Here’s what you’re looking for: Martin Bissett

What is your first impression?

By Martin Bissett
Business Development on a Budget

Winning your first client is all about understanding why someone would buy from you before you ever speak to them, before you ever meet them, before you ever start the preparation for talking to them.

MORE by Martin Bissett
Exclusively for PRO Members. Log in here or upgrade to PRO today.

This discipline too often goes unexplained by most sales training programs offered to the accounting profession, but ultimately we have to be comfortable with who we are and the value that we offer.
READ MORE →

Today’s Bissett Bullet: “Selling ‘pushes’ something to a prospective client. Attracting them to buy ‘pulls’ them toward your value. There’s a big difference.”

By Martin Bissett

The accounting profession is awash with marketing and business development gurus who have come from a retail environment. They believe that what works in retail, such as a certain percentage off your first year’s fee or a “buy now and save,” or indeed a deadline-style approach, is going to be effective in professional service selling. In reality, the professional service relationship requires a lot more maturity than that.

Our goal as a practice should always be to demonstrate irrefutably how good we are through third-party stories and case studies and let the tribe select themselves from there. If we “push” to everyone, we are going to end up with a lot of clients we did not really want. Not all business is good business.

Today’s To-Do:

Take a look at your current marketing content and ask yourself, am I pushing services upon an indifferent marketplace here or am I simply showcasing the results that I obtain for clients day in, day out? If it is the former, change it. If it is the latter, broadcast it even more loudly than you are now.

See more Bissett Bullets here

READ MORE →

Do you know where your next money is coming from?

By Martin Bissett
Passport to Partnership

If I could give you one tip that would assure that you could predict your consistent practice growth, it would be to look at your calendar.

MORE by Martin Bissett
Exclusively for PRO Members. Log in here or upgrade to PRO today.

You need to look at what is on your calendar and to look at today’s date and ask, “Where is the money coming from this month?” Look at what recurring fees you have, look at the value of those fees and what they bring in. Then consider what would happen if any of those fees did not recur. Look at what would happen if those fees dropped out of the equation and think about how you would replace that income.
READ MORE →

Today’s Bissett Bullet: “You should be in control of what happens next but allow the prospect to be in control of WHEN it happens.”

By Martin Bissett

Accounting professionals are generally of a more technical, reactive background and aren’t used to working in the kind of proactive manner that is required for business development. When we finish a meeting with a potential new client and are at the stage where we need to ask for the next meeting, it can feel as though we’re being pushy.

When you ask a prospect when would be appropriate to come back and talk them through your solutions and they tell you they have a busy period coming up and can’t possibly meet for three weeks, that’s fine, simply suggest a date three weeks away. Allow them to dictate when the next meeting happens as long as it does. They will then be happy to meet with you without feeling bullied or manipulated and you will have the opportunity to see them again having given careful consideration to your proposal.

Today’s To-Do:

Role play this scenario with a colleague. When you realize that this approach doesn’t feel pushy on the receiving end, you’ll feel more comfortable asking for the meeting in future.

See more Bissett Bullets here

READ MORE →

Four key questions to ask yourself.

By Martin Bissett
Passport to Partnership

Unhappy and difficult clients help our firms to improve our client management skills and present opportunities to refine our leadership skills.

MORE by Martin Bissett

Exclusively for PRO Members. Log in here or upgrade to PRO today.

 

It is tough for us to build a successful firm without difficult clients or internal personnel issues in order to provide learning experiences for us to build a robust and commercially successful infrastructure.
READ MORE →