As a business leader, entrepreneur and marketer, you are probably considering sending your own emails to your customers and prospects for the people who are quarantined at home. Your e-mail may look like an official letter signed by the CEO or a quick update, notification or greetings.
However, Larry Golden reminds us that if you aren’t evaluating the importance of getting this tactic right. You might find your brand and messages being ignored in the currently over-crowded inboxes of your clients.
In this episode of VirtualPreneur Summit 2020, we have invited Larry Golden from the Golden Sales Group who will speak about the importance of delivering the right and also a relevant message to your customers during the COVID 19 outbreak along with the effects it’ll have for your brand.
The Speaker: Larry Golden
Larry Golden is a serial entrepreneur, an agent of change, an eternal and unflappable optimist and a super creative problem solver.
Since 2012, Golden Sales Group, Larry’s main company, has been solving challenges providing strategic advice and profitable sustainable sales processes and training to multinational companies in the United States.
What Can You Learn from the podcast:
- What You’ll Learn in This Episode (Outline) Branding: How to stand out over the rest (1:11)
- COVID 19: The need to connect with customers and clients (2:23)
- Reaching out to your former customers (3:38)
- Successful actions for your business to combat COVID 19 (8:00)
Connect with Larry Golden via FACEBOOK, LINKEDIN or through the WEBSITE.
We Are In A Pandemic
“We are in a pandemic economy so it’s quite likely that the old rules don’t apply; there are new rules,” Larry didn’t hesitate to dive right into the topic. “While we are currently at a crisis, we are also presented with an opportunity to show our clients that you genuinely care,” he added.
Larry means to urge and inform every entrepreneur and business that there is no better time like now to reach out to their customers, prospects and even former customers.
Because he guarantees that if you do this right you could separate your brand from everyone else’s and you could earn sub referral for your business.
How Is It Done Right
We asked the creative problem solver on how we can properly apply and do this tactic right the first time.
Larry responded with a lesson, to keep in mind that the true definition of selling is helping others do what they do better.
He then redirected us to three categories to focus on. One was for our current customers, Second, it was for our prospects and lastly was for our former customers.
Starting with your current customers
Larry points out that reaching out to your customers and letting them know you are here for them is a point towards the right track.
However, to make use of this approach, entrepreneurs should not be asking their clients about doing business. Rather, ask them how you can find if there is anything you could do for them.
Larry clarified that whether it’s with your products or services, you are dealing with your clients today mainly by assisting them in their current situation.
The optimistic Larry mentioned how we could expedite deliveries from your service. Or helping them adjust with their current payment terms. Or just plain listening to what they’ll suggest and try to meet them halfway.
“Don’t ask for the business transaction but rather focus on what you or your company can do for them,” says Larry.(3:09)
However, Larry also voiced out his concern for overpromising. “Never over-promise as people will remember that and if you fail, you’ll probably never hear the end of it.” (3:28)
Moving on to prospects
Larry urges you to think of your prospects as similar to your customers. Your conversation with them could start with a greeting. Then you can let them know you’ve been thinking about them in these crazy times.
However, there is no other trick here but to be genuine in your approach. Genuinely inquire how they are doing and again, Larry reminds us that it is really not about doing business with them.
“Acknowledge what they say and note it in detail not just, in general, like ‘oh my things are tough’,” says the serial entrepreneur.
From that starting point, you can build rapport and transition to the topic if there is anything only you can do for them both personally and professionally.
Former customers
Larry provided a situation for the VirtualPreneurs saying “Imagine what it could mean to a former customer if you reached out during all this uncertainty to say hello?”
Time and time again, Larry noted how important it is to be a good listener, to acknowledge what your clients are sharing point by point.
After building rapport, you can inquire if you can do anything for them. The serial entrepreneur guarantees that you will be one of the few who does make an effort to reach out to their former customers like this.
To add in his discussion, Larry voiced out that when possible, you have to make good use of the phone as much as possible.
Larry directs our attention to the dangers of being misinterpreted over texts and emailing. While those methods are convenient, they are not that powerful or as impressive.
Using the phone to contact the people who are either working at home or just quarantined will, in some way, guarantee that they’ll respond to your approach and in a more positive manner.
Larry also asks for businesses, who are in a position to offer meaningful and needed assistance, that this would be the perfect time to transition into reaching those who need them.
Specifically, you let the customer understand what you do and if there is anyone they know who can benefit from your services, they could refer them to you.
Additional Takeaways
Larry added some additional thoughts and strategies as other key takeaways for his talk.
He observed that most companies or your competitors do not have the resources to prospect this method properly. So you have to expect that your clients will see a flood of silly offers that just don’t make sense in their inbox.
However, with this knowledge, you can use it to tailor and learn which tactics to avoid.
For Larry, the contents of his LinkedIn inbox were spammed with silly impractical offers, scare tactics and useless suggestions. Which was worst because they came from people he didn’t even know.
“You only get one chance to make a first impression and then make the most of it,” says Larry. (6:29)
The entrepreneur returned to why it is important to make the message right. Larry expressed his distaste for one email who asked him if he was interested in buying a yacht. Although he admired their assistance, did he really need a yacht right now?
Larry Golden suggested that businesses should do whatever it takes to keep their own customers build and reinforce trust. But they shouldn’t forget to take a step backward and think before they send that email.
Keep It Real
Does your message make sense and resonate with the current global issues?
Larry wants businesses to think about the situation as this will help you keep your approaches timely and real.
Most importantly, you must not make any promises that you simply cannot keep or create offers that don’t make sense with the situation.
He also mentioned that there is nothing like a personal touch, like a call, that’ll be well received with so many people working off-site with time on their hands and are in genuine need of human interaction.
Lastly, businesses should never waste precious resources on offers that just don’t make sense to anyone at this time.
Potential Successful Actions
Larry Golden continued his talk to listing out some examples of potential successful actions these types of business made.
“As I’m saying these, think about how you might be able to apply some of this to your own business,” says Larry.
Larry shared how restaurants are offering to sell basic provisions to communities near them. These include hard-to-get staples from bread, milk, meat, and chicken.
It’s not about converting your restaurant into a convenience store but rather to offer supplies to lessen the line and delays in the supermarkets.
One other method is to make use of video apps like FaceTime, Zoom, and many others to consult plumbers, technicians and other professions.
The same plumber or technician can make use of this to schedule their time in the service of their clients. However, you have to keep in mind that you don’t do too much that’ll put your business in a bad spot just to fill empty slots.
For events and caterers, there must have been plenty of calls for cancellations and refunds. However, you can offer those deposits to be converted into other events like an anniversary or baby showers.
Remember, people are going to remember the business or service that came across with the right message. Who was caring at the right time and who listened to their market’s current needs.
Larry concludes his talk saying “If you take care of your customers, prospects, and former customers good things will happen.” (A. Menchavez)
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