Follow Up To Be Successful

Relationship building is one of the most important elements of success in business. Giving people a reason to remember you pleasantly helps develop positive rapport with prospective associates, clients, referral sources and employers, and you have a marvelous opportunity to begin the process with a thank-you note and follow-up correspondence.

In this hectic world, taking the time to follow up can make you stand out from the pack. How many people remember to thank you or take the time to keep in touch? I go to numerous networking events and I’m constantly amazing at how many people don’t bother to send an email, let alone a thank-you note to the people they meet! Why did they go even go to the event? It’s mind boggling.

Following up with someone you meet at a networking event with a card or e-mail also gives you an opportunity to recap your meeting and begin building your relationship with them. Remember, people like to do business with people they like and trust. Additionally, maybe that person you met doesn’t have a need for your service… but they may know someone that does. It has been said that everyone knows about 250 people… So, by building that relationship with the person you met at a networking event could potentially gain you access to their connections.

Besides following up to networking events, correspondence showing your appreciation is always a great way to build lasting relationships.

These are a few examples of people to whom you can send thanks:

• Anyone who did you a favor
• Prospects at a sales meetings
• People who sent congratulations or compliments
• Team members who helped make a project a success
• A coworker who has done something especially helpful
• Volunteers

Now what about following up with associates or people you meet at seminars and other events? In addition to being appreciated, people love to be remembered. If you exchanged business cards with someone at a function, scribble something interesting or significant about the conversation on the card’s back.

Later, send notes telling people how much you enjoyed meeting them and mentioning one or two of the points of interest you jotted on the back of the card. You’ll be on your way to building a network of business allies.

Since it can be easy to lose track of advantageous contacts, create a follow-up program. Following up may include arranging lunch appointments or sending associates information that the recipients may appreciate (articles or links to interesting Web resources).

Other opportunities for getting in touch with people include the following:

• Sending congratulations or compliments
• Remembering anniversaries and birthdays
• A simple keep-in-touch card
• Holiday Greetings
• Good luck wishes or messages of encouragement

The more personal the occasion, the more appropriate it is to send a handwritten message. (Experts recommend correspondence cards.) However, if the message contains business information that may be seen by people other than the recipients, or if your handwriting isn’t readable, go ahead and type it. Also, if the recipients work in a tech field, they’ll probably prefer an e-mailed message. You can still include a personal touch through an online site which enables you to select or design your own card; they will print it, stuff it, stamp it and mail it for about $1.00.

It may seem hard to find the time for these follow-up techniques, but stick to them. A well-composed, friendly note has a lasting influence on recipients and marks you as conscientious and courteous–just the type of person people want to associate with them.

If you want to see or get help with a system that can help to follow up conveniently, economically and easily CONTACT ME!