Unbelievable! Two clients of mine have been ignoring easy-to-reach new clients. Meanwhile, they are stressed out over poor cash flow and the fact that they are very busy with other projects.

Absurd, but scratch the surface of many companies, large and small, and it seems to be a common issue. People talk about preventing churn of client base through CRM software or using social media platforms to reach out to new guys.

However, once it comes to some basics of picking up the phone and making a sales pitch to somebody round the corner or that you know, everything goes kapput.

It’s only a few days ago that I wrote about the value of “sales coaches” . Let me tell of one CEO, who has been prepared to listen to ours truly.

They explained to me very determindly that there was no point in following up samples that had been sent out, in some cases months previously. Why? The small staff was too involved in preparing new proposals for others. Anyway, the prospects would have responded by now if they were serious.

“Go on. Give it a try. Let me call, ” I urged. And thus it was agreed. As for the results of an hour of phoning.

• Prospect No 1: Their comments directed my CEO to a glitch in the production process. This was ironed out. It is expected that after tests on a new sample batch, a first order can be discussed.
• Prospect No 2: Not interested but they passed on 2 solid leads, who will be contacted soon.
• Prospect No 3: They intend to complete tests shortly and appreciated the concern of the call.
• Prospect No 4: Their company is about to embark on a new project, where the material will be applicable. Now that my CEO has shown renewed interest, they will be considered as a supplier.

4 golden possibilities / probabilities that had been written off 7 days previously are back on the radar screen. And the added bonus of an improved production base for better sales flow.

This week, I received a blog on “how to find your first customer“. It is worth reading. And I would add one more suggestion; sometimes the low hanging juicy fruits are right in front of you – you just have to open your eyes and act to bring them home.