Are You A Relationship Wrecker????

There is a lot of talk these days about the importance of relationship building for successful fundraising, marketing and communications — especially in the online world.

But what if you're a terrible relationship builder? Are you actually better at alienating prospects and supporters than you are at drawing them into your orbit?

Here are some signs that you are ruining your relationships with donors and actually driving them away…

You're slow to respond

The sheer volume of messages we get on Twitter, Facebook and inboxes overwhelms us all. But that doesn't mean we should ignore online correspondence. Like it or not, responding quickly is part of the culture of online media and ultimately helps build trust. If you are so overwhelmed by your on-line life create an auto-responder to let people know that you will get back to them within 24 hours. Create a calendar to get your content publishing schedule under control. Get more people in your organization blogging, tweeting and updating your Facebook page to share the workload.  But don’t let too long elapse before you respond…donors really don’t like to be ignored.

You take more than you give

Relationships are a quid pro quo. While I'm not suggesting that you keep a scorecard after each event, meeting or phone call with a new partner, be sure to give at least as much as you take. For example, if a colleague offers to re-tweet an article on your behalf, be sure to reciprocate with a link or comment on their blog the next week.

You Don't Know When To Stop

When a donor responds to your appeal by directly saying they can’t right now… don’t pursue it.  Continuing to send them personal emails and phone calls just makes donors annoyed and will make them re-think whether they should contribute in the future. Don’t be so attached to asking for the contribution that you don’t listen to how the donor is responding.

You Are A Non-Profit Narcissist

Narcissus (Greek mythological character) fell in love with his own reflection in the water of a spring and wasted away. Far too many nonprofits still communicate as if they are the center of the universe. BORING!  People don’t really care about your new hire, the fact that you just moved offices or have a state-of-the-art website. They are also not necessarily interested in hearing you constantly complain about your problems. People who donate want to hear what your organization has achieved, how it is helping to make the world a better place and how you are going to specifically use the money they donate to continue doing good work.

You Guilt Trip

Donors want to help, but they don’t want to feel that the future of your organization (or fundraising campaign) rests on their shoulders.  Once you start guilt-tripping donors into contributing you’ve wrecked your relationship and can't go back to them in the future. 

Remember donors give because they choose to…not because they have to.   If any of these tactics sound familiar it is time to put together a new fundraising strategy.  Don’t be a relationship wrecker!

CLOSING THE DEAL

The process of getting new business has several components including networking to meet new people, getting referrals of people who might need your services, letting these people know how you can help them in solving their problems and last (and probably most difficult) closing the deal.

Closing the deal is the part of the sales process that makes business owners most anxious because this is the stage that sometimes takes the longest and has the biggest potential of falling apart.

Yet, there are ways to make yourself a better “deal closer” even if you’re not the natural networking type and aren’t up on the latest sales techniques – Here are some techniques that really work:

Get beyond “yes”: Time is your enemy. Once you’ve gotten your target to agree in principle that you’re going to make this deal, move them as quickly as possible toward getting it into writing. That’s because into the narrow opening between “yes” and signing on the dotted line can creep things like second thoughts, competition coming up with a counter proposal or unforeseen events. So if you get a verbal expression of interest then move as quickly as possible to a written agreement that hopefully closes out the sales cycle.  When meeting with a client always bring at the very least a preliminary contract or letter of intent and get it signed.  Getting the deal agreed to and signed on the bottom line quickly is the goal.

Create a sense of urgency: Sometimes the person on the other end of the deal will be happy to close it – when they can get around to it. Timing may be much more important to you then to them. So if necessary, you want to create a sense of urgency to get their commitment, and that may require some final concessions to refocus their attention. This may involve offering a 2% greater discount if the sign on now, net-30 terms instead of net-10 requirements, or offering a two-year service agreement instead of one-year coverage. Give them a reason for signing today rather than next week.

Use the threat of competition: Unfortunately, in order to get the other side to close, sometimes an entrepreneur will have to get them to understand that if they don’t do the deal with you, you’ll do the deal with someone else.  Sometimes this involves bluffing, sometimes enhancing the appeal of what you’re offering.  The important thing to remember is to let the prospective client know that you have other clients and as much as you want their business you can’t wait around forever until they make their decision.

Generate “late-breaking news”: Throughout the relationship-building and negotiating process and beyond, be funneling helpful new information to the prospective client. This might be a press release about a new product, a copy of a story about your business that you’ve managed to land in the local newspaper, the result of a new independent test of your service, or that one last testimonial from an existing customer that you’re keeping in your back pocket.

Be prepared to not close: The reality is that most deals don’t close, if you measure by the number of potential relationships and transactions that your company pursues. Something happens. There isn’t a fit. The timing isn’t right. You must disdain losing any deal and fight hard to land every last one. But you also need to be sober about the percentages – so you can raise them.

Of course, every deal worth its salt must not be lopsided – it should stem either from mutual compromise or a true “win-win” scenario. And empathy goes a long way.

When negotiating remember

§  The deal is actually closed before the deal happens. Courting and building relationships over time are the only guarantees of succeeding in closing a deal. And that can take years

§  Be the best listener you can. Hear the other person’s pain and think about what you can you do to solve it? Focus on the positive

§  Tricks are never good: If you need them, you’re not in position to close the deal anyway. Create true value. That’s what will help you sell faster at the price you want.

§  Don’t talk too much - don’t be afraid of silence. Produce an order form, don’t rush anything, remain confident and make eye contact. When the customer signs, and the sale is made, keep friendly and resist any urge to sell them anything else. Leave on a friendly note so you can keep a long-term relationship.

We would like to hear from you about your “closing techniques”…

ASK FOR REFERRALS

Most business experts consider referrals as the major source for new clients in most business sectors.  Prospects that are referred to you are usually good quality prospects and are easy to convert to new client.

It is imperative for businesses to have an active and specific strategy to consistently generate referrals.  One of the best ways to get referrals is to ask for them from existing clients, colleagues and personal contacts.  When you ask for referrals it is important to remember:

§  Review your client list and choose those clients who are very happy with the services you are providing.

§  Remind clients of why they sought out your services and ask them if they know of anyone with similar needs.

§  Keep in contact with former clients so and make sure that they remember the excellent services you provided and how happy they were with the results.  Don’t lose touch!!

§  Ask for referrals in a positive and proactive manner.

§  Make sure clients, colleagues and personal contacts know about anything new that is happening with your businesses.  If you have new products, hired an expert in a specific area or even if you have done continuing education.

§  Select a frequency for asking for referrals and develop a system to remind you.  Experience indicates that asking for referrals 2 or 3 times a year is not offensive and could be very productive for you.



§  When you have a special event or party for your business invite clients and colleagues to bring people they know who might be interested in your services.

§  Always show appreciation to and thank the people who provide referrals.

When cultivating referral sources, realize that most people who send referrals your way do so for a variety of reasons, but above all, they recommend you for the following two reasons:  FRIENDSHIPS and TRUST.

People like to help people they like and believe in. Take time to get to know those in the platinum and gold levels of your database and to let them get to know you. Share the vision you hold for your business. Let them catch your enthusiasm and buy into your dream. The result will be a vested interest in your success and the desire to help you achieve your goals.

How To Use Social Media To Professionally Network

With the explosion of social media sites such as Facebook, LinkedIN, MySPACE and Twitter in the past decade the way we communicate with each other  has changed dramatically.  Although these sites first became popular for personal use, it didn’t take long for them to find their way into the professional world.

Networking has long been one of the most effective tools in business. Social media has eliminated the limits of geography and even the need to “know the right people” by connecting users through shared interests and professional fields. Thanks to social media, it is now much easier to connect with potential employers and customers, as well as peers in your industry, whom you have never met before. Websites like LinkedIN are even specifically designed for professionals, with tools that allow users to post resumes and peer recommendations, or search for a person by company.

However, the world of social media can be complicated and confusing, with so many sites to choose from. Here are a few tips that will help you start using social media to network professionally.

Make It Personal

Any time you send a Facebook message or a LinkedIn connection request, you should try to personalize it for the person you’re sending it to. If you were introduced through a mutual friend, you may want to mention that friend’s name to reinforce your connection. Even if you’re sending a message to someone you already know well, you should be specific about how valuable that person is to you by showing sincere interest in his or her life. If you’re trying to connect with someone you’ve never met before, such as a potential employer, prove that you’ve done your research by mentioning their professional background and anything career-related that you have in common.

Find Out the Person’s Preferred Communication Channel

If you want to contact someone you have never communicated with before, do some research. Find the person’s preferred communication channel. If they have a website, check out their contact page and see if they encourage people to contact them in a particular way, and follow their suggestion. 

It also helps to discover what level of participation they have on various social networks (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube) to see which places may be best to engage them. When is the last time they posted on Twitter or Facebook? Do they respond to the @replies they receive on Twitter or comments on a Facebook page? Get a sense of their preferred means of communication, and make contact where they are.

Keep It Short

This cannot be emphasized enough, and it is probably the toughest challenge. In the age of social media, we may be able to get the attention of more people, but we get it for a much shorter amount of time. One of the biggest mistakes people make is sending long e-mails or social media messages explaining all the reasons they want to connect. The probability is that the recipient will never get passed the first paragraph and you’ve lost your opportunity to engage them.

Brevity is built right into Twitter, making it a great platform for making a first connection. However, if you use other channels, keep it simple. If there are 700 words you eventually want to get across, include only 50 in the first contact. Let the person choose if he or she would like more. You can fill in the rest later. Say It Upfront

This may seem like common sense, but don’t wait for the last line of your message to say that you want to meet for lunch, or ask your contact if he’d like to speak at an event. Put it right up front.

Connect Offline

Although social networking is great for establishing and managing connections, face-to-face interaction is still the best way to strengthen a relationship. Body language, tone of voice, and shared experiences can add meaning to a conversation. Of course, social media can be useful for arranging such meetings. If geography keeps you from meeting someone in person, Skype is a great alternative.

Be Flexible

Just as many people have a preferred mode of contact, many professionals may have a certain social media platform that they prefer to use. Respect these preferences by contacting them through their preferred networking source. It’s also good to keep in mind that each platform has a different set of social rules – for example, while LinkedIn is strictly business, Twitter is where casual opinions and professional content can often mix. Keep this in mind as you navigate the various social networking sites — it may not be a good idea to add a professional acquaintance on Facebook if you don’t want them to see all of your personal content.

Stay Professional

It’s a common mistake to forget that anything posted on the internet could possibly be viewed by anyone around the world. Therefore, it is extremely important to effectively manage privacy settings on social networking sites, so that only those whom you trust view information.

Say “Thank You”

Just as handwritten thank-you notes are deeply appreciated but rarely written these days, few people think of sending a thank-you message on a social networking site, yet it usually means a great deal to the recipient. Whenever someone does something nice for you online, such as offering advice or connecting you with one of their colleagues, you should express your gratitude. If you do this, it’s more likely that they’ll help you again in the future

To sum up social media allows us to discover, connect, and engage with new people of interest. While most people are open to new connections and receiving messages from people they don’t know, there is a fine line between reaching out and “spamming.” The challenge is to make a connection clearly and effectively without wasting people’s time.