Over the last few days I’ve been working on a strategy to generate additional exposure for my company, it’s part of my job to do so, and have been beating a few ideas around, each with their own merits. I’ve been speaking with one of my clients who has a strong presence on LinkedIn and swears by it as a legitimate way to generate leads. I’m not very social media savvy though and have been reluctant to get involved. I’ve had to put that aside though and it’s been great to have a little support from that client who seems to get a lot of enjoyment from steering me in the right direction.
I generally prefer the more old-school approach of getting in front of people physically, shaking hands and talking face to face though. It’s always returned great dividends and I feel it’s a solid way to build the layers of value one needs to secure new clients and turn them into clients for life. Building good initial rapport and nurturing relationships is key and I’ve always been rather good at it when face to face. It’s with this in mind I’ve decided to do a road trip.
I’ve selected a country region north of the city as we don’t have much work coming in from there currently. I’ll head out to about three hundred kilometres from the office/factory and have compiled a long list of people I’ll need to call on, prioritised them and performed research on their businesses in general and their cold-chain logistics situation.
I have determined who I need to speak with at each business or company and devised strategies for each to place myself well to build rapport and show value right from the outset. This is where understanding their business, how it operates, the strengths and weaknesses of their logistics situation, and their area of operations comes in very handy. Preparation ahead of time will deliver better results as they’ll see I’ve taken the time to understand what’s important to them, what logistical challenges exist requiring risk-mitigation strategies and then I’ll demonstrate solutions that will match their specific needs. It’s been a lot of work.
I’ve begun putting together a run based on the appointments I’ve made and it looks to be a week-long road-trip which I’ll embark upon in a couple of weeks’ time. Of course, with this only being my third week with the company there’s a lot I’ll need to prepare before the meetings, technical stuff, but I tend to work well under pressure so I’ll bring it all together over the next couple weeks and then I’ll be off north to shake some hands and see what relationships I can create.
I know it seems so much easier and comfortable to sit behind my computer and send emails, post on LinkedIn and make phone calls but I’m a hands-on sort of operator and am very good when it comes to rapport-building in a face-to-face scenario; It means I’ll be able to read body language, better understand my potential client and therefore better match our services to their needs. It’s all about adding layers of value and I find it easier to do in person...And I love me a road-trip so...It’s on!
Design and create your ideal life, don't live it by default - Tomorrow isn't promised so be humble and kind
Discord: galenkp#9209
The image is my own
@galenkp from seeing your toy car lego model I got an idea that you might like construction vehicles. When I was on lahore trip last week, I took a picture for you. Since this is a road trip post, a bit of similar, so I am dropping the picture I took to show you on some occasion.
Oh yeah, that's some mighty fine machinery right there. Not the sort of vehicle I'll be taking on my road trip but pretty cool nonetheless.
I can't wait to see you on the road trip
Should be good.
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Love a road trip - are you a tunes, podcasts or silence kinda guy? the older I get, the more podcasts I seem to listen to....
I keep thinking how I need to get set up for podcasts, but then I never remember to do it. We have a big trip coming up, so that's my goal for today. Cheers.
Awesome. Hope you find something interesting - they can really make the time pass! Are you on a holiday or is it for work? Fingers crossed for a holiday!
Just holidays. I can work from anywhere with 4G, so lots of flexibility there.
That's awesome. Where are you off to?
Yorke Peninsula for a bit, then Barmera for a bit :)
Hmm, what a great question!
I'm usually a tunes guy if there people in the vehicle with me and if alone it's mood-dependant but if I had to answer I'd say 40% podcasts and 60% tunes. It also depends on the length of trip as the podcasts I like generally go for well longer than an hour.
That's true - I like the hour long ones when I do after work walks. Keeps me focussed and walking!
I've just finished a series about Anglo Saxon England. Would probably bore people to death but I love it. I also listen to Jocko Podcast religiously. There's others as well.
heading into the mountains? looks pretty
That's actually an image I took on the way to Dunedin NZ. Here at this time of year it's pretty brown. There's a few mountains and hills where I'm headed though. I'm looking forward to it but it'll also be a lot of work.
i thought it might be Aotearoa - Im a kiwi living in australia :) no wonder i thought it was pretty
I saw that on your profile which is why I mentioned it. Nice place. I love it there. Only been to the South Island though, too many people up north.
its the place to be! i love australia though :) saving some NZ for when im older - its too easy to see
I reckon I could live in NZ easily...The accents...Well, I thought it'd bother me when I was there but it didn't. Lol.
Seriously though, it's a pretty legit sort of place.
I completely agree with your idea " Design and create your ideal life, don't live it by default - Tomorrow isn't promised so be humble and kind".
Yes, many people seem to like my life ethos.
How awesome. I'm so excited for you, I'm sure you'll find the right people and start bringing in new biz. Hopefully you'll get to do some R&R stuff at the same time too, take some scenic pics and so on. Have a blast.
It's been pretty good over the last two weeks, just learning and all, got some orders through and a couple heading into the factory for build/installation also...A good start considering I'm still working things out. I want to do this trip to start some new relationships out that way for the future; no work will come of it immediately, it's all pipeline stuff and building relationships. Should be good.
Most times it’s good to meet with your client and not send someone instead, because you will know how they really are and you can convince them to do business with you.
They will respect you and your company more if you go in person and not sending people to do the deals for you.
I am the person my company sends, there's no one else. Seeing my prospective clients face to face will stand my company apart as all the others deal over the phone. I like to think this point of difference will have some benefit.
Yes sure it will. I know your road trip will be amazing, hoping to see some pictures.
Greetings. Excellent work, this is the occasion to write to you from the Bolívar state in Venezuela, to express my esteem and my most sincere gratitude for the positive assessment you have made of my publication today, November 24, 2021, so this attitude commits me to keep making better posts on yoga. whose practice has given me beautiful moments at Hive and has been very important to my health. A sincere thanks dear. Successes
You're welcome and all the best to you also. 😊
Very true, you can build good relations by meeting them face to face. We all know that technology is very convenient nowadays but it's just that talking to them is for me more effective because the emotions are there.
Face to face communication is better communication. I think with the pandemic situation many are content to hide behind their computers and do Zoom meetings and I reckon the potential clients up north will appreciate someone making the effort to come out there and see them personally.
I think I will just...
Stay Effing Home..!
I got a few million miles on ya. So git bizzy and catch up...
G-Dog Roadtrippin'...
Lol...That'll be me thinking about the next $2 heart attack in a bag I'll get at the next roadhouse.
Ol' Ronny McDonny knows...
I got about a million more of them
$2Now $10 sacks on ya too...And That is NOT a good thing either... Last one to the heart attack is the...
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Winner..!
Lol...Yeah, $10 and the rest these days!
You sound really good at what you do, bet that company is glad you have snapped you up XD
I do my best, am a bit old-school, and tend to present well. I think people still appreciate personal attention. That's why I go in person.
Everyone appreciates personal attention. The businesses that cut that part out to save money and then fail may or may not realise that's probably one of the reasons why they fail :)
Indeed Ry, and there's so many right now that are casting aside the personal attention for a more automated, or solitary, experience for customers.
Dumbasses.