients?

Clients (also known as customers): The people you love to hate and who ultimately put the food on your table through the purchases they make from you.  

Got any good client stories? I’ve got a million, as does anyone who’s been in sales for a minute! There are days you love dealing with clients and other days you’d rather be picking up garbage on the side of the road than picking up the phone to talk with them. At the end of the day though, if you’re in sales, clients are your lifeblood.

No matter how much your clients may like, or even love you, the truth is, client churn is a reality you have to deal with regularly. I’ve had clients change companies, leave their industry, change jobs, move, been told to buy from another supplier and even die (fortunately not because of anything I said or did!!). Which means finding another client to replace them. 

Back in the “old” days (meaning pre-Internet) you couldn’t email, use social media or texting to prospect. It was the phone, the good ‘ol USPS, or in-person cold-calling. When I worked in radio, one salesperson told me when they were hired they were given a desk, a phone, and a phonebook (Google it if you aren’t sure what that is!), and then told to “go get ‘em”. Despite how hard it still is to get new clients, there are so many more ways to connect, so let’s look at some tried and true methods of prospecting in this new age to help you open doors.

Referrals: The golden ticket to gaining new clients is through a referral. The term referral is often misunderstood though and interpreted as the need for a name and phone number. It’s important your client make an introduction via a phone call, email, or text to ensure the prospect knows how awesome you are when you follow-up! Wait until after your customer is satisfied with your work, then ask for their help in finding potential new clients. Be specific about the type of clients you’re looking for and ask what their job title is, the types of industries they work in, specific companies you’re targeting, and other important attributes. Always thank your clients for their referrals and remember, they’ve put their reputation on the line, so be professional and sincere when connecting with these prospects. 

Social Media: This powerful, but daunting tool will help you find prospects. The key is settling on one or two platforms that align with your products, services and demographics and where your prospects will spend the most time. LinkedIn is great for B2B businesses and when looking for people in specific roles. It’s also a great tool to research people and companies. Use Instagram when you sell a visually-driven brand like fashion, art, food or a physical product. Facebook reaches older demographics and is more community focused while YouTube and TikTok focus on short videos highlighting the specifics of a brand. It’s imperative you build trust with potential prospects on any of these platforms and you can do this by sharing content (articles and videos), liking their content and sharing it, and by creating your own engaging content to highlight your brand and what you do. 

Community Involvement: Getting involved in your local community is important not only from a sales perspective, but a personal one as well. By understanding the issues your community faces, meeting neighbors and attending local events, you’ll become engaged and meet potential customers. But beware…people will notice if you’re being disingenuous and only out for yourself and will run from you faster than a speeding bullet. Get involved in community non-profits, volunteer to help at local events, join a board, or sponsor an event and watch your connections, and potential prospects, grow organically. 

Cold-Calling: I’ve always hated cold-calling, but you know what…it still works. Cold-calling is an old-time sales tactic, but you can make it fun. Do it knowing you’re going to get a lot of “no’s”. If you’re cold-calling in-person, carry a leave-behind that’s useful and unique. The receptionist is your best friend, so be polite when asking who handles the purchasing of what it is you’re selling. Get their name, phone number, email, and as much other info about them as possible and ask the receptionist to pass along your card and the giveaway you’ve brought. Say thanks and leave a giveaway for them as well to show your appreciation. Do as many as you can in a set period of time and do it regularly, knowing only a handful will ever talk with you. On the phone, it can be trickier to get a gatekeeper to open up to give you even the basics. Again, be polite, tell them you simply would like to know who purchases your products or services and any other info they’re willing to offer. When you follow-up, do it early, before business hours or later, when most have gone home. You’ll be surprised how many prospects answer their phones before or after business, which gives you the opportunity to pitch them directly. Do your research (LinkedIn, Facebook, business journals, etc.) so you can be succinct with ideas that will help them more successfully reach their goals. It’s a tough row to hoe, but when done with preplanning and an understanding of the people and businesses you’re calling on, you will find it works! 

Networking: I’m very shy. Always have been and it created real problems in my sales career. Going into a room full of people I didn’t know was like hell on earth. But, like cold-calling, I began to make a game of it to see how many potential prospects I could find. Networking events are a great place to make contacts, but if all you’re there to do is sell people on your products, you’ll most likely fail. Don’t talk about yourself; ask lots of open-ended questions and be genuinely interested in people. That builds an immediate trust with others and can lead to great conversations and forge new business relationships. Be ready to tell others what you do along with business cards to hand out. Chamber of Commerce meetings, local business mixers, industry events and trade shows, professional associations, sporting events, and charity fundraisers are all great for networking. Prepare in advance to see who attends the type of event you’re going to, be approachable by making eye contact, smiling, and showing a genuine interest in others.  And ask open-ended questions to understand the other person’s needs and interests. Then follow-up by connecting on LinkedIn, sending a thank you note (handwritten) and emailing or calling to find out how you can be of service.

These are just a few of the many ways to find new customers. You can also advertise on social media, do direct mailings to a well-researched list of contacts, email blasts, collaborate with current customers to send one another leads, join online communities relevant to your business, and even offer incentives to people who send you referrals.

Be sure to build your personal brand as well. People want to work with people they know and trust and by putting out content regularly related to your business and your expertise, you will give others a chance to get to know you even before they interact with you. Prospects will check you out online, so make sure your LinkedIn profile is accurate and up-to-date and don’t ever, ever, ever post stupid stuff online (political hatred, dirty jokes, drunken pics, etc.). 

Work hard to keep your current customers happy while looking for new customers. It’s an ongoing process so keep at it and don’t let the “No’s” get you down. As author, salesman and motivational speaker Og Mandino once said, “Failure will never overtake you if your determination to succeed is strong enough.”