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Forward on Reverse: Understanding Reverse-Speak, Part One

Nov 05, 2002

Cold Calling For Dummies--The ConclusionDave HershmanCold calling, financial planners, In this article, I will delve into two potentially lucrative areas for mining referral gold: professionals and vendors. If you open your eyes a bit wider, you will find that the gold is closer than you could have ever envisioned. Professionals Although this category is somewhat broad, it is generally comprised of the professionals with whom we come into contact in our everyday lives, such as doctors, lawyers, CPAs and financial planners. There are several reasons why professionals can represent a very lucrative aspect of our marketing plan: ++Professionals may represent an important target for many within sales. They earn more money than any other target group. As such, selling to those in higher income brackets means increased profits for you. ++Unless they work for corporations or the government, professionals serve the public. Therefore, they have more access to potential customers, and if you grant them access to your customer base, a reciprocal relationship may be very beneficial. Imagine joint mailings from CPAs and Mortgage Brokers or real estate professionals to their respective customer lists. The real estate list would be fertile ground before tax season or immediately following the purchase of a home. The accountant's list would be fertile ground after the checks to the IRS are mailed. ++Professionals know other professionals. Obviously, accountants know many other accountants. A close relationship with a particular professional can lead to relationships with many more. It is important to note that many segments of the sphere of influence will be related to others. Just as a customer list may be of interest to a professional, previous customers may also lead to professionals. If someone is purchasing a home, why not ask the advice of his or her financial planner? Vendors Those unavoidable salespeople may be one of the best sources of gold. Vendors may be divided into two categories: ++Vendors who call upon professionals: Instead of brushing off salespeople, use the fact that they can be especially willing to please, especially those from whom purchases are made. Remember that each of these vendors is in the business of knowing many business people, and networking is a vital part of the job. ++Vendors who call upon the targets of professionals: Not actual competitors, these are individuals who call upon targets and sell a non-competing product. Setting up synergy partnerships with these people may be very lucrative. A reach for contacts may be doubled without devoting twice as much time and money. The cycle could go on forever, but hopefully I have made my point. If you cannot find enough calls to make within the discussed categories, go ahead and cold-call. On the other hand, when you can reach deep into the sphere of influence, you'll find so many choices that cold-calling should never become an option. Dave Hershman is a leading author and top speaker for the mortgage industry with six books, including two best sellers for the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. His newsletters are used by Mortgage Brokers to provide value to previous customers, financial planners, real estate agents and more. He may be reached at (800) 581-5678 or visit www.hershmangroup.com.
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Nov 05, 2002
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