Building a Super Coaching Business - Follow-up Is Critical
As a part of building a very successful coaching business, having a follow-up system to your networking, to your speeches, and to your sales is critical.
In fact, it is typical to more than double your close ratio, and your whole business.
I don't know how many people you meet with in a week, either networking, speeches, seminars, whatever.
However, I discovered pretty quickly that I had too many people in my pipeline to manage effectively when I hit about 10 of them.
Now I do at least one networking event a week, sometimes more, a speech a week, and miscellaneous other activities.
The result is that I collect about 70+ business cards a week.
One thing I learned early on in my coaching was that if you don't respond to those contacts and business cards within 3 days maxinum they aren't worth much.
My rule of thumb is that for every day that passes the interest dies off exponentially.
A lead 2 days old is 1/4th as interested as they were then they handed you the card.
A lead 3 days old is 1/9th as interest.
So you must respond within about 3 days.
You MUST touch each and every one of them with a phone call, an email, or something.
And then, for some of them set up an appointment.
That can get to be a major workload and time absorber.
And even after you've handled them the first time, you MUST keep touching them on a periodic basis, emails, calls, inviting them to teleconferences, web conferences, local events, sending them personal emails, etc.
Of course, as I've recognized that I am shifting more and more of my focus to the internet where I can put it on autopilot; I still have a local business, and even international travel to clients.
I don't feel that I can adequately help other coaches build a super coaching business if I am not out there DOING super coaching so there is a balance.
In any case, how do you manage your follow-ups? Here's how I manage mine.
Although I do have a really nice CRM package, Goldmine.
I've found that I'm relying on an Excel spreadsheet to manage these follow up tasks, and a version of my marketing funnel.
When I go to any event I will capture the business cards of those I talk to by offering to help them out by sending them weekly emails on how to Double Your Business in weeks, 75-80% of them respond to that, so I capture a lot of cards.
I stick them into an envelope; mark it clearly so that when I get back to the office I can enter them into the spreadsheet.
If you have a card reader so much the better.
That will be faster and nearly automatic.
Before I used an envelope I would end up back at the office with different piles of business cards, got them mixed up, and frequently didn't even remember which event I had met the person at.
That isn't good since I want to send them an email, or call them, and mention where I met them and what we discussed.
(NOTE: Make sure to put notes on the card of what you discussed, especially what their obstacles or goals were.
) ALWAYS say something that reminds them of the discussion.
I create a worksheet inside the Excel workbook for each event, and enter the name, title, company name, address, city, state, zip, phone (maybe direct and cell), email address, and website, each as a separate field.
Then put notes right behind that.
And the date.
After I've entered that into the spreadsheet, I import that data directly into my CRM software so I don't enter this 2 times.
Then every day between scheduled appointments, I will start calling or emailing everyone, marketing them off as I do.
I will sign each of them up for one of my auto responder emails, newsletter, or e-book, and send them a "Here's my thanks for..
..
..
[whatever we discussed].
" Send them an article on how to build their business, and tell them I have signed them up for the [whatever] and that they will be receiving an email from my auto responder and all they have to do is click reply to accept the signup.
If they don't really want it, just don't respond.
" Nearly everyone does respond, probably 99%.
Those that receive a call, and are headed toward an appointment (face to face, or telephone) end up on another list..
..
my marketing funnel list.
For this I have them categorized.
The top of the list is "First touch", then "Appointment scheduled", followed by "Appointment complete", "2nd Appointment set", "2nd appointment complete", and on down to "New Customer" Your job is to manage this list by calling, emailing, giving them tons of help, information, articles, while moving them down the list category by category.
It is a very visible way of working them down to becoming a customer.
To move them all you do is cut and paste the entire row from one category into the next.
Simple.
A couple of key strokes.
When someone falls out of the list, they basically have either put you on hold, or just plain say no.
Then you move them to the "Out of the funnel" list.
You should work that list every month or so by sending them an occasionally email.
Another way to work this list is to make sure that you always get the following from them: What do you really want to achieve...
by when...
and how many dollars is that worth to you to achieve it...
and how many dollars will it cost you if you don't achieve it.
Then make sure to call them on the date they said they had to have it done.
Make it a very friendly call.
"Hi, I was just following up.
You said that you had hoped to get [whatever] done.
How's it going?" At some point you might say something like "I just remember you saying something the last time we talked about this costing you [$_______ a week, a month, an hour..
..
] is that still the case?" Chances are VERY good that they haven't achieved it.
So, offer some ways they might get back on track.
Show genuine concern about that much money continuing to go out the door.
Ask them what they are going to do about that kind of money going out the door, and can you help? After all your fee is a very small part of what's going out the door.
If they are still on hold, just ask them for the next date for estimated completion, and mark your list to call them on that date.
This becomes easy to manage, I don't lose anyone, they get handled quickly, and stay on the list until they remove themselves.
My appointment setting rates is up 2-3 times from where it was before, and my close ratio is up at least that far.
What would you do to increase your appointment setting rate and close ratio by 2-3 times? In dollars and cents what would that mean to you?
In fact, it is typical to more than double your close ratio, and your whole business.
I don't know how many people you meet with in a week, either networking, speeches, seminars, whatever.
However, I discovered pretty quickly that I had too many people in my pipeline to manage effectively when I hit about 10 of them.
Now I do at least one networking event a week, sometimes more, a speech a week, and miscellaneous other activities.
The result is that I collect about 70+ business cards a week.
One thing I learned early on in my coaching was that if you don't respond to those contacts and business cards within 3 days maxinum they aren't worth much.
My rule of thumb is that for every day that passes the interest dies off exponentially.
A lead 2 days old is 1/4th as interested as they were then they handed you the card.
A lead 3 days old is 1/9th as interest.
So you must respond within about 3 days.
You MUST touch each and every one of them with a phone call, an email, or something.
And then, for some of them set up an appointment.
That can get to be a major workload and time absorber.
And even after you've handled them the first time, you MUST keep touching them on a periodic basis, emails, calls, inviting them to teleconferences, web conferences, local events, sending them personal emails, etc.
Of course, as I've recognized that I am shifting more and more of my focus to the internet where I can put it on autopilot; I still have a local business, and even international travel to clients.
I don't feel that I can adequately help other coaches build a super coaching business if I am not out there DOING super coaching so there is a balance.
In any case, how do you manage your follow-ups? Here's how I manage mine.
Although I do have a really nice CRM package, Goldmine.
I've found that I'm relying on an Excel spreadsheet to manage these follow up tasks, and a version of my marketing funnel.
When I go to any event I will capture the business cards of those I talk to by offering to help them out by sending them weekly emails on how to Double Your Business in weeks, 75-80% of them respond to that, so I capture a lot of cards.
I stick them into an envelope; mark it clearly so that when I get back to the office I can enter them into the spreadsheet.
If you have a card reader so much the better.
That will be faster and nearly automatic.
Before I used an envelope I would end up back at the office with different piles of business cards, got them mixed up, and frequently didn't even remember which event I had met the person at.
That isn't good since I want to send them an email, or call them, and mention where I met them and what we discussed.
(NOTE: Make sure to put notes on the card of what you discussed, especially what their obstacles or goals were.
) ALWAYS say something that reminds them of the discussion.
I create a worksheet inside the Excel workbook for each event, and enter the name, title, company name, address, city, state, zip, phone (maybe direct and cell), email address, and website, each as a separate field.
Then put notes right behind that.
And the date.
After I've entered that into the spreadsheet, I import that data directly into my CRM software so I don't enter this 2 times.
Then every day between scheduled appointments, I will start calling or emailing everyone, marketing them off as I do.
I will sign each of them up for one of my auto responder emails, newsletter, or e-book, and send them a "Here's my thanks for..
..
..
[whatever we discussed].
" Send them an article on how to build their business, and tell them I have signed them up for the [whatever] and that they will be receiving an email from my auto responder and all they have to do is click reply to accept the signup.
If they don't really want it, just don't respond.
" Nearly everyone does respond, probably 99%.
Those that receive a call, and are headed toward an appointment (face to face, or telephone) end up on another list..
..
my marketing funnel list.
For this I have them categorized.
The top of the list is "First touch", then "Appointment scheduled", followed by "Appointment complete", "2nd Appointment set", "2nd appointment complete", and on down to "New Customer" Your job is to manage this list by calling, emailing, giving them tons of help, information, articles, while moving them down the list category by category.
It is a very visible way of working them down to becoming a customer.
To move them all you do is cut and paste the entire row from one category into the next.
Simple.
A couple of key strokes.
When someone falls out of the list, they basically have either put you on hold, or just plain say no.
Then you move them to the "Out of the funnel" list.
You should work that list every month or so by sending them an occasionally email.
Another way to work this list is to make sure that you always get the following from them: What do you really want to achieve...
by when...
and how many dollars is that worth to you to achieve it...
and how many dollars will it cost you if you don't achieve it.
Then make sure to call them on the date they said they had to have it done.
Make it a very friendly call.
"Hi, I was just following up.
You said that you had hoped to get [whatever] done.
How's it going?" At some point you might say something like "I just remember you saying something the last time we talked about this costing you [$_______ a week, a month, an hour..
..
] is that still the case?" Chances are VERY good that they haven't achieved it.
So, offer some ways they might get back on track.
Show genuine concern about that much money continuing to go out the door.
Ask them what they are going to do about that kind of money going out the door, and can you help? After all your fee is a very small part of what's going out the door.
If they are still on hold, just ask them for the next date for estimated completion, and mark your list to call them on that date.
This becomes easy to manage, I don't lose anyone, they get handled quickly, and stay on the list until they remove themselves.
My appointment setting rates is up 2-3 times from where it was before, and my close ratio is up at least that far.
What would you do to increase your appointment setting rate and close ratio by 2-3 times? In dollars and cents what would that mean to you?
