Below you can see a check list of things many agencies find useful to do following an initial meeting to continue a dialogue without stalking if there isn’t an immediate opportunity. We call it the Post First Meeting Strategy.
a) An email should be sent thanking them and confirming the next actions that have been agreed with timescales.
b) Contact should be made on LinkedIn and if they connect then maybe suggest a Group for them to join– NOT an agency group, something to do with their industry, of which you are also a member.
c) If their brand uses Twitter you should start following it (personally and as a business) so that you can comment on their updates.
d) If their brand uses Twitter, it is quite likely that they too, use the service (in the States 84% of marketers use Twitter and this trend is spreading to the UK). If you find them, DO NOT follow them – that would be stalking. Instead, put their Twitter profile into your CRM (if you use one, or find some other way of monitoring them without following them) so that you can monitor their Tweets before making contact to enable you to tailor your contacts to their interests. They Tweet a lot about football? You mention football.
e) Talking of CRM systems – Get one. Please.
f) You should (personally) become a fan of the brand on Facebook, so that, again, you can start to comment.
g) You should set up a Google search term about their brand so that, should they be mentioned in the press or on blogs, you can send them a quick note saying “hi, did you see this?” and maybe give your thoughts on the issue.
h) You should send them new case studies with a note explaining what about the case study you think is of specific relevance to their brand and why.
i) It is ESSENTIAL that all contact post meeting is initiated by someone who attended the meeting, otherwise, what message does it send to the prospect? You are too busy to maintain a relationship with them; and is that the kind of person they want to work with?
j) Make sure that you integrate your new business and social marketing strategy.
DOWNLOAD OUR ONE PAGER. This check list of things many agencies find useful is by no means the only thing we can help you with.
