“First impressions matter. Experts say we size up new people in somewhere between 30 seconds and two minutes.” Elliott Abrams
What Elliott said is oh so true in many ways. Entrepreneurs must have an ability to impress clients quickly. There are several methods that immediately come to mind to gain a great first impression:
- Dress sharp
- Be prepared
- and shall I say, breath mints?
Now I do believe that an entrepreneur can mend that initial 2 minute impression if the client may have had a negative feeling, but I suggest that you do your best to give the client a great impression immediately on first contact.
Over my years as an entrepreneur, I know that I have made some errors on the first impressions clients had. I have learned to reflect on these and understand what I could have done differently. So I am going to share with you some huge discoveries I have made.
Here are 9 ways to impress clients.
#1: Impress Clients By Being A Human
There is a fine-line between being business and casual. I truly believe that you must also “read” the client immediately to determine their “line” on this. But during your conversation, it is good if you step out of the “business box” for a brief moment and ask about his/her family, lifestyle, sports, etc…
Just be a human but I suggest staying clear of politics and religion.
#2: Impress Clients By Researching And Solving
I have discovered this an amazing way to have a client impressed. Before meeting with them, review their website and any other information you have on the potential client. Find just one small issue you know can be solved immediately.
“Mr Jones, when I reviewed your website, I notice that your call-to-action boxes have coloration that is not considered ‘click-enhancing’ according to statistics. Have you had a good response in your CTAs? (wait for answer) I can easily mend that for you.”
Just knowing you did your research and have the initiative to find and solve one small issue WILL impress clients.
#3: Impress Clients By Having An Agenda
When you are meeting with a client, it is important that you draw up an agenda. Before starting the meeting, share the agenda with the client. This will show the client you are fully prepared to ask and answer questions, along with covering every avenue so they will have satisfaction with your products or services.
#4: Impress Clients By Being Impressed With The Client
What I mean by this is compliment them. While I told you earlier to discover a small issue and solve it, also find areas where you can give them sincere compliments. Showing you are impressed with them will impress them with you.
#5: Impress Clients With Your Language
I do believe you should use technical jargon lightly when meeting with potential clients. But there are certain words in the English language that do create a great impression of the entrepreneur speaking them. Consider words like:
- Collaborate
- Objectives
- Value and benefits
- Return on investment (ROI)
- Scalability
- Social reach
- Opportunities
- Result tracking
- Etc…
Using language that shows you have the client’s best interests at heart does impress them.
#6: Impress Clients By Knowing Their Competition
The wise entrepreneur does research on the potential client’s competition too. Knowing how the competitors are marketing will allow you to use patterns in the meeting where you will tell the client something like:
“Mr Jones, I see that (competitor) is using this approach and, in my opinion, if we were to counter with this strategy, you could convert (competitor’s) business to your profits.”
Believe me… That will impress a potential client every time.
#7: Impress Clients With Active Listening
When I say active listening, it means having a pen and notepad in your hand and using it. I suggest that as the client is speaking, you repeat key words and phrases back to show them you understand and at the same time, take notes.
Another important aspect of active listening is listening to what the client is not actually saying with their body language or eye movements. If they are saying something but you notice apprehension, you can lighten it up by just saying something like, “I know this is important, so I will keep you “in the loop” every step of the way.”
Reassuring words are always impressive.
#8: Impress Clients By Telling Them Your Strategy
Here is another area where entrepreneurs tend to neglect potential clients. It just makes common sense that you share with the client your strategy. They must know your plan of action. While it may be put together in your head, you must realize that the client cannot see that… So explain to them your strategy and allow them to give their feedback.
#9: Impress Clients With Action
All the prior tips were just words and we all know that action speaks much louder than words. So get to work on whatever the client needs and show them results.
If you do this, your client will not only be impressed, he/she will probably send other clients your way.
“When deeds speak, words are nothing.” Pierre Joseph Proudhon
Conclusion
I will end this post with one more nugget of truth… There will be some clients that are unimpressed. And if you look closely, they are that way with everyone. So don’t worry if you cannot impress every potential client you meet. Just try to do it better on the next round.
I hope this post helps you interact with potential clients in a more successful manner. If you have any questions, just ask them below and I will provide an answer.
Also I need to ask… Are you getting objections you just can’t handle? Every objection is an equation waiting to be solved. I really suggest that you get this report on solving the top objections. It will help you overcome and win in the objection jungle.
Thank you for stopping by today and will you hit the share buttons and let your friends and family see this too?
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