Are cold calls a good idea or a complete waste of time? What about pitching business via letters and emails – does writing to strangers pay off, or should you focus on contacting people you already know? When marketing online with a newsletter, blog, or social networking, should you reach out to folks who haven’t heard of you or stick to your existing network? Read more

Most of the dialogue about networking to build your business centers around attending events or social networking online. But I’ve always found that one-on-one networking is where the real magic happens. Meeting with people individually, in person or by phone, builds the “know, like, and trust” factor, generates referrals, connects you with new resources, and creates lasting relationships. Read more

“I spend a lot of time networking, but I don’t see many results from it.” I hear this complaint frequently from independent professionals who are hoping that their networking activities will produce clients. It used to be that my clients and students would complain about unproductive networking in the form of attending mixers or scheduling coffee meetings. But now I often hear them voice the same dissatisfaction with social networking online. Read more

As a business owner, you know how important it is to reach out and make new connections, and it’s likely a lot of your efforts are directed toward outreach. No doubt, you’ve also heard about the importance of following up, and have that as part of your plan, too. While I know it can be hard to do the outreach, it may be somewhat surprising to learn that follow-up seems to be as hard, if not harder, for many people. If this sounds familiar to you, read on! Read more

“I have a great website and publish a regular blog,” my client complained, “but I’m not getting any clients from it. The only new client I got this month was a referral from a friend. What am I doing wrong?”

It’s a common complaint of self-employed professionals that they spend a great deal of time and money on Internet marketing and social media with minimal results. You build an attractive website, launch an ezine or blog, set up a couple of social media profiles, and maybe try a Google AdWords campaign. But for all that effort, not much seems to come of it. What’s going on? Read more

Never underestimate the power of a thank you. Recently, I thanked someone for helping me solve a technical problem. She replied to my note of thanks by inviting me as a guest speaker for a group she chairs. I didn’t even know she chaired this group and I had never considered speaking there. This speaking opportunity would never have occurred if I hadn’t taken a moment to say thanks. It started me thinking about how often saying thank you turns into paying business. Read more

Savvy independent professionals know that referrals are the best way to land new clients. But getting those referrals can sometimes be a challenge. When referrals don’t come easily — or the ones you get seem to be off track — it’s tempting to forget about building referrals and spend time on cold calling, boilerplate letters and emails, or advertising, even though you know those approaches aren’t as effective in the long run. Read more

One day, the phone just stopped ringing. At first, you may not have noticed it. You were busy serving your clients, keeping up in your field, and getting the bills paid, like all good professionals do. But then a project ended or a client quit, and you didn’t have a replacement waiting in the pipeline. Suddenly you realized that it had been quite some time since any new prospects were referred to you. Yikes, what’s going on? Read more

Q. I am the volunteer coordinator of an informal network of trainers, training managers, and training administrators who work in corporate training departments. How do I get these members to hire me as a consultant without directly asking for their business? Read more

Whoever said, “If you build it, they will come” was not referring to your LinkedIn profile! On LinkedIn, once you’ve built a completely optimized profile it’s time to go connect with people. Why? Because your connections are your network and your network is what makes LinkedIn work for you. Read more