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The following article originally appeared as a feature story in the November 2001 issue of The Gindes Bulletin : Clinicians' Guide to Business Consulting. The Gindes Bulletin is a free, monthly email newsletter for clinicians, coaches, and other professionals who want extend their work into the world of business. You may subscribe by contacting Dr. Gindes at mgindes@clinicians2consultants.com
One of the hurdles consultants frequently need to get over is the meeting with a prospective client. A colleague of mine used to refer to these meetings as 'auditions.' Of course, there are some wonderful instances where someone will call you and hire you solely on the basis of a recommendation.
BUT, for the more usual situation, where a potential client wants to meet you, it is necessary to prepare carefully and thoroughly for the meeting.
First, let's talk about the term I used, 'prospect.' Some people do not like the word 'prospect' because it sounds so cold and calculating. They prefer 'potential client' or 'prospective client.' It doesn't really matter what you use AS LONG AS YOU HAVE THE RIGHT MIND SET AND YOU DO YOUR HOMEWORK. I will use 'prospect' because it is simpler and shorter. What is a prospect? A prospect is anyone who might hire you or be a conduit to the person with the power to hire you. A prospect is different from a referral source, who is anyone who might recommend you to a prospect.
What follows is Part I of a checklist for a successful meeting with a prospect. Next month, I will cover Part II. In future newsletters, I will discuss some of these topics in greater detail. Let me know which topics interest you most and I will cover those first.
Much of what you need to do should actually be done before the first contact with a potential corporate client. Some initial phone conversations become 'mini-interviews' for both you and the prospect. Although you do not have the final control over whether or not you are hired as a consultant, the right preparation before a meeting can certainly increase the probability of that outcome.
I. RESEARCH THE COMPANY
The Internet has made this task much easier. You no longer need to go to the library and go through large volumes to find data on a particular company.
A. Here are the RESOURCES you have at your fingertips (i.e., keyboard):
- The company website
- Any of the many websites that offer financial information and stock quotes, such as CNNfn.com, Quicken.com, any newspaper or broadcasting site.
- Search engines. I love Google.com. Use your favorite one or two.
B. Here is some of the INFORMATION you want to glean: (Not necessarily in order of importance)
- What does the company do?
- Where do they do it?
- What is the number of employees?
- What kind of people work for them?
-- skilled laborers
-- professionals
-- tend to be under 35
5. What group or groups constitute their target markets?
6. The Who's Who of the company? What kind of position does your contact person have? Who is that person's immediate supervisor? It is always good to know the names of top management, such as the CEO, CFO.
7. Is there any current news you need to know?
-- Are they downsizing?
-- Have they just replaced their CEO?
-- Are they being sued for sexual harassment?
-- Have they just instituted a new EAP?
8. How is the company doing financially?
-- Once you get the stock price, you can find out other relevant and important data.
-- Some of the questions to answer when looking at these data are:
- What is the trend?
- Has the value of the stock been going down?
- What are they projecting for earnings this year, next year?
- How do they rank in their industry?
If the stock value has dropped significantly, then consider what has happened to employees' retirement funds. In many companies, much of the retirement is in company stock. Even if no one mentions it, that company may have a serious morale problem.
II. KNOW YOUR GOALS
A. Identify your goals
It is absolutely critical that you think about what you want to accomplish before you go to your meeting. Here are some questions you might ask yourself:
- Do you want them to hire you for a specific project?
- Do you want to get an introduction to someone higher up on the corporate ladder?
- Do you want to explore the possible ways in which you can work for them?
B. Identify your action steps to accomplish your goals
Before you go to a meeting, ask yourself what you need to do to achieve your stated goals. Here are some general ideas you can apply to your particular situation:
- Ask questions. Get as much information from your prospects about their needs, concerns, operations, personnel, etc. as you can. Be conversational when you do it. You don't want them to think you are grilling them.
- Acknowledge positive actions by the prospective client's company. If there are none, empathize with the difficulty of their situation.
- Offer some ideas about how you could help them. This is very tricky. You have to walk two very fine lines. The first is between conveying enough about your ideas to convince them that you are the right consultant for them but not so much that they now think they know the answer and can solve the problem themselves. The second is your acknowledging their problems and that they need help without being too negative or harsh about their company's problems.
- Tell related success stories about your clients. Don't try to sell yourself directly. Rather, use examples about how you solved a similar problem with a client of yours.
- Bring your P.R. materials with you even if you have already sent them to the prospect. At least three reasons are behind this suggestion.
- He or she may have misplaced it;
- Another person may appear at the meeting;
- You want a set available for another potential client within the company.
- Lastly, DON'T FORGET TO HAVE YOUR OWN COPY OR, AT LEAST, A LIST OF WHAT YOU HAVE INCLUDED IN THIS PRESS KIT.
Go To Part II.
ACTION SPOTLIGHT
COMPILING YOUR P.R. MATERIALS OR PRESS KIT
YOUR ACTION STEP:
PART I:
Write down EVERYTHING that someone might hire you to do as a consultant, such as:
Executive Coaching Team Building Leadership Development Keynote speeches
PART II:
How can you convey to prospects the quality of your work, your credentials, and the type of work you do?
Collect or develop the materials that answer these questions. Some of the commonly found materials are:
Brochure or other written material that provides: Work experience; Educational credentials; Client list; Areas of expertise; Testimonials or names of references, and Invited presentations A list of your relevant publications. Always include, if possible, copies of articles you have written Your website - printout of Home page Business card - Make it easy for them to find you.
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