It doesn’t matter if you are an up-and-coming startup, or if you have been in the game for years, everyone would agree that making a great first impression at that elusive first client meeting is absolutely essential. It’s something that can make or break a business and if you don’t have the right tactics on hand, or the right team on board, you’re destined to fail.
All of the above is why this guide has been put together. Sure, nobody can hold your hand as you physically enter the room for the client meeting, but armed with a few tips your job can suddenly become all the more easier. Let’s take a look at some of the best approaches you can try.
Table of Contents
Location, location, location
If you have the choice of location, choose wisely. A lot of the time, this might be held at either yours or the potential client’s offices, but there might be occasions where a neutral venue is available.
It’s in these cases where you should turn to a specialist meeting room, which at least shows that you are in the market to mean business. It’s here in which you will have all of the modern technology available that will allow you to really give the best impression to your prospective client as well.
Don’t underestimate an agenda
It’s quite traditional, but don’t let that stop you from putting an agenda together ahead of your meeting. As simple as it might sound, it just makes your services suddenly appear to be much more trustworthy. Both you and the client know what is going to be covered, there are no hidden surprises, and it just means that you’re not making things up as you go along. The last part can be particularly off-putting for some people.
Conduct enough research on the client’s competition
We were tempted to talk about the importance of researching about the client themselves – but that’s too obvious. Instead, this next suggestion is going to focus on something that can really wow your prospective audience; finding out and revealing what their competition is doing.
This is something that most people won’t expect at this stage, so to have it in your arsenal is something really impressive and can help seal the deal. It means that you already possess knowledge of the industry, and that just adds to the trust-factor that we have already spoken about.
Dress for the occasion
Some clients view their contractors as an extension of their team, and that means that you have to fit in appropriately. This stems right the way through to the way you dress.
The general rule is that a suit is always going to work wonders – but that’s not going to be on every occasion. If you know that the client you are targeting works in a casual environment, turning up in 3-piece attire is hardly the definition of “fitting in”. Like most areas, you’ve got to work your audience.
About Carson Derrow
