Monday, 08 February 2010 03:05 Rashid Kotwal

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If you live in Australia, given the amount of media coverage, you can’t escape the fact that we’ve just had the first anniversary of Black Saturday – the Victorian bush fires that engulfed whole towns, killed 173 people and destroyed more than 2000 homes.

The events a year ago caused an outpouring of grief and sympathy. Millions of dollars were donated to the victims.

However time marches on and while the events are still raw for a lot of the people who lived through it, (there’ve been quite a few shows on TV recently where you can see the emotions bubbling away just below the surface), for most of us it’s just another event in the past.

We all have day to day stuff that we need to deal with and bush fires, the Asian tsunami and even Haiti will fade into the background.

And it’s only the media coverage that brings the events back to top of mind.

And there’s a lesson here for you in your business.

If you’re not top of mind – you’ll be forgotten. PERIOD.

No matter how good you are. No matter what you did for your clients. No matter how grateful they were at the time. THEY’LL FORGET YOU! I guarantee it.

And that’s going to cost you big time.

Remember, it costs heaps more to get a new client in than sell more to an old one. But the old ones don’t remember if you don’t stay in touch.

And by stay in touch I’m not advocating a sales call every week. Just calling to say hello, asking how they’re doing once every 3 months or so is fine. Alternatively mix it up with a quick note with something you know they’d be interested in – could be an online video, article or a newspaper clipping.

And the same goes for people who haven’t yet become clients. Just because someone isn’t ready to buy now doesn’t mean they’ll never be ready.

Your job is to keep in touch with them so when they’re ready they come to you.

And if you’re thinking “Gee – this sounds like a lot of work”, it is. But the payoff can be immense.

Rashid

P.S. If creating an automated marketing funnel – where prospects are kept warm and gently moved towards becoming a client appeals to you, give me a call on (02) 9499-7958 and have a chat. Our proven educational based, multi-sequenced lead generation system works gangbusters and will work for you – no matter what industry you’re in.

P.P.S. You can learn a lot from charities – persistence (they keep calling), accurate record keeping (they know exactly what you donated and when) and emotion (pulling your heartstrings so you to reach for your wallet). Read why Guide Dogs Are Great Marketers here.