Many times when I ask a new coaching student how many names they have in their Book of Business (BoB)© , they quickly reply with “over 200”, or “somewhere around 100”. This response is a dead giveaway for someone who does not have a firm grasp on the definition of a Book of Business or BoB for short.
This morning I am teaching a class on building a book of business in my office and my best guess is over half of those in attendance will not have contacted everyone on their list in the past 30 days …much less know what is going on in their lives.
The definition of a BoB is simple …it is a data base of relationships ranked by their ability to assist you in growing your business. Some of you may consider this politically incorrect …and for those who do ….you can elect to stop reading now and go back to whining about how bad the market is… If I still have your attention the next few paragraphs could change the way you do your business forever.
Ranking Your “List of Names” and transforming it into a BoB
Closely look at every name on your list and place each person in one of the following categories:
A+ = Movers and Shakers …people of influence you have relationship with who are in a position to send you multiple referrals per year
A = Friends, Family, Past Clients etc., who you are sure will send you business, but may not be in a position to send you multiple referrals per year
B = People you know but have not received referrals or business from and you are not certain they will send you referrals
C = People you just met
80% of your prospecting time should be spent on the A+ and A categories …These are the people who are certain will send you referrals …now all you have to do is learn how to ask.
Your B category are relationships where you must learn certain dialogues to establish if they are capable of being an A or A+ …in other words …your current relationship with them is weak …. Using proper dialogues with a B Category will help you discover if they have a brother or best friend who they send referrals to … it will also tell you if they can be cultivated into a referral source for your business…. If they can’t be moved to an A or A+ position…they no longer belong in your BoB and should be moved to a list of names to be used for other purposes.
C’s on the other hand are prospects you have just met and you have little or no relationship with yet. Same dialogues should be used on this category as we use on B’s. These prospects should not stay in the C ranking for more than a few weeks. This will force you to use proper dialogues and speed the process of moving them to a B, A, A+ or moving out of your BoB.
The final stage of the construction of your BoB
The final transformation of your list of names occurs by attaching a Referral Action Plan (RAP)© to each relationship. Without a RAP your BoB is still just a list of names where you print labels from twice a year. Again scrutinize each relationship and formulate a RAP for networking to deepen each individual relationship. Your RAP activities should stay at the top of the communication pyramid using consistent contact of Personal Visits, Phone Calls, Items of Value and Hand Written Personal Notes. Keep electronic communication to a minimum ….every electronic communication should contain a promise of a follow-up call.
Get out there and start RAP’ing with your BoB!
Eddie Brown ©2011
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