Success in the advisory business is all about making connections. One good connection and the right strategy can earn many referrals but it is easier said than done.
I came across an interesting article written by Stu Heinecke, author of How to Get a Meeting with Anyone and a Wall Street Journal cartoonist. The article is on how top salespersons land hard-to-get meetings.
“When you absolutely must reach someone who is very important but nearly impossible to reach, how you do it?” Stu asked top 100 sales leaders across the world. What he discovered was a practice which is very innovative and effective to crack meetings with critical contacts. He named this practice ‘contact marketing’.
Contact marketing is nothing but an effective marketing technique to target a particular prospect. Big companies target a large audience though a social media campaign or roadshows. In contact marketing, a campaign is initiated for an individual and it does not have to be a big campaign. Here are a few takeaways from his article:
- Try to discover their goals
The first and the foremost thing to do is to understand your target audience. Once you understand their aspirations, you will be able to strategize better and stand out from others who are trying to seek their attention.
- Deliver something of value
The next step would be to deliver something of value or something that would grab their attention. It does not have to be an expensive gift but something that stands out. The author gives us an interesting example of himself. He is a cartoonist, so if he ever wants to make an impression or seek someone’s attention, he sends them a cartoon.
“I’m a cartoonist and I’ve found that my cartoons can touch upon all of these markers in a very personal way. Sending a personalized cartoon has become a can’t-miss way for me to connect with virtually anyone but anything that recognizes the recipients’ desires, helps them do their job more effectively, or enhances their business in some way can be highly effective,” writes Stu in his article.
- Deliver something more
Once your gift is received and appreciated, a second set of contact can be established by sending something as a token of appreciation for the proposed meeting. It doesn’t have to be something grand.
It can be something as simple as a white paper which you think the prospect would find interesting or a target report of the prospects ongoing business research you know about. The point is to keep adding value to the relationship.
- Secretary/Assistant/PR team
Don’t think of the secretary or the assistant as a threat or a road block. In fact, they are the best assets to reach your target prospect. They can help you by telling your prospects schedule. However, when you are luring them it should not look like you are bribing them. A thank you note, message or a gift card which is not very expensive can also work.
- Connect with them
A thumb rule of sales is to always try to connect with your prospects first. Try to understand what their requirements are.
Here are some examples that Stu Heinecke shares on contact marketing:
- He talks about one of the top sales bloggers, Dan Waldschmidt. His core business is turnaround consulting. He first scouts prospects in business news and shortlists those who have missed their earnings estimate. He sends them an engraved sword in prospect’s name in a fine wooden box and a personal letter. The letter mentions that he has got their back in the next battle. Nothing about his services are mentioned and apparently this gesture has generated a 100% response rate.
- The second example is of NoWait app launch. This app allows you to put yourself in the waitlist of your favorite restaurant from anywhere.
To add top restaurants in their restaurant list, they targeted the CEOs of 30 top restaurants chains. They sent them videos in customized NoWait package on ipads explaining the concept of NoWait. This helped them get their prospects (restaurants) on their app using a minimal budget.
Let us know how you land a meeting with your top prospects.
