Do you have a follow up plan?  Without a plan, it is far too easy for you and your team to drop the ball.  We live in a very competitive business world.  Your customers have more buying options than ever before, and buyers will delay making decisions.  Seek out a logical follow up plan that focuses on building relationships, and you will yield build your business.

Take notes every time you have any interaction with customers.  Study those notes before you make follow up contact, and plan your follow up.  Always start with what you have in common.  This can be personal or professional, and use this point of interest every time you talk, or make contact.

Seek to learn something new.  Ask lots of questions. For example, if your customer has mentioned they enjoy basketball, and you don’t know much about basketball, ask a few questions and learn a few things about.  When you come across an article or reference to a topic of interest for your customer, pass it on to him.  It’s simple effort like this that will strengthen your relationship.

As you learn more about another person, seek out someone you know that you can connect your customer with.   Mention this connection and forward the information.  When you pass it along, state “here’s the information I promised”…this reinforces that you are reliable.

ALWAYS follow up right away.  The worst thing you can do is allow too much time to pass and make your contact a complete blur.

Make your follow up plan, and STICK TO IT!

Your long-term customers are your most profitable customers.  What are you doing to keep them?  Here are a few things to remember…

• Your customers like you and your employees.  Keep the relationship a good one and protect it.
• Treat new customers like existing customers, and reward them.  Offer specials to entice new customers, and reward customer loyalty.
• Always look for ways to increase value.  Value is not so much price as it is the whole package, the services provided, honest relationship, great service and price.
• Search for the needs of the customer and strive to meet those needs.
• If you want long term customers, strive to have long term employees.
• Reward great work from your employees.
• Make a list of your most important customers and don’t take them for granted.
• Resolve customer and employee problems quickly and logically.

All of these require “follow through” and remember…Your MONEY is in the Follow Through!