What Next? Staying in Front of Your Prospects Right Now

by Jason Ogden | Aug 25, 2020

This is not “thought leadering.”

This is not predicting what will happen next.  (If you know me, you know that’s one of my favorite things to do.)  

This is simply a collection of ideas for adapting to a reality that has no scheduled end date. Specifically, staying in front of prospects and communicating with your customers in today’s world. Here are some of my thoughts. 

Do more online. 

If your business generates prospects from conferences, networking events or in-person coffees, that part of your arsenal is currently out of commission. The only place you know everyone is right now is online. Embrace it. Full disclosure, I’m a little biased towards this one.   

Use the phone.

You can think of this as going retro or as a whole new tactic, but I’ve been intentionally making more phone calls lately.  Somewhere along the way, we’ve all decided that phone calls, which we used to do regularly, are to be replaced wholesale with Zoom calls. People behave differently on a phone call; it’s different than a video call. If nothing else, help each other spend a little bit less time in front of a screen, something from which we can all benefit. 

Try something different. 

This depends on what you’ve done so far to communicate with your market, but try different things. One of the most memorable communications I received in the past few months was a gratitude video. It was from a long-time business colleague/friend telling me about the one way I’ve most helped him over the years. It was thoughtful, sincere and very much appreciated. I would have done this anyway, but since receiving, I have tried to help him make a connection with a prospect of his.  

Lose the self-serving tone. 

I get it, some companies are hurting. Really hurting. Their future, if there is even going to be one, is uncertain. Many companies in this boat have reached out to me on email, LinkedIn, direct mail and even gifts at my office entrance. The tone is almost always the same – it has nothing to do with me, my business, or my needs, and everything to do with them. I’ve written about this before (read it here).  It’s always annoying and limits the effectiveness, but in this environment, it’s even more off-putting. The people you are reaching out to are likely facing challenges of their own. Rather than focusing on yourself, focus on them.  It’s fundamental, especially now. 

Regardless of what you’re doing to mix up your marketing communication in today’s world, please consider this as you do it – people will remember how you treat them in this moment. People being prospects, customers, strategic partners, vendors, employees, whomever. It’s an intense reality for everyone, personally and business-wise. Whatever tactics you choose to use, please take this to heart. It will have both immediate and long-term consequences for you and your business.