New business can come from many places: referrals from current clients or customers, collaborations with other businesses, friends, family, and new markets or untapped communities. One thing does remain important for businesses who rely on the generating of new business in order to thrive and grow–it is important to court and cultivate prospects in order to turn them into customers or clients.
I have a background in nonprofit fundraising, so while I haven’t worked in hard sales and marketing, I do know a thing or two about courting and cultivation. Over the years, I’ve learned that it is all about the relationships, and while some individuals take less time than others to go from stranger to client (or donor in my old world), it still takes time, care and attention to build those relationships with prospective customers.
While everyone is different, you’ll need to find a style and set up a system for care and cultivation of prospects that works for you–and stick with it. Some individuals send birthday cards, take prospects for coffee, have newsletters, web sites with forums or blogs, send out snazzy packets of information to prospects, or other ways to start to educate and inform an individual about their business. It will depend on what feels right for you, appropriate for your business and fits your budget. The important thing is to keep track of your cultivation efforts and your prospects and keep making appropriate contact in order to nurture them along into becoming clients.
Going the extra mile and paying close attention to motivation and customer service are important, but so is just forming honest, genuine human relationships with the people you hope to bring toward your business. There really is no “trick” or “shortcut”–the more direct, honest, and authentic you are, the more likely a stranger will become a prospect, and then a loyal customer.
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