Are you ignoring leads?

When I arrived for Easter lunch I wasn’t expecting to be drafted into the role of Easter bunny but there I was, basket full of eggs full of candy, frantically hiding them alongside my aunt in her backyard. By the end we just threw them haphazardly across the grass (there was a toddler after all) and rushed the kids outdoors. We weren’t being cruel, the skies opened up and poured on us 2 minutes after the last egg was collected.

The older kids were pretty good, darting this way and that to find the brightly colored eggs hidden amongst the grass, flowers and chairs. Still, under 5 year olds are not well known for their deductive reasoning, and more than once we helpfully pointed out an egg literally under their noses.

The youngest had a much different strategy and picked up a few eggs before sitting down, cracking them open and eating the candy – ignoring all encouragement to keep going! Look here! At least pick up the one by your feet!

When it comes to getting the good stuff yourself – in your business it might be leads, opportunities, partnerships, gigs – I see too many businesses that employ these same strategies.

Strategy 1: Go for the obvious but don’t work too hard

You might be excited, willing to put in the work but then, just sit back and enjoy yourself. There’s nothing wrong with balance but if you find that premature celebration leads to quitting early then it’s time to reconsider that strategy.

Strategy 2: Go for the obvious and grab as much as you can

While a solid strategy, sometimes you have to look for the results you want in non-obvious places.

Grabbing all to all that you can handle isn’t about greed (unless we’re still talking about candy and then yes, it’s all about greed). Reaching for opportunities to help more clients, teach others and grow your business is natural and should be encouraged!

Strategy 3: Don’t play at all

Because candy was involved, this didn’t happen on Easter but some people will aways think “I can’t be the best, why bother playing?” If that kind of self pity and frustration plagues your mind remember that while the playing field may not be even, it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t participate.

Most of the time I see companies chasing leads this way – running all over the place, celebrating too early or even refusing to look.

The first real question is: do you know how many leads you have and do you have a system to convert them into clients? 

We’ll tackle systems for managing your leads next week but this week your Action Step is to make a list of all the active leads for your business. Anyone who has shown interest in working with you who is not yet a customer or client should go on the list. Next week we’ll share strategies on following up with them so you can close more sales.