Sometimes the greatest gain in productive energy will come from cleaning the cobwebs,
dealing with old business, and clearing the decks.
– David Allen
No matter what the nature of a business is, it will live or die and prosper or struggle based upon its ability to consistently generate potential clients and customers (the process of “Lead Generation”), and then convert those lead opportunities into revenue for the company (the process of “Lead Conversion”). And my observation has been that most businesses spend far too much time and money generating leads and place little emphasis on the Lead Conversion side of the equation. It is quantity over quality – let’s generate lots and lots of leads, spend lots and lots of money generating them, and some of it will be sure to stick! What is worse is that many businesspeople don’t see their past clients and customers as the most valuable source of new business (i.e., referral and repeat business). They abandon the people who put them on the map in the first place!
In my Coaching practice, I am somewhat of a lunatic when it comes to this space. I encourage my clients to “clean house” in this arena! It is a matter of enhancing whatever is working well and fixing or scraping anything that is not working or that is producing marginal results. And my emphasis is always on garnering repeat and referral business from past clients and customers. The ultimate objective of any business is to create a client/customer for life by rendering an outstanding product or service, and then engaging in the process of staying “top of mind” with this audience.
Further, if a client of mine is going to spend his/her hard-earned dollars creating new business (which he/she should do), it is imperative that the leads which are generated are of high quality, and that the salespeople in the organization have razor-sharp lead conversion skills. An under-achieving sales force is also a place where cleaning house is largely ignored. We who are small business owners do not take the time to ensure that we have the right people on the bus, and coach and train them to reach their goals and the goals of the company. As the mantra goes: There’s the desk and there’s the phone; good luck you’re on your own!
So, if you are feeling like your business needs a bit of housecleaning, begin with cleaning up your Lead Generation and Lead Conversion wheelhouse!
Am I willing to deal with the mess that I have made when it comes to generating and converting quality leads, and embrace the endgame of creating clients and customers for life?
© John G. 2021
