Posted on March 13, 2013 by Stephan Wiedner

Do you ever wonder how to respond to client leads to get contacted?

In addition to avoiding these mistakes, here are some tips that we have developed by looking at hundreds of client leads, focusing on the successful ones.

1. Read what the client says very carefully

Try to imagine that person, their state of mind, their physical posture, what they might be wearing. Create a picture of that person in your mind’s eye.

2. Connect to the client

After you say “hi Jane” (or whatever their name is), write one paragraph that connects to that client and offers leadership and hope. It should be something like “You sure seem to be struggling with . I can help.”

AND, SPELL THEIR NAME CORRECTLY! If you get that wrong, count yourself out of the running.

3. Promise to help solve their problem

It’s good to offer bullet points. I will help you with 1, 2, and 3. Bing, bang, boom.

With each bullet point, be clear about what the benefit is to the client (answer the clients question “What’s in it for me?”). Ideally, you will adjust the benefits to meet the needs they mentioned. Try to stay in the trenches, using the language that the customer understands. If someone doesn’t specifically say they want to discover their life purpose, don’t promise that. It’s too overwhelming and unbelievable. Plus they don’t think they want that.

They think they want to get a job. They want to stop being stressed all the time. They want their wife to love them again. Use the words they use.

It will look like this: With my coaching, you are going to:

1. get really clear on what kind of role is best suited to your personality
2. find companies that match your unique interests and talents
3. take action on a regular basis so you have the confidence that you are making progress towards your big goals.

Bing, bang, boom!

4. Prove to them why you can deliver.

You’ve just promised them results. Now you need to prove that you can deliver.

You can do that in a soft way, dropping hints of experience, education, past clients, programs you’ve developed, and books you’ve written.

For example: “My 10+ years as a teacher and helping professional has helped me see the hidden talents in people, especially young professionals. In my book titled The Corporate Elevator: Ladders are so 2010, I reveal my passion for helping up-and-comers land their ideal job. I offer specific tools and techniques that work for technology savvy go-getters who want to impress their future bosses and the world.”

I’m making this up on the spot but I think you get the point.

5. End with a call to action

You need to tell customers what the next step is. Make it compelling.

“Please call me for a complimentary session.”

Even better: “Call me for a free 20-minute love your job assessment. Get immediate value.”

6. Make the response easy to read

Make sure you include spaces between each paragraph to give the document more space. People get overwhelmed with big clumps of text.

Do you have any comments or questions?

Please leave a comment below. I’d love to hear from you.