Title: Courting Business: 101 Ways for Accelerating Business Relationships
Published by: Career Press
Release Date: February 15, 2005
Pages: 192
ISBN13: 978-1564147691
Buy the Book: Amazon

Overview

Why waste your time chasing after prospects when you can get them to come to you? Most self-proclaimed rainmakers let business drizzle in rather than positioning themselves to experience a downpour. Courting Business: 101 Ways for Accelerating Business Relationships gives you the strategies for getting prospects to contact you.

Ann Marie Sabath’s proven three-step strategy will inspire you to be creative, consistent, and politely relentless in a way that will please even the toughest prospects. This hands-on guide offers tips and techniques for successfully attracting and closing business. Best of all, it will fan the flame of business relationships and put the passion back into your professional life.

With Courting Business, you'll:

• Discover the three most important qualities for success
• See why if you're on time, you're late!
• Realize how instilling the sense of urgency in your professional style will differentiate you from your competition
• Learn why doing more for fewer people will assist you in developing stronger relationships
• Establish instant rapport with prospects and clients through the use of connectors
• Understand why 75% of prospects must see things at least seven times to react
• Determine how to get prospects to buy rather than selling to them
• Recognize why it is so essential to work "on" business rather than "in" business
• Learn how to overcome the fear of rejection
• Figure out how to turn a "no" today into a "yes" tomorrow

Whether you are a novice or a seasoned rainmaker, Courting Business gives you a foolproof system for outclassing your competition and getting prospects to say that wonderful word, "yes!"

Praise

“Everyone who wants to get ahead can benefit from Courting Business.”
—Lillian Vernon, Founder, Lillian Vernon

“This book is filled with a multitude of recommendations that apply to what sales people should do each and every day – regardless of their level of responsibility.”
—Oscar Rodriguez, Area General Sales Manager, Chicago Marriott O’Hare

“Courting Business is full of practical tips that can make a difference in getting a job offer – or not; getting additional business – or not.”
—Mindy Storrie, Director, MBA Career Services, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kenan-Flagler School of Business

“Interesting and focused. College students through CEOs could benefit from Courting Business.”
—William H. Bagley, Regional Human Resource Director, Deloitte & Touche LLP

“This book gives commonsense tips on how to build meaningful business relationships that will last.”
—Leigh Prop, Senior Vice President, Retail Administration, Fifth Third Bank

“Great for anyone in professional services.”
—Barry C. Melancon, CPA, President and CEO, AICPA

Excerpt

People Tend to Be More Willing to Give You Their Time When You Ask for a Specific Amount of It

I’ll always remember my first phone encounter with Jean LaPointe, who was the manager of organizational development with Chiquita Brands. He called our office to schedule a meeting to discuss developing a training relationship between our firm and his organization. Even though he was the prospect, he made me feel as though I was doing him a favor by asking, “When can you spare 30 minutes from your busy schedule to meet with me?”

What class! And how easy it was for me to say “yes!”

We scheduled the meeting for a mutually convenient date and time. I sent a follow-up letter to Mr. LaPointe with background information about our firm.

Our meeting day arrived. After being welcomed into his office and being offered a seat, Jean LaPointe said, “Thank you for taking time to meet with me for a half hour.” He explained his specific training interest and asked how our firm could accomplish this goal. During the last 10 minutes of our meeting, Jean said, “Ann Marie, during the next few minutes, what else may I share with you in order for you to prepare a proposal for me?”

That 30-minute meeting was the beginning of our firm’s training relationship with this world-class operation. It also was the way I learned to get prospects to see me by asking for a specific amount of their time.