Communication: The Lifeblood of Sales

A client at rest tends to stay at rest unless acted upon by an outside force," says business-development expert Mahan Khalsa. That begs the following: As the market warms and long delayed IT projects get revisited, what position will you hold on the minds of your old prospects? What key competencies do you want them to remember and link to you? Here's some advice for addressing those types of concerns.

Where To Start
Start touching them now: Identify the 20 most important customers you have wowed in the past.
Individualize your database to focus on the right people with the appropriate value proposition messages delivered at the right time.
Determine each customer's "pain point"--and how you can fix it with new technology and solutions.

What To Do Next
Create a stay-in-touch campaign: A series of letters or e-mails that articulate your unique position and clarify your specific value-add can help.
Tell your story in a more memorable way: Beyond an intelligent brochure, remember your specific audience. Raised on MTV and CNN, they will notice your delicate use of multiple media.
Automate communication: As IT decisions become more costly and more mission-critical, selecting partners often becomes a protracted and multiple-contact buying process. Maintaining momentum over the long buying process will take patience, professionalism and adroit persistence.

What To Consider Next
Develop a "drip-irrigation" intelligent-marketing campaign: Useful, accessible and regular touches are appreciated by contacts. Whether elaborate and show-stopping or simple and straightforward, being top-of-mind is the best way to ensure they remember to call you first.
Embrace new technology: Use software to begin to know people as more than account numbers. Begin a lifelong dossier of relevant information and insights on your most important contacts. Develop deep data on each individual from personal and professional info to business and social insights.
Ask permission to stay in touch: Even with such explicit permission, stay aware of the option to "delete" that everyone has. Regardless of economic forecasters of gloom, a thaw is coming. Now is the time to get your garden in shape and get some new seeds in the ground.

Jim Cecil (jim@nurturemarketing.com) helps VARs go to market through technology and letter campaigns. For his free "21 Tips For Nurturing Customers," visit www.nurturemarketing.com.