Now I know that almost a month ago I promised that I would be back with my thoughts, full steam ahead, and I apologise for not doing so. But, in my wisdom, I decided not to rush back… after many of us enduring lockdown and having months of staring at screens and keyboards, I thought we all deserved a longer break.
So that’s why! It had nothing to do with me getting lazy and being slow to kick start myself!
And so that I can ease back into work mode slowly, I haven’t written something new. I’m merely going to repeat an article which many people tell me contains the simplest, most effective piece of advice I have ever given them.
The Famous “How’s Things” Call!
The “how’s things” call is one of those techniques every professional should use. It works beautifully for accountants, it works splendidly for lawyers and is dynamite for doctors and dentists. It works for everybody. In fact, if you’re not using it you should be.
So at the risk of repeating myself but in the hope it may help you, here how it works.
The how’s things call is just superb. To make it happen in any business the bottom line requirements are simple:
- You make an investment of 15 minutes every day.
- In that 15 minutes you make one or two phone calls.
If you makes that phone call each day it is virtually certain that by the end of the year you will have a huge increase in income! More sales with very little extra overhead.
So it’s substantial. How does it work? Very simple.
- Each day at a time to suit you, you rule off 15 minutes in your diary for a “how’s things” phone call.
- At that time you telephone one or two clients you don’t need to phone to simply ask “how’s things?”
That’s all there is to it. You see most business people are reactive rather than proactive. No news is good news is the general axiom.
Yet the biggest complaint clients have about the people they do business with is that “they only hear from them when they want something.”
So if you want to change your relationship with clients to give them a perception that you care and are interested in them, simply phone them occasionally and ask “how’s things?”
Then listen intently. Just listen.
In fact you should listen for around 80% of the time (Remember you’ve got 2 ears and 2 eyes which are used for taking information in and 1 mouth for giving it out. A ratio of 80% listening to 20% talking).
And to keep the client’s conversation going as you listen, remember to ask the “W questions”. They are who, when, which, what, why, where and how?
Your clients will sing like canaries.
They’ll tell you about their plans, ideas, problems and about colleagues and competitors. Much of it they would never have thought to tell you about.
For you it means more business or referrals.
So when it’s your turn to talk (your 20%), select something they’ve said and hit them with a big, juicy W.I.I.F.M.
If you do, 6 out of 10 times it will mean more business for you. And over 50% of the time it will be business (referrals, services they didn’t know you provided) that you never would have gotten.
And here is the script for this fabulous phone call. It is important that you follow it. Nobody should make phone calls without having a script. So let’s imagine that your name is Mary and the client’s name is John:
- Mary says, “Hello John, this is Mary. John, how’s things?”
- (And then Mary shuts up and listens.)
That’s all there is to it. That’s the how’s thing call!
If you only adopt one client loving technique, make sure it’s the “how’s things” call.
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