Dramatically grow your client base following pragmatic and insightful advice by bestselling author Doug Fletcher

How to Win Client Business When You Don't Know Where to Start: A Rainmaking Guide for Consulting and Professional Services serves as an invaluable and indispensable guide for everyone in the business of selling professional and consulting services. Author Doug Fletcher dives deeply into the five skills required to "make it rain":

* Create Your Personal Brand Identity

* Demonstrate Your Professional Expertise

* Build Your Professional Ecosystem

* Develop Trust-Based Relationships

* Practice Everyday Success Habits

How to Win Client Business When You Don't Know Where to Start provides a masterclass in teaching the practical techniques and concrete strategies that professional services providers were never taught in school or on the job. Pragmatic lessons take the place of the vaguely defined principles found in competing books to turn readers from sales novices into rainmakers.

Written by the same celebrated author who brought readers the best-selling book How Clients Buy, How to Win Client Business When You Don't Know Where to Start is perfect for any professional services provider or consultant who seeks to dramatically increase their book of business.

DOUG FLETCHER is a speaker, writer, and educator on the topic of business development in professional services and consulting. He is co-author of How Clients Buy and serves on the Board of Directors of The Beacon Group.

Praise for How to Win Client Business When You Don't Know Where to Start

Doug continues to be a generational thought leader in the professional services world. In How to Win Client Business he takes on arguably the hardest part of the job, building new client relationships. At last, required reading for my developing leaders.

Cliff Farrah, President and CEO, The Beacon Group & author of Growing the Top Line

This book is destined to become a classic in the tradition of David Maister's The Trusted Advisor. A must read.

Don Scales, Global CEO, Investis Digital & co-author of How to Lead a Values-Based Professional Services Firm

Doug Fletcher's How to Win Client Business makes you feel like you just got the best advice from a dear friend you love and respect. In an era of business development that has become over-automated and impersonal, it's refreshing to have a resource like this to remind us that we're not robotswe're human beings. An absolute must readpractical, tactical and inspirationalfor anyone who wants to reconnect with what makes their heart sing doing work they love.

Terry Pappy, Host of the Simplify & Multiply podcast, author and coach

Doug, in his successful follow up to How Clients Buy, has created an essential client development handbook for all consultants. He masterfully cuts through the noise and uncertainty of how to win client business by imparting the wisdom and techniques that seems so natural to rainmakers. This humanistic approach to winning business through building your brand, your unique market and 'trusted advisor' relationships is truly insightful. Doug has explored the psychology and methodology of winning client's business through straight talk and real-world stories. In short, he nailed it!

Pete Sackleh, CEO, SolutionSpark™ & former Managing Director, Deloitte

Inhalt

Introduction: Selling a Service Is Different (and Harder) Than Selling a Product

Part I: If I'm So Smart, Why Do I Feel So Stupid about Selling?

1. Things Rainmakers Do That Most of Us Don't The Five Rainmaker Skills Universities Don't Teach Us and Our Firms Don't Train Us

2. How Clients Buy Understanding the Client's Buying Decision Journey

3. Where Clients Come From Understanding the Key Client Pathways

4. Rainmaking for Introverts and People Who Don't Want to Sell Winning Client Business While Being True to Yourself

Part II: The Five Skills We Must Learn If We Want to Become a Rainmaker

Section One: Skill 1: Create Your Personal Brand Identity

5. Decide What You Want to Be Known For and Who You Wish to Serve You Can Be Known For Anything, But You Can't Be Known For Everything

6. The Power of Focus The Key to Being Remembered

7. Choosing Your Specialty Shrink the Pond Until You're a Big Fish

8. You Can't Sell Beyond Your Credibility Zone The Cautionary Tale of EDS

Section Two: Skill 2: Demonstrate Your Professional Expertise

9. How Clients Tell Who the Real Experts Are Clients Need Clues That We Are Really Good At What We Do

10. How to Toot Your Own Horn Without Looking Like a Jerk Proven Techniques for Demonstrating Your Expertise

11. Using LinkedIn to Build Your Credibility Social Media Won't Make the Phone Ring. So What's It Good For?

Section Three: Skill 3: Build Your Professional Ecosystem

12. The Two Hundred People You Need to Know The Closest Thing to Knowing Something Is Knowing Where to Find It

13. Does Cold Calling Work? And What to Do If It Doesn't Remember What Mom said: Don't Talk to Strangers!

14. Making Friends in a Natural Way How to Get an Introduction Without Seeming Pushy

15. I Can't See the Forest For the Trees Segmenting Your Ecosystem into Three Distinct Groups

16. Why Advertising Doesn't Work for Us Leveraging Your Firm's Brand Reputation and What to Do When You Don't Have One

Section Four: Skill 4: Develop Trust-Based Relationships

17. What Is Trust and Where Does It Come From? Do Clients Really Hire People They Like?

18. Conversation Skills for Introverts (and the Rest of Us, Too) Using Small Talk to Find Common Ground

19. The Art of Keeping In Touch Finding Opportunities to Be Thoughtful and Helpful

20. Transparency Is Good, Right? How and When to Be Transparent

Section Five: Skill 5: Practice Everyday Success Habits

21. The Daily Habits of Successful Rainmakers The One Hour Each Day That Will Build Your Career

22. Making the Rainmaker Skills Stick 66 Days That Will Shape Your Future

23. Finding Your Rainmaker M.O. Building Rainmaker System That Works for You

Part III: The Rainmaker's Journey

24. Thoughts on Becoming a Rainmaker Stop Trying to Be Wonder Woman and Super Man

25. Finding the Work That You Love And What to Do When You Don't

26. A High Road with a Long View Parting Words as You Begin Your Rainmaker Journey

Appendix A: The Rainmaker Skills Self-Test

What Are My Rainmaker Strengths and Weaknesses?

Notes and References [[CE please move these to the end of chapter

Recommended Reading

Acknowledgments

About the Author

Index