The Client Letter
May 16, 2013
The Northland
Sunny 48 Degrees
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In the client business, the faster you can make decisions the better off you are.
The faster you can disqualify someone, the sooner you can get on with things.
For the longest time, I tiptoed around what I actually wanted to discover from a prospect.
When you’re speaking with a prospect, you need to know if they are right for you. You need to know if they have money to pay you. And you need to know if they are actually willing to part with that money now.
So the sooner you can get that information, the better.
A good question to start with is this: “What makes you think I’m the right person to do this for you?”
This is most likely NOT a question your prospect is used to getting, so they might take a second before they come up with the answer.
Once you get that, proceed.
“My projects generally are in the $XX-XX range. Is that going to be an issue?”
“Provided we’re a good fit for each other, what other obstacles need to be dealt with before we move forward?”
If you need information, you need to ask for it. Be direct, be firm, be confident. You’re the professional remember?
Life is short. Don’t wait for what you need to do your job to be handed to you.
If you do, you might end up waiting a long time. Or worse, you’ll move forward with a client when you shouldn’t.
Questions are the key to freedom. Here’s how to use them to your advantage.