The Art of Real and True

 

 

Every industry has them.  The auto sales folks call them tire kickers and realtors sometimes refer to them as looky loos.  They are clients that appear real and true but in reality never produce any beneficial impact and suck the life our of your time.  On the surface they may seem like legitimate leads that in all rights should produce a business relationship, but instead they dangle the prospect of business like a “sirens song” and like the Greeks of old, entrepreneur’s crash into their false shores.

We run into these types of potential connections all the time.  Someone who enters into a dialog, steers the discussion towards the strong possibility of engagement, heck they even toss out some dates, but then, when the follow up starts, they disappear.  No returned calls, no answers to the electronic contact litany of email and text messages.  You think; “what the hell?”  THEY started the connection.  THEY were interested and then THEY vanish.

You have been welcomed into the murky water of REAL and TRUE.  This is how we define new contacts.  Are they REAL and TRUE or not.  How do you tell?  It’s a dynamic art and despite whatever litmus test you choose, it’s going to be non-exacting. Here is our’s:

• The Communication Chain: Define with the potential client the best way to communicate.  Is it by phone, email, text, carrier pigeon or psychic connection?  Once you have determined the HOW, set some expectation for response time.  If you connect on this KEY point they move forward on the field.  This is the chance to appear or disappear.
• The Screen:  The initial contact generates our new client three part survey.  They simply have to answer three questions:  What do you do, what value do you bring and how are you different from everyone else doing the same thing?  If they take the time to THINK about and then respond, they are on the high ground of REAL and TRUE.
• The Project:  Can you DEFINE a project?  If you can this is probably a REAL and TRUE client.

Now a lead can get “A’s” in all of this and still disappear, but more than less, they become a client and launch what everyone hopes is a beneficial relationship.

Now we keep track of those NON-TRUE and REAL folks because the world often spins in odd ways and they may come back and become REAL and TRUE.

Being REAL and TRUE is a key indicator at Creative Ventures.  It requires a mutual amount of focus, time and commitment.