PROSPECTS ARE EVERYWHERE!

SO WHY BOTHER YOURSELF ON HOW TO GET THEM?

Acquire a Promotion Mindset

The home-based business owners certainly qualified to put an important
credential after his name: CEO. We all know that CEO is Chief
Executive Officer, and CFO is Chief Financial Officer. EO is ONLY
Executive Officer, and unless you have employees or have involved your
family in running your business, you are wearing all the hats
yourself: executive management, human resources, procurement,
shipping, marketing, accounting, and technology. To maximize your time
and energy, you must learn to do many of these tasks simultaneously.
This is especially true when it comes to marketing and finding
prospects or potential customers.

Everywhere you go, you are representing your company. Depending on
your product and service, you should consider every daily contact a
potential prospect. This is perhaps most crucial for network
marketers, but most other businesses will benefit from this mindset as
well.

The analogy most critical to your thinking about this is that of
someone planting seeds. You are the Master Gardener of your own
business garden. Since you know that some seeds will not bear fruit,
you must keep planting, keep nurturing, and keep weeding. In this way,
you will see your business garden bear fruit in all seasons.

What do we mean by seeds? Your imagination is the only limit to what
things might bear fruit in the future. Read on for some ideas.



Your Personal Sphere of Influence

Almost every day, as you go to the store, the bank, the post office,
your church, your children ’ s school, your dry cleaners, your garage
– and even as you travel – you meet and have the potential for
interacting with others. Use these opportunities to subtly increase
your business’s visibility. There’s never a need to be overbearing.
The kinds of seeds you can plant through personal interaction include:

• a handshake and a smile

• sharing a business card

• giving directions

• recommending a good restaurant or book

• leaving a business brochure

• welcoming new people to your community

• keeping your word

• being on time

• dressing neatly and appropriately

• giving generously of your time, talent, and money

• listening attentively when people speak to you



Your Professional Sphere of Influence

When you are officially representing your business – when you work
with your customers, attend Chamber of Commerce functions, civic
organization meetings, or other professional events; you are always
planting seeds (good and bad) through your appearance, your actions,
and your words. When your business becomes known for its quality or
value Customer service, you are more likely to get not only repeat
business but also referrals from both customers and business
associates. Whenever you participate in a business event, always try
to get a contact list of other participants. This will allow you to
follow up with a letter that might say something like,“ I enjoyed
meeting you when we both attended the Business Expo last week. Your
display was very attractive. I have added your business card to my
files and hope I can send you some business in the future. I’ve
enclosed my company’s brochure that more clearly explains what my
company does. I hope you’ll keep me in mind for your future needs.”
The next time that person needs something that your company can
provide; she will be more likely to think of you.

Always think of ways to capture contact information. If you have a
table or booth at an event and offer a door prize, ask visitors to
fill out a form or leave a business card. Be sure you save this
information for later follow-up. Pass out give-away items with your
company’s name and number.

A surprisingly effective way to get referrals from business associates
is to refer people to other businesses yourself. If you feel that
another business can help someone more than you can, be gracious and
give that person the other company’s name and phone number. Then call
that business to alert them to the possibility that they’ll be getting
a call. You will have planted TWO seeds at the same time – one with
the customer who now sees you as an unselfish problem solver and one
with the business associate who might want to return the favor.

When someone calls your business on the telephone, don’t do anything
except LISTEN. Don’t keep working on your computer. Don’t keep writing
your grocery list. Don’t play solitaire. Don’t make artwork with your
paper clips. Listen. This attentiveness will be reflected in the
warmth and helpfulness of your response. Repeat what the person says
so they’ll know you’re listening and to make sure you understand what
they need.

Be courteous to salespeople. As tempting as it is to be curt when
you’re very busy, remember that these people are just doing their job.
If you are friendly and treat them courteously and professionally,
they will remember you when they need something that your business
offers. An important thing to remember about salespeople – they
probably speak with more people in a day’s time than you do in a week
or two. Make sure that what they say about you and your business is
positive.

Here are a few more “seeds” that can be planted in the course of your
professional work:

• participating in a co-op ad with other merchants in your area

• buying an ad in a high school yearbook or charity program

• reserving a booth at a local trade show or career fair

• sponsoring a charity event

• solving a customer’s problems

• offering to collaborate with a business whose product or service
complements yours (e.g., a caterer and a vineyard might collaborate
for a Valentine’s dinner)

• giving a seminar to your chamber of commerce members

• being a mentor to a start-up business owner



An Unlikely Source for Potential Customers

If you are in a sales business – and especially if you are a network
marketer – an extremely valuable source of potential customers is from
those people who DON’T want your product or your opportunity. You have
done your best, but they’re not buying, but most people don’t like to
say no or feel like they’re rejecting you. Give them a graceful way to
exit by asking that critical question: “Do you know anyone else who
might be interested in [your product, service, and business]?” Be
ready to write down their answer and then FOLLOW UP!



A Bird In The Hand: Leverage Your Current Customers

No group is so consistently overlooked for the gold mine that they
represent than your current customers. In marketing surveys, close to
50% of businesses say that they chose their lawyer, their accountant,
their advertising agency, and their consultants from word-of-mouth
recommendations. Consultant Harold L.Shenson claims that a
businessperson “should be able to derive 80% of his or her new
business from referrals, follow-up, or add-on business from existing
clients. Once you are able to do this, you have a self-sustaining
business.”

This is an area where you, as a small or home-based business owner,
can far excel over a larger corporation because you are more flexible
and can respond to referrals more easily, quickly, and personally.

How do you get referrals from your current customers? Here are a few ideas:

• Make sure customers stay happy by giving them the most positive
experience and the greatest value you can. Exceed your customers’
expectations.

• Solve your customers’ problems quickly and efficiently.

• Let your customers know that you want referrals, and give them ideas
on how to help you.

• Reward referring customers with gift certificates, discount, or prizes.

• Make your customers ambassadors for your business by giving them
coupons to give to their friends and families or providing give-away
items they can share with others.

• Offer gift certificates so that customers who like your product or
service can easily buy it for someone else as a gift.

• Send referral request letters to your customers.

• Ask everyone new who comes in or calls how they heard about you. If
you can, send a thank-you note to whoever referred them.

Make it easy for your customers to help you and they usually will if
they feel that what you offer is valuable.



Cultivate An Abundance Mentality

Instead of thinking that prospective customers are scarce, start
cultivating an abundance mentality. When you assume that everyone you
come in contact with could become a potential customer, you will no
longer be wasting time thinking about where you can find your next
customer, but you’ll concentrate on HOW to create a customer out of
every contact.

An abundance mentality in this area of your business is contagious and
works like a magnet to attract not only business, but friends and
relationships that will prove valuable far into the future.

Remember to keep schedule with any, even if it will be first date...