Do you spend most of your time looking for new, bigger and better clients? Are you looking in networking groups, through SEO, speaking engagements, cold calls and other avenues? Do you feel like a dog running on linoleum? A lot of movement but no progress?

While all of the above are important, I want you to consider the 80/20 rule. 80% of your time should be spent in contact with your current clients. Not only meeting their needs, but asking for referrals. Let your satisfied clients become your biggest advocates. 20% of your time can be used in finding new clients.

There is a marketing principle you should understand. Finding new clients is what’s called unknown to unknown - you don’t know them, they don’t know you. While you should spend time in this endeavor, your success rate will be much higher with known to known. That is, you know them and they know you, perhaps through one of your satisfied customers.

It could sound something like this:

YOU: Hey Joe, can I ask you why you hired us in the first place?

JOE: Your pricing was fair and you came highly recommended.

YOU: Thanks Joe. Did you receive anything from our company that surprised you? Maybe above an beyond your expectations?

JOE: I was pleasantly surprised with your responsiveness. You handled all our issues in a timely manner. I also liked how you really listened to us and focused on our needs.

YOU: Thank you Joe for the kind words. Can I ask you one final question?

JOE: Sure.

YOU: Do you know anybody who could use a highly recommended, fairly priced service like ours that listens to their clients, is focused on meeting their needs and is very responsive?

Let your client become your advocate. As a consumer, I’d rather hear your clients say you are good rather than you say it. Your chance of closing the sale goes from 10% (cold call) to anywhere from 70% to 90% with the right kind of referral.

Now get out there and look good.

Chris Motley
Motley Creations
©2009 Motley Creations. Use by permission only.

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What if you could reach all your clients at once? What if you could do it with no print cost, do it in minutes instead of hours and have 100% of them listen to your message? Sound impossible? I’m here to tell you that it’s not.

What I am talking about is new technology that allows you to send out voicemail to all of your client’s cellphones at once. Their cell will not ring, it simply deposits the message into their mail box. All you have to do is create a message, upload it and your contact list, and hit send. No more hours of dialing and chatting with each one.

A few things you need to consider:

1. If your clients would not be surprised to receive a call from you on their cell phone, you’re probably safe to use this service. The law states that you must have permission to call them. We suggest collecting cell phone numbers from your clients as well as email addresses. One way to do this is to have permission to call embedded in your client agreements.

2. Your message should not be a canned message, but rather a natural message that sounds personal to them. Something like, “Hi. This is Mike from Oil Plus, and I just wanted to let you know that since you’re a valued customer, we’re offering a complete oil and filter change for only $15.99. Please give us a call at 555-1234 if you’re interested.”

3. I wouldn’t recommend sending messages to the same contacts every month. As with any other marketing method, familiarity breeds contempt. People will get tired of it.

4. People will delete emails and throw away mailers without reading them. EVERYBODY will listen to a voicemail before deleting it. This makes this technology the most effective way to contact your clients.

A few ideas on how to use this:

1. Personalize: Keep in contact with clientele by sending out birthday greetings. You can do this monthly to only those that have a birthday that month. “Hi. This is Amanda from Store X. Just calling to wish you a happy birthday. See you soon.”

2. Be Helpful: Send a quick greeting before holidays; “Hey this is Joe Smith from Better Homes. Just checking in to see how everything’s going in your new home. Oh yeah, remember that mothers day is next week - make sure you get your mom something nice!”

3. Reward: Send out a customer appreciation offer notice. “Hi this is Cheryl from Hair Plus. I wanted to call and let you know that you’ve qualified for your half price hair day. . .”

There are countless applications as well as some legal information you should look into. Go to www.svmCONNECT.com to find out more about this service.

Now get out there and look good.

Chris Motley
Motley Creations

©2009 Motley Creations. Use by permission only.

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I have spent precious time and money learning how to steer this ship called Motley Creations. I’ve spent bad dollars as well as good dollars. I want to talk a little bit about five key principles that I have learned over the years to help you grow your business.

1. TALENT IS LIKE TABLE SALT: There are millions of talented people out there. Talent does not automatically ensure success in business. The most talented person can take a shot to the gut, which running a business will do, and they will stand up and say “to heck with this, I can do this for XYZ company without the pain!”. No, it’s not talent that counts. It’s persistence and the ability to stand back up after being hit and go “tape me up coach! What did I learn from this? How can I keep it from happening again?”

2. 51%: I have seen it a million times. I have actually done it myself. Procrastination caused by fear of making the wrong choice. The most successful people are right 51% of the time. That’s a large margin for error. Do your homework, set self-imposed deadlines, and make the best decision you can with the information available. Most importantly, learn from your mistakes.

3. PLAN THE WORK, WORK THE PLAN: I have been accused of being a “big ideas” guy. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing, it can hurt you. The most successful people write down their goals. They develop plans to reach them, measure their progress and make adjustments. When tough times come, they stick to their processes. Jumping to the next “big idea” instead of trusting your processes can cost valuable capital and momentum. People who have the processes and plans in place rarely complain about the economy or other outside influences they can’t control.

4. EXPERIENCE, NOT ADVICE: I can’t stress this enough. Advice is someone’s opinion. Experience is the result of being in the same situation and found an effective, successful way out. Someone’s advice may sound great but if they don’t have the resources or the experience to back it up, it could lead to more trouble. You really don’t have time to make all the mistakes yourself. Learn from others. Choose successful people to ask.

5. FOR LOVE AND FOR FUN: Money is a great thing. However, if it’s all that matters to you, it will show to your clients. The more you listen instead of talk, the more you see what you can bring and not what you can take, the more your clients will trust you and the more money you will make. The more your clients will see value in what you do and be willing to pay fair market value for it. It can’t be faked. Do what you do for love and for fun. Have your clients best interest at heart. If you don’t think your a good fit for them, don’t get a bigger hammer.

Now get out there and look good.

Chris Motley
Motley Creations
©2008 Motley Creations. Use by permission only.

Tags: experience, Growth, plan, procrastination, talent.