Linda's Blog

When is a Client No Longer a Client?

Linda Peters (Salem Five Mortgage Company) — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 08:30:43 -0700

I honestly don't know which is harder. Doing a cold sales call for the first time to an office or dropping in after a long absence. Personally, I think the latter is more awkward. Sometimes it's the winter months that have caused me to be a bit of a wimp in making my rounds, Maybe it was a busy spring and summer market (ok, maybe not so much in this environment) that causes us become complacent in getting out to see our clients. Whatever the reason, I think many of us have been in this situation. It seems the longer you go without stopping by to say hello, the harder it is to walk back through that door.

We wonder what kind of a reception we will receive. Will it be one of "it's great to see you?" Will it be one of cordial welcome but the relationship just doesn't feel the same?

I was called on by a sales person I hadn't seen in a long while. She had recently attended a seminar where the question of "when is a client no longer a client? was the fundamental theme. It was a simple answer. "When you stop calling on them."

So how does one go about the task of reestablishing those relationships that we have allowed to drop off our radar?

The key is the motivation, a little humility in not making the time to stay connected. It takes discipline to maintain relationships. And we are in an industry where relationships are our cornerstone to success. I have never been a good time blocker. All the best sales training will tell us to block off time for those sales calls. To be consistent in our efforts to build those relationships.

I have been absent from AR for several months because I got out of the habit of checking in and seeing what my friends here are doing and saying. A wealth of good information and support exists here. Yet after a few weeks or months of not connecting here, it soon wasn't even on my radar anymore. The discipline of stopping by to say hello to my fellow AR members to seek support or offer encouragement to others soon dissipated in lieu of other priorities.

I didn't realize how much I missed this forum until I recently ran into another AR member at a function recently and she remembered me from almost a year ago from this site, but had not met personally until now. She told me to get back on board with AR and reminded me of what a great resource this forum is. (thank you Margaret) So I am tiring now to make it a priority to get back into the habit of stopping by to see what my colleagues are saying and doing...... I've got a lot of catching up to do.

But I am happy to be back and so warmly received. Now to the task of getting out of the office more and rekindling some old relationships and cultivating new ones.

Fall is a good time to start a new plan (or re-institute the tried and true.) It's easy to get lazy and rely on emails and an occasional phone call, but the effort of getting out of the office to see people is more important than ever.

So remember..... "When is a client no longer a client? The answer is obvious.

How do I ???? Can anyone HELP!

Linda Peters (Salem Five Mortgage Company) — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 08:55:09 -0800

I noticed that some profiles I look at show comments in their sidebar and some don't. If it's there, you can click on it to see all the comments they have made. How do you add or delete those options in my profile?

Thanks!!

The Love Rock on My Desk

Linda Peters (Salem Five Mortgage Company) — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:58:18 -0700

The Love Rock on My Desk

Okay, I'm going out on a limb here.... my first blog..... (other than responding to a few)..... Write about something on my desk you say..... so here goes.

I have sitting here on my desk a rock from one of our local beaches. It is shaped like a heart, painted red with the words LOVE painted on it. I love this rock. It warms my heart every time I look at it.

My daughter has minimal means and little discretionary income. She is a single mom raising two teenage boys. My birthday was rolling around earlier this month and she was feeling bad that she didn't have money to get me something for my birthday. You know how that goes, no matter what you say, you can't erase that sad feeling at not being able to do some of those simple things.

I asked her to go to the beach and pick out a rock, paint it and write "Nonny's Garden" on it. I was looking for some fun things to put in my garden and thought that would be nifty. She showed up with a box of rocks all painted in fun colors and themes. Of course, one does say "Nonny's Garden" another with my birth sign, yet another shapped like an egg painted like an Easter Egg, a Nome..... and finally this beautiful one shaped like a heart.

I get complements on it all the time. It is those simple things that mean the most in life. A simple rock shaped like a heart, painted red with LOVE on it means the world to me.

When I look at it, I am inspired by her grit and love and warmth. Yes, I have a lovely daughter indeed.

The Love Rock on My Desk

Linda Peters (Salem Five Mortgage Company) — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 12:54:55 -0700

Okay, I'm going out on a limb here.... my first blog..... (other than responding to a few)..... Write about something on my desk you say..... so here goes.

I have sitting here on my desk a rock from one of our local beaches. It is shapped like a heart, painted red with the words LOVE painted on it. I love this rock. It warms my heart every time I look at it.

My daughter has minimal means and little descretionary income. She is a single mom raising two teenage boys. My birthday was rolling around earlier this month and she was feeling bad that she didn't have money to get me something for my birthday. You know how that goes, no matter what you say, you can't erase that sad feeling at not being able to do some of those simple things.

I asked her to go to the beach and pick out a rock, paint it and write "Nonny's Garden" on it. I was looking for some fun things to put in my garden and thought that would be nifty. She showed up with a box of rocks all painted in fun colors and themes. Of course, one does say "Nonny's Garden" another with my birth sign, yet another shapped like an egg painted like an Easter Egg, a nome..... and finally this beautiful one shapped like a heart.

I get complements on it all the time. It is those simple things that mean the most in life. A simple rock shapped like a heart, painted red with LOVE on it means the world to me.

When I look at it, I am inspired by her grit and love and warmth. Yes, I have a lovely daughter indeed.