What do you do if your business development contacts are slipping away?

I would first assess the reasons behind the slippage. Then, I would reach out to them proactively, offer additional value or incentives, and work to re-engage them through personalized communication and relationship-building efforts.

? Reach out personally: Reach out directly via email, phone calls, or even in-person meetings if possible. ? Offer value: Provide something of value to your contacts, whether it's helpful resources, industry insights, or assistance with their projects or challenges. ? Revisit past successes: Remind your contacts of the successful collaborations or projects you've worked on together in the past. ? Listen actively: Take the time to listen to your contacts' current needs, goals, and challenges. ? Offer incentives: Provide incentives or special offers to incentivize your contacts to re-engage with your business. ? Stay top-of-mind: Regularly communicate with your contacts to stay top-of-mind.

In the business world, adopting the principle that "proposals beat debates" is crucial, especially when trying to regain lost contacts. Instead of dwelling on past disputes, offering forward-thinking proposals that aim for strong, lasting relationships proves to be the most effective strategy. Decision-making should focus on the future rather than past experiences to avoid repeating mistakes and to foster sustainable business practices. Embracing the technology, perspective, and models of modern business, informed by lessons from the past, is essential for setting a new course. This approach is key to revitalizing business relationships and achieving long-term success.

If your business development contacts are slipping away, take immediate action to re-engage them. Reach out personally to understand their concerns and offer solutions tailored to their needs. Utilize CRM software to track interactions and schedule follow-ups. Implement targeted marketing campaigns to reconnect with dormant contacts. Provide value through informative content and exclusive offers. Strengthen relationships by maintaining regular communication and addressing feedback promptly. Adjust strategies based on client feedback to ensure ongoing satisfaction and retention.

Networking is about building genuine relationships. It is not about selling to every person you meet. Take time to get to know people,understand their needs,& see how you can bring value to them.Don't be the person who goes to networking events & bombards people with your sales pitches.No one enjoys that.Instead, focus on building connections & being a resource for others.Referrals are gold.The true power of networking lies in referrals.By building authentic relationships & being a valuable resource, you will naturally generate referrals.The more you network, the more relationships you build, more opportunities will come your way.Work to create win-win for everyone & remember networking is not a one time thing,so be consistent & persistent.

In strengthening bonds, there should be a genuine interest in your client as human beings are more of emotions than logic when buying from you. Followed by personized communication in your correspondence with your client. Finally, customer loyalty program should be included in the selling process.

- Try to schedule in-person meetings or video calls with your contacts whenever you can. - Meeting face-to-face can strengthen relationships and build a deeper sense of connection and trust. - Create stronger connections by prioritizing direct interactions with your contacts.

Here we should critically analyse why the contacts are slipping, this is the most important and tough step. The possible reason could be a. Losing touch with them b. Your services are no longer relevant to them c. The point of contact in the organisation isn't able to build required connect. d. Any other possible reason

Focus on fortifying relationships if you feel that your business development contacts are eroding. Make sure to stay in touch, provide value, and show that you genuinely care about their success. Pay close attention to their requirements and offer specialized assistance. Thank them for their cooperation and keep lines of contact open. To rekindle their enthusiasm and dedication to the partnership, provide rewards or special chances.

- Personalized Communication: Reach out with personalized messages that show genuine interest in their business and needs. - Value-Added Interaction: Provide value in every interaction, whether through industry insights, helpful resources, or solutions to their challenges. - Regular Check-ins: Establish a routine for regular check-ins, not just when you need something, to maintain a relationship based on mutual respect and interest. - Networking Opportunities: Invite them to relevant networking events or introductions to other professionals in your network, enhancing the value of your relationship.

Offering quality value preposition in any business relationship can not be over emphasized as this is more appealing to clients as the business enterprise is perceived as been resourceful. Tokens such as sharing industry insights, demo presentation will make clients remain connected with your business.

- Share valuable information, resources, or solutions that align with your contacts' interests or challenges to show your dedication to their success. - By providing your contacts with relevant and helpful content, you can reignite their interest in collaborating with you. - Demonstrate your commitment to your contacts' success by offering them valuable information, resources, or solutions that cater to their specific needs and interests.

- Understand Their Challenges: Deeply understand the current challenges and objectives of your contacts to tailor your offerings effectively. - Solve Problems: Position your services or products as solutions to their specific problems, demonstrating how you can help achieve their goals. - Exclusive Offers: Provide special offers or early access to new products or services to rekindle interest and show appreciation for their business relationship. - Educational Content: Share relevant educational content, such as articles, webinars, or whitepapers, to establish your expertise and maintain engagement.

I believe the only way you can truly differentiate from your competition is by truly showing your lead that you care - how do you do that? Just give them immense value BUT with no strings attached Some examples of this can be - A highly personalised list of items - A relevant case study or white paper - An in-depth analysis of their current scenario (which can then open doors for conversations) - and if nothing else Just a simple message to show you care Only if you show the lead you truly care do you instill trust which can then be used as a stepping stone for a bigger commitment

Reset the goals.Collect information/data from the market. Research/analysis well the collected data. Develop communication & connect tactfully.Offer more values. Take helps from technologies.

- Refresh your contacts' memory about what drew them to your business in the first place. - Showcase previous achievements or common interests to rekindle their excitement for the partnership. - Reignite their passion for the relationship by emphasizing past successes and shared interests.

- Acknowledge Time Lapse: When reconnecting, acknowledge the time that has passed since your last interaction, and express your genuine interest in re-establishing the connection. - Update Sharing: Provide updates about your business and inquire about any changes in their business to reignite the conversation. - Soft Approach: Use a soft approach in your initial communication, avoiding hard sales tactics that may come off as too aggressive. - Follow-Up Strategy: Develop a thoughtful follow-up strategy that keeps the communication lines open without being overbearing.

A well planned CRM can be an instant gamechanger, and add a bit of AI tools to it and you have a beast Here are just a few ways we use CRM+AI to nurture leads 1. It reminds us when to call leads (I've set a frequency based on lead quality) 2. It auto flags when a lead wants a call by keyword tracking 3. It ensures we don't miss a reply, by tagging leads under Needs Reply 4. Auto sends emails, messages, WhatsApp to remind leads we exist 5. Helps my Sales team create pitch perfect message via an AI that has cloned my message style and much much more Iterating and improving your followup strategy and making a proper value stack can give you an unbeatable advantage that can 3x your closing rate

Understanding why your contacts are slipping away is essential. Is it due to your offering losing competitiveness, changes in the market, actions by competitors, or other factors? Conduct surveys, interviews, or market research to gather insights from your existing and potential clients. With this knowledge it is now possible to evaluate your: ? Product ? Service offering. ? Sales and marketing activities etc. Against the competitors'. Identify any gaps or weaknesses and work on improving them. This is by the way something you should always do to stay ahead – even if your contracts are not slipping away.

Keep Prospecting The secret to successful new business development is that you have to keep prospecting When you look at the ratios in cold calling on B2B customers, the decision maker isn’t available on your 1st call 70% of the time l, and out of the opportunities that you actively qualify, a third you”ll get, a third you’ll lose and a third will never happen, so 100 cold calls produces three sales….so the more you prospect, the more you qualify, the more active buyers you will meet. Ignore all the nonsense in the previous sections, probably written by ChatGPT and prospect fanatically & read Jeb Blount’s book about fanatical prospecting, have it as an audio book and it’s really good

Try to understand what changed that made these business go away. Communicate with you contacts frequently and have open and honest conversations to understand why things turned out that way, so you can make decisions to correct the path.

Try to understand what changed that made these business go away. Communicate with you contacts frequently and have open and honest conversations to understand why things turned out that way, so you can make decisions to correct the path.

Prospect, prospect and prospect some more When you look at the ratios in cold calling B2B customers, the decision maker is normally not available 70% of the time and only a percentage of decision makers are actively in market at a given time. Also 30% of the opportunities you qualify and bid for never happen, a third more you’ll lose to your competition and a third you’ll get. So, keep prospecting, especially if the repurchase cycles are annual or multi year, e.g., utility type contracts Read or listen to Jeb Blounts’ Fanatical Prospecting & Ian Ianarro’s “Eat Their Lunch”

If business development contacts are slipping away, re-engage them with personalized outreach, expressing genuine interest in their recent work and any new challenges they face. Share valuable insights or opportunities relevant to their industry, showing your commitment to providing ongoing value. Ask for feedback on how you can better support their goals, demonstrating openness to improvement. Propose regular catch-ups to stay connected and explore collaboration opportunities. Use CRM tools to track interactions and ensure consistent follow-up. Rebuilding these relationships requires patience and a sincere interest in mutual success.