Helping your client look good

Make your client look like a rock star to his/her boss. Think about it. Who doesn't need some good press these days?

One of the best ways for you to do this is to proactively go to your client with ideas and resources. By the way, ideas and resources shouldn't always require payment. This is one of the many ways you and I provide this thing everyone keeps emphasizing called "value."

Now, if you are among the clueless who think everyone is already doing this, then make it a habit of asking this question in your Needs Analysis: "When was the last time your sales rep came to you (proactively) with an idea?" Get ready for a head tilt as they try to remember.

One way you stay fresh with ideas is to carve out weekly thinking time to, well, think about your client's business.

Tip: Regard this thinking time like you would any other appointment in that once you set it, you keep it!