Networking for Women Rainmakers Part 7, Keep in Touch with Your Clients
This article is by Mimi Spangler, a partner at Harding & Company. Some of the material in this posting appears in the second edition of Ford Harding’s book, Rain Making, which will be published in February and contains about 40 percent new content.
This is the seventh in a series of eight blog posts on networking for women. These entries originally appeared as an article in Management Consulting News.
7. Keep in Touch with Your Clients
Existing and past clients are every rainmaker’s largest source of new business. A partner in a regional consulting firm commented, “I learned early on that the best source of business was existing clients. I developed relationships with people at my level at client companies. As they moved up the corporate ladder and as I moved up the firm ladder, I developed the trust and relationship that resulted in them calling me when they had issues. Some moved to other companies and would call me, and this brought in new clients. After ten years I had a strong base from this source.”
While following an existing client from one account to another was typically reported as a successful strategy, that scenario can present opportunities and challenges. “You always want a lot of relationships at a client, so that if a contact leaves, you have other relationships.” Another less proactive rainmaker indicated what she does when her contacts leave, “My client moves their people around a lot. I stay in touch with the people who moved and forge a relationship with the new ones who replaced them.”
Staying in touch with clients is easy when a project is underway and seems difficult otherwise. Women rainmakers are disciplined at finding meaningful ways to maintain their visibility with past clients. They create “reasons to meet.”
A practice leader from a New York City consulting firm pointed out, “I never do a meeting without bringing something new, so there is always something fresh. I try to anticipate what they will need six months from now and so can lead the thinking. I get ideas from things I read or from talking to people in their organization or talking to other colleagues.”
A partner from the same firm advised, “Make sure that you don’t get confined by the scope of work you are doing for the client. You need to be aware of industry and company issues that are likely to impact them. That is a good way to find opportunities for new business.”
Specifically how women rainmakers keep in touch with clients depends on their own personal preferences and style. Ruth Ford, retired Principal of Xroads Solutions Group said, “My approach is primarily through business oriented activities as opposed to personal or social ones and being extraordinarily helpful and responsive. I use meals as a key avenue; everyone needs to eat.
Lunch is the norm but I have found that very busy people would rather do breakfast since it is hard for them to guarantee that they can take a break in the middle of the day (or would rather go to the gym if they have some time). Knowing this about my contacts gives immediate insight into them as an individual as well. Dinner to me is when I pass a certain threshold where my client or contact is willing to give personal time.”
Another commented, “I have to spend a lot of time keeping in contact with the people I already know. Often I call just to say hi because we haven’t talked for a while. Sometimes I use our company publication as a vehicle and call to ask if they got it and ask what they think. We do breakfast seminars and I see people there that I haven’t seen in years and meet new ones. I call to follow up and get feedback and ask if there is any way I can help them.”
The rainmakers we talked to said they don’t rely on a firm’s mass mailings, webcasts, or events. Capitalizing on impromptu events is a more frequent avenue to reconnect with contacts.
For example, one rainmaker said that a consultant friend gave her a book that he had just published. She liked the book and thought it had some helpful points for several of her clients. Although the book focused on a different service offering than hers, she asked the consultant for a box of his books to distribute to her clients. When he asked what was in it for her since it wasn’t what she did, she replied, “It was a good book, and I thought it would just be helpful for them.”
Mimi Spangler is a partner at Harding & Company, which helps professionals learn to develop business. She has worked with consultants at many firms, both large and small. For more information, visit the company’s web site at http://www.hardingco.com/ and blog at www.hardingco.com/blog. Spangler can be reached at mspangler@hardingco.com.
