Speaker - December 2009

What cautions do you advise?

Don’t assume corporate clients have big budgets and deep pockets. We were just as concerned about staying on budget and saving money as anyone else.

Don’t revise my RFP. I can’t tell you how many people read the RFP, which clearly states our objective, and instead of showing how they could deliver, they thought they could read between the lines, diagnose a deeper issue and expand the scope of the work.

Don’t latch onto a manager within the company and think that you are “in.” HR might not be your first or best point of entry, but odds are you will have to go through them eventually. And when you do, treat them the same way you treat the manager who is championing you.

The best thing speakers or trainers can do is introduce themselves, show experience, and ask about our interest in their topic or area of expertise.

Any words of encouragement? Your best sales tool is to be memorable in a positive way, so that when the opportunity arises, you are the first person that the decision maker thinks of. When I don’t have someone in mind, I usually call a counterpart at another company or association and ask, “Who do you use or know for [fill in the blank] topic?” Stay in touch with your clients via e-mails, phone calls and letters.

Del Black, founder of Deep Roots Consulting, works with leaders and teams in corporate and nonprofit environments who want to produce significant results through effective collaboration. Her 25 years of experience includes leadership development, training and coaching for Boeing, Raytheon, Hughes Aircraft and Fluor-Daniel. For more information, visit www.deeprootsconsulting.com.

Terri Langhans, CSP, is COE (Chief of Everything) at Blah Blah Blah, her speaking and consulting business for people who want to make their message stand out, get better results and be anything but boring. For more information, visit http://blahblahblah.us.

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