Not All Prospective Clients Are Created Equal Raising the Barr Weekly Memo: Issue 178

This week’s reflection point: I’ve been fortunate over the years, to work with many prospective clients and I confess that some are a pleasure to work with while others a bit challenging. Obviously, the ones that are great to work with often become the most rewarding and outstanding clients.

There are several warning signs that a prospective client may be challenging such as: argumentative, inflexible, closed-minded, hard to get a hold of and disrespectful.

Let me share some of the attributes of great prospective clients.

They are:

• Honest — which manifests itself by their willingness to openly answer your questions in a straightforward way and avoid ambiguity.
• Accessible — making themselves available for meetings and discussions. They rarely cancel or reschedule the meetings and are respectful of your time.
• Open-minded — solicit your expert advice to improve their lives and businesses. They are open to your pushbacks and to being challenged.
• Action taking — They do what they say and follow their promises.
• Enthusiastic — Their language demonstrates excitement to move forward.

This week’s tip: When you recognize the warning signs, I urge you to quickly disengage and acknowledge that this is not a good fit. Yet, when you recognize the attributes of great prospective clients, most will then become your long-term clients, which will reward you both with years of mutual value, growth and success.