Marketing and sales have often been compared to relationships. You don’t ask someone to marry you on the first date, and you don’t try to kiss someone before you’ve been introduced. There’s a protocol of decorum, order, and timing in every sale, whether we realize it or not. In relationships, we call this process dating, but there is no real name for it in sales, so we just call it dating also.
New Client Dating Plan
In real dating, the goal (or at least one of the main goals) in each step of the dating process is to get to the next step. In relationships, you start by getting an introduction. Then you trade phone numbers, then you go to coffee, then a full date with dinner and ice skating or movie or whatever. Then a kiss, then another date, then more kisses (or whatever), then lots more dates, then an engagement ring, then marriage. Something like that.
In sales dating, the process is actually kind of similar. The goal of each step, well, your goal anyway, is to not to make a sale, but rather to get to the next step. First comes the referral or introduction. The goal is to get their name and contact info (assuming they are considering or could use a loan modification), along with permission to call. Then you call them up, or with the tech-addicted set, send an email. The goal of the call is partly to establish rapport, partly to gather a little info, but mostly to get to the next step, which is meeting over coffee. They’ll be more likely to do business with you if they’ve met you in person.
The goal of meeting over coffee is partly to establish rapport, listen to their story, gather information, and decide if they’re a good fit to be your client, but mostly it’s to take an application. If they’re not quite ready yet, that’s OK. Just meet over coffee and chat. Find out why they’re not ready. No matter what, you then follow up that day or the next day with another phone call and an email to thank them for the meeting. You may get the application at that time, or you may schedule another coffee, lunch, house call, or appointment at your office to take the full application.
In the loan mod business, once you’ve taken the application, you’re pretty much in, but just in case, you’ll still want them to sign your sales contract and pay you the deposit, assuming your fees are structured that way. You can get the signed contract and check at the time of application or shortly thereafter. Once you get that check, however, the sale is made, and you can start your loan modification work at that time. The client now exits your sales dating plan and officially enters your workflow process. Don’t forget to ask for more referrals while you’re working with the client, however, because not asking your current client for referrals would be like not kissing your spouse. Ha!
Lead Source Dating Plan
You will use a similar dating process for wooing potential referral sources such as Realtors, accountants, and mortgage brokers. The main difference is that you need to take them to lunch or coffee periodically, sort of like being in a perpetual state of courtship. Might feel like a drag after awhile, but I really doubt that all the referrals you get from them will feel that way. Treat them like kings and queens, and you’ll build your own kingdom with the gold they give you.
