This is annoying. This is the second time I’ve done the start of this post. Clever clogs me has just done the twiddly bits of tidying up the completed post and plonked the visual on top of the first 120 words of the article.

Hopefully won’t do that again (or at least not in such a way I can’t undo the action).

Can’t remember what I said either as (as you might have guessed) the whole article is a stream of consciousness (assuming a sentient being is writing this, eh?).

Whatever.

Two weeks older, eh? Must have been an apology for not posting last week. That probably had something to do with it.

I was talking about the last fortnight having been seriously busy if my memory serves. Then I started on with what I thought was quite a well argued rant about busy being good but not all the time. Yes – and that too much of the time, busy is good as it stops you overthinking and stopping yourself doing things because of lack of confidence.

Something like that anyway.

So here’s the bit I DIDN’T write over…

Tuesday was top-and-tailed by networking with a big meeting in between on one of my pro bono clients. Insurance renewal. Meeting with a potential new broker as the current ones seem happy enough to take the money but don’t talk to us in any meaningful way.

That’s a problem once your business gets bigger. How to make a larger business seem like it still cares about its customers. All of them, not just the large/profitable/complicated ones (delete as appropriate). It’s easy to pay attention while client X moving on could make a significant difference to your income but once you’ve got several layers of staff and processes you are dependent on team dynamics to make sure the same “passion” that you brought to your startup businesses is still there in a mid-range enterprise.

Easy to say and write down. Not so easy to do. I even notice it myself. Some of my longer term clients. You get into a rut, you start taking them for granted; if you’re not careful, chasing the “bright and shiny” can lead to them feeling unloved and then you’ve a potential loss on your hands. Client and income. There is an adage in business that it’s easier to sell (more/another service, etc.) to an existing client than it is to get a new one.

Sooooo true. Write it down. Have it engraved on the wall. Put it on your screen saver if you still have one. Just work out the costs of acquisition of your new client (all of them, not just the specific ones for that client, add a recovery for all the general marketing/ networking costs and cost of yourself and your staff.

You have to kiss a lot of frogs…

I’m not saying you have to retain existing clients for all time. Far from it. There will be the absolute pains in the a##e you will be happy to see go so let them go, nay encourage it, but there will be those clients you lose by neglect, by mistake, by omission. Don’t say it never happens, because the only way it doesn’t is if:

• they can only get that good/service from you. Monopoly supplier, which is good but, unless the barriers to entry are huge, some upstart will come onto the scene and – given a choice – bang goes your business,
• it’s too complicated to change. This is the ONLY reason certain banks and telecommunications companies exist. They really are SO rubbish they should be put out of their misery but it never happens as their peers are just as bad, and
• the cost involved outweighs the cost of changing. But do you REALLY want to be in a business like that???

I have to say that’s probably enough for this week. Quit while you’re behind, I always say…

Can’t promise I’ll be here next week either as we’ve a long weekend away. But I will do my best.