Can it Actually be a Good Thing to Lose a Potential?
Didn't get the job? Here's how to turn a reluctant client into a positive asset
When a client doesn’t pick your firm for their job, it doesn’t mean they can’t be a good match in the future. Perhaps they just don’t have the budget at the moment or aren’t clear what they really want yet. Don’t think of a hesitant customer as a lost cause, instead use these strategies to turn them into a valuable resource for your business. You won’t regret it.
Follow it up
Continue the relationship with a client who declined your services by following up with a phone call or email. By asking for their thoughts, you’ll gain useful information and the customer will appreciate that you value their opinion.
Egon Walesch of Egon Walesch Interiors says “It’s obviously vital to know why a job hasn’t proceeded. Clearly you need to see if there are patterns emerging or if there is something you need to reconsider when putting together a proposal.”
“However, more importantly I believe it’s important to keep channels of communication open. A lot of the time, I find that the reason a project doesn’t go forward isn’t so much a rejection of the proposal that I’ve put forward but actually the client putting a brake on their plans because they have realised that there is more to the project than they had anticipated.”
Discover how to move a client meeting on to the next phase
Continue the relationship with a client who declined your services by following up with a phone call or email. By asking for their thoughts, you’ll gain useful information and the customer will appreciate that you value their opinion.
Egon Walesch of Egon Walesch Interiors says “It’s obviously vital to know why a job hasn’t proceeded. Clearly you need to see if there are patterns emerging or if there is something you need to reconsider when putting together a proposal.”
“However, more importantly I believe it’s important to keep channels of communication open. A lot of the time, I find that the reason a project doesn’t go forward isn’t so much a rejection of the proposal that I’ve put forward but actually the client putting a brake on their plans because they have realised that there is more to the project than they had anticipated.”
Discover how to move a client meeting on to the next phase
Offer help in other ways
Demonstrate your firm’s professionalism by giving something back to a client, even when you’ve been rejected. A good way to do this is by connecting them to someone who can meet their needs. By creating connections you’ll build opportunities for future projects.
The client might not have been ready to use your business, but putting them in touch with another professional will give you a reason to reconnect at a later date.
Demonstrate your firm’s professionalism by giving something back to a client, even when you’ve been rejected. A good way to do this is by connecting them to someone who can meet their needs. By creating connections you’ll build opportunities for future projects.
The client might not have been ready to use your business, but putting them in touch with another professional will give you a reason to reconnect at a later date.
Keep the connection going
Even when a customer makes a tentative enquiry, it’s worth following up. They might not be ready to go through with a major project right now, but by having a strategy to keep in touch you’ll reap the benefits later.
“I firmly believe in keeping doors open.” says Walesch. “You never know when a client is going to change their mind or rethink the project some way down the line and make contact again, or remember you when a friend or family member is looking for some support with their own project.”
Ask for the contact details of anyone who calls in and send them regular correspondence, such as an email newsletter. When they’re finally set to take the plunge, your business will be on their radar because you’ve kept in touch.
Tell us
What strategies do you use when a potential client doesn’t book? Share your ideas in the Comments below.
Even when a customer makes a tentative enquiry, it’s worth following up. They might not be ready to go through with a major project right now, but by having a strategy to keep in touch you’ll reap the benefits later.
“I firmly believe in keeping doors open.” says Walesch. “You never know when a client is going to change their mind or rethink the project some way down the line and make contact again, or remember you when a friend or family member is looking for some support with their own project.”
Ask for the contact details of anyone who calls in and send them regular correspondence, such as an email newsletter. When they’re finally set to take the plunge, your business will be on their radar because you’ve kept in touch.
Tell us
What strategies do you use when a potential client doesn’t book? Share your ideas in the Comments below.
If a potential client turns you down, use it as an opportunity to examine your business. Are there some other services you could provide in the future? Is there another way you could present your firm to make it more appealing to prospective customers?
“Sometimes rejection can be hard, but it’s also an important part of the process,” says Jessica Gay of joinery firm Bath Bespoke. “It allows you to take a look at your service and consider what could be improved. What was it that changed this client’s mind? Some things can’t be changed, like your services or sometimes pricing, and that’s OK. But just make sure it wasn’t something that could be changed that put them off.”
Find out where to find potential clients