Archives for January 2023

In the last post we talked about negotiating with your big fish and how to nurture and build on the relationships you are creating. Today we’ll talk about the power your fish has and how to utilize that for your benefit.

One of the most important aspects of this is to keep your cheerleader cheering. This refers to the ally you created in the company and who needs to stay loyal to you for you to continue a profitable partnership with your fish. You can keep your champion going by offering or doing a number of things to show appreciation. Some of these things are:

• Share the limelight.
• Help them thank their company with new products and services.
• Emotionally connect them to your company.
• Know when to leave them alone.
• Keep your “family” happy.
• Stay on the front lines.

Now that you have some ideas of how to build solid relationships, you need to seek out people to build these relationships with. These alliances will help you get bigger clients that stay with you forever. You can often get in the door by offering them something in exchange for something they need:

1. Power
2. Information
3. Better work experience

These are all great ways to feed your alliance. You need to go into a relationship considering the things a big fish can offer you besides money. These can include:

• The opportunity for your business to expand
• The opportunity to learn from the experience and find ways to grow
• The opportunity to improve your processes, systems and other means of doing business

These are some of the best ways to keep your alliances going strong and your partnerships fresh and content.

If you need help with any of these tactics, try our FREE test drive for great tools and resources that can help you every step of the way.

There are a few things you need to do and consider to prepare for your first face to face meeting:

• Make a list of what you want to accomplish during the meeting.
• Anticipate potential concerns from the client.
• Check to make sure you are completely prepared.
• Listen more than you talk.
• Bring support staff with you.
• Use and respect the clients’ format.
• Always follow through.
• Ask for what you need and seal the deal.
• Simplify your prospects life.
• Find ways to boost your credibility.
• Build and nurture relationships.
• Learn from “no”. Find out what didn’t work so you know how to change it for the next time.

These are all important things to do both before and during your presentation. With confidence behind your company and product you will catch that big fish. The next step of the process is negotiation. This can seem a little intimidating but with a few tips and tricks can become natural to you.

Here are some tips to help you negotiate successfully:

1. Build a pricing strategy and stick with it.
2. Prioritize what you plan to offer. This should include what really matters to you and what you are willing to give in on.
3. Don’t give in too quickly.
4. Negotiated with a person, not a “company”. Don’t let their answer be that they would like to, but can’t.
5. Don’t sell yourself short.
6. Mitigate your pricing. If you go too low, you won’t be able to raise it back up and you need to make a profit.
7. Don’t sacrifice quality for the deal.
8. Your services should always count as costs.
9. Boost margins with add-ons.
10. Handle request for proposals with the utmost care.

These are the ways you make sure that both parties are getting the best possible situation from the partnership. Once you start meeting or working together, it’s important to continue to build your relationship so that the representative becomes as big of an ally that best suits you. They are more likely to vouch for you and build on the partnership you have with their company.

We like to call this person a champion. They are a champion for your company and can bring a stronger, brighter future to your company. Here are the characteristics of a great champion:

• They are respected by supervisors.
• They are socially networked.
• They think in the best interest of their company, long term.
• They are able to quickly navigate through the company to get things done.
• They are willing to give credit to another person.
• They share the same business philosophy, values, and vision as you.

Now, that you know how to negotiate for what is best for both parties and build on relationships, we’re going to talk about how to use your fish’s power to the best of your benefit.

If you need help with any of the negotiation or courting process, try our FREE test drive to get access to a wealth of great tools and resources to help you be successful.