Articles
Explore over 350 articles that will help you grow your client relationships and improve your personal effectiveness.
Finish this Year Well and Start Strong in January
Fall can be an achingly beautiful season, but it can also be a pressure cooker if you serve clients. In this last quarter of the calendar year, you need to finish well, regardless of when you close your fiscal year. At the same time, you need to prepare the foundations for a successful start of the […]
Read article
Ten Questions to Ask Your Clients Every Year
A client of mine dodged death twice. The first instance involved serendipitously avoiding what turned out to be an infamous plane crash caused by a terrorist bomb. The second time had to do with a seemingly innocuous spot on his arm. It looked like a odd-shaped mole, and he ignored it. As the CEO of […]
Read article
Week 4 Challenge: Hold a Great First Conversation
In Week 4 of this challenge, you’re going to improve your effectiveness at holding first meetings–for right now, let’s call them “first conversations” since you will most likely be meeting by phone or on a video conference. Be sure to read Week 4 of It Starts with Clients, as it provides an in-depth overview of the […]
Read article
Finding New Opportunities in a Shrinking Market (It Starts with Clients–Part 3)
In most areas of the economy, fundamental demand has shrunk. Some markets have actually grown (videoconferencing and eLearning, anyone?), and a few large ones have evaporated (retail, travel). Are you doomed to sink to the level of the average decline (or worse), or can you find or create new opportunities to help your clients and […]
Read article
Week 3 Challenge: Gain Access and Set up Meetings
In Week 3 of this challenge, you’re going to begin a systematic outreach to your clients and prospects. What do I mean by outreach (singular)? An “outreach” is when you communicate with an executive to learn more about their agenda, build trust in you/your firm’s ability to help them with their most urgent problems and […]
Read article
Week 1 Challenge: Review Your Client Base and Accelerate Your Outreach
One of the secrets to building clients for life is starting with the right clients. I lived in Italy with my family for four years, and I learned–similarly–that one of the secrets to Italian food is that the Italians always start with super-fresh ingredients. In contrast, It’s hard to make a delicious salad with rock-hard […]
Read article
Day 1 Challenge: Adopt the Advisor Mindset and Serve More Client Needs
Welcome to the 100-Day Client Growth Challenge. I’m excited that you’re joining many other participants around the globe for this powerful, 100-day journey. It will help you strengthen your most important relationships and grow your client base. We are in the midst of a very turbulent time. Remember, however–business development may slow or stop, but […]
Read article
10 Causes of Client Attrition—and How to Stop It
Why Your Clients Are Leaving By Andrew Sobel Even firms that enjoy strong client loyalty and high levels of repeat business lose 20 or 30 percent of their revenue every year due to attrition. Some attrition is desirable. Some is unavoidable. But much of it can be prevented. Think about how much work it requires […]
Read article
Five Powerful Steps to Grow Your Client Base in the New Year
Every new year, all companies face great uncertainties. But what is certain is that if you don’t grow your business, you will fall behind. There are of course times you need to shrink to grow, but that is a temporary tactic to enable future revenue and/or profit growth. In working with a wide range of […]
Read article