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I’ve learned a lot over the past few years. Can’t bust it ![]() Fast forward six months. I’m still calling the guy every few weeks, and we have great chats, but he still doesn’t come in. I go out of my way to find mutual friends just to bring them up in conversation, and it still doesn’t work. I go find his job sites, tell Don they look great, and tell him what I could have sold him those plants for. But the response never changed. “I’ll get out there and see you real soon.” As it turns out, Don is best friends with one of my main competitors. He wasn’t hiding this fact, but he just didn’t see the need to tell me. He probably truly enjoyed our conversations, but there’s no way he was going to come buy plants from me. That would be like Robin buying plants from the Joker instead of Batman. (Why Batman and the Joker would be selling plants, I don’t know. It’s not my best metaphor.) Keep it light We regularly have customer-appreciation events where we serve food and have some sort of entertainment. These are great opportunities to sit down and get to know your clients. This year we leased a dove-hunting site about 10 miles away, and that was a huge hit. It’s another way to build that friendship bond with your customer. And once the bond is there, you have gained a long-term customer and companion. I’m proud that most of the customers I deal with one-on-one drive more than 30 miles to get here. Heck, I have family members that won’t drive 30 miles to see me. But these folks do. That’s the power of relationships. For more: Skinner Nurseries, (972) 939-1144; tdavis@skinnernurseries.com. |
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