Before you reach out to anyone, ask yourself why you are doing it and what value you can offer them. Do you want to share some relevant insights, ask for feedback, offer support, or invite them to an event? Make sure your message is clear, concise, and customized to their needs and interests. Avoid sending generic or irrelevant messages that waste their time or make them feel pressured.
Know your purpose AND know your audience. Take the time to get to know your clients on a personal level, and it will make follow-up and relationship-building more seamless. It's also important to get clear on your "so what"? Do you have a call to action? Are you providing your client with information in a proactive, solutions-focused manner? Are you helping them solve a problem you know they're facing? Seek to target these areas.
Avoid generic, mass emails or messages that make your contacts feel like they are part of a bulk outreach campaign. Take the time to personalize your communications, referencing previous conversations or specific details that show you remember and care about them individually. When reaching out to your contacts or clients, ensure that your communication offers something valuable to them. It could be sharing relevant industry insights, useful resources, or personalized recommendations. By providing value, you demonstrate that you respect their time and are genuinely interested in their success.
In my experience clarity is key in all messages and it is also key to use laymen and relevant industrial terms customised to suit partcular clientele. To a large extent it is also crucial to agree on frequency of all communications and with room being given for people to ask for elaboration on area they do not understand.
Personalize your communication with contacts and clients by avoiding generic messages. Reference previous interactions, show genuine care, and offer valuable insights or resources. Demonstrating respect for their time and a sincere interest in their success strengthens your professional relationships.
Depending on your relationship and the purpose of your communication, you may want to use different channels to follow up and stay in touch. For example, you may use email for formal or detailed messages, phone calls for urgent or sensitive matters, social media for casual or public interactions, or text messages for quick or personal updates. Consider the preferences and expectations of your contacts and clients, and use the channel that suits them best.
I'm really big on video. I often incorporate video in follow up - either by email, direct message or text. I truly believe video is the next best thing to being in person. It doesn't just work in a one-to-many model; it can also work (effectively) in a one-on-one model.
One of the challenges of following up and staying in touch is finding the right frequency and timing. You don't want to be too pushy or too distant, but you also don't want to rely on random or sporadic contacts. A good way to avoid this is to set a schedule for your communication, based on the stage and nature of your relationship. For example, you may follow up with a prospect within 24 hours after a meeting, send a monthly newsletter to your existing clients, or reach out to a former client every quarter.
Every time you follow up and stay in touch with your contacts and clients, you have an opportunity to add value to them and strengthen your relationship. You can do this by providing useful information, sharing relevant resources, giving honest feedback, offering genuine appreciation, or showing interest in their goals and challenges. Avoid sending messages that are self-promotional, salesy, or demanding, and focus on how you can help them or make them feel valued.
This phrase is used a LOT! It's kind of a buzzword that has lost some of its buzz. Information, content has to be valuable to the person/people receiving it. That is who determines its value. Make sure your audience finds what you're sharing valuable. That can be insight vs just info. It may require a few steps vs just one tip. It's great when you can shift someone's mindset and/or make them question a belief they've had for sometime. It's memorable. That's typically what value looks like.
1) Document your client engagement plan for clients/prospects/influencers' onboarding, communication, education, and appreciation. If you aren't consistent you confuse and in the absence of communication, people will make up their own narratives. 2) Reframe review meetings to bring more value. Do your homework ahead of time to be familiar with what has been going on in their world, think about whom you can connect them to or what resources you can provide, and what information you want to learn to deepen your relationships. This will transfer the discussion from "What do you want to talk about?" or hearing "Nothing has changed".
Value has different meaning to different people. Make sure what you decide to share has meaning and value to them, not merely an excuse to send something to their inbox.
Send an Occasional Email Just to Check-in "Sometimes it is a friendly gesture to send a message to a client only to see how they are doing and how work is going. Authenticity and not seeking or asking for potential work can help to develop a level of respect and friendship that can be well received and further strengthen your connection with a client." (an excerpt from the book, EARN TRUST By Changing Selling into Helping)
Finally, remember that your contacts and clients are busy people who have their own priorities and preferences. Respect their boundaries and privacy, and don't overstep them. Don't send too many messages, call at inappropriate times, or ask for favors that are unreasonable or intrusive. If they don't respond to your messages, don't take it personally or assume the worst. Give them some space and time, and try again later. If they ask you to stop contacting them, honor their request and move on.
Following up and staying in touch with your contacts and clients can be challenging, but it doesn't have to be annoying or spammy. By following these tips, you can communicate effectively and respectfully, and build lasting and mutually beneficial relationships.
We cant expect people to respect boundaries until we set them. This seems hard at first but will earn more respect when people . People need direction or else they take advantage of the lack of boundaries. Effective leaders and communicators are not people pleasers, they have a clear defined agenda and stick with it.
I have also learnt that when people do not respond as quickly as you desire, understand that they may have their own priority list and when told time to get in touch respect them by abiding to those unless its an emergency. Take time to understand diversity within different cultures on boundaries and never potray that your culture is the final arbiter on what is the best in terms of these boundaries
When staying in touch with contacts and clients, respect their time and preferences. Avoid overstepping boundaries by not sending too many messages or making intrusive requests. If there's no response, give space and try again later. Don't take non-responses personally. Communicate effectively and respectfully, offering value in interactions to build lasting, mutually beneficial relationships.
When staying in touch with contacts and clients, respect their time and preferences. Avoid overstepping boundaries by not sending too many messages or making intrusive requests. If there's no response, give space and try again later. Don't take non-responses personally. Communicate effectively and respectfully, offering value in interactions to build lasting, mutually beneficial relationships.
If you are not prioritizing follow up, realize that you're not prioritizing relationships, growth, or conversion. I come across too many business owners, sales pros, marketers who suck at follow up. And I keep wondering why.