First impressions count. Most people form an impression of a person before they even speak — a process that takes about 30 seconds. For companies pitching new clients, the way you look, act, and smell can help you keep their attention.
But first impressions don’t stop there. The sum total of a first interaction with a new client also matters. Everything you do after that initial 30 seconds can also have a lasting impact, and small mistakes can add up.
To make the most of your first impression, avoid these five common but costly mistakes.
1. Failing to Understand the Client’s Business and Needs
Clients want to work with businesses that “get” them. They want to feel understood and know you have their best interests in mind and can provide a product or service that will solve their unique challenges.
Pitches that don’t align with a client’s business, customers, or needs can come across as generic and uninspired. It’s a clear sign you haven’t done your homework, which can be a turnoff to clients.
2. Mispronouncing or Forgetting the Client’s Name
Mispronouncing a client’s name, forgetting their name, or calling them by the wrong name happens. We’re all human, and these things happen. But they can be embarrassing when it happens during a client meeting, especially if you’re trying to make a good first impression.
People take pride in their names and want to be recognized and remembered. Messing up a name signals a lack of attention to detail. Clients may feel undervalued or like another sales target, which can make it harder to build rapport with them.
3. Poor Time Management
Time is precious in business, and no one wants to feel like they’ve wasted their time. When pitching a client, you need to strike a balance between preserving their time while giving yourself enough time to do your job adequately. Otherwise, you’ll appear unprepared, disorganized, and unprofessional, weakening the impact of your pitch.
Poor time management can take the form of being late to meetings, having technical difficulties, talking about unimportant details, or mismanaging the meeting, for example. When time-related issues arise, you might resort to rushing the presentation or not thoroughly answering client questions, both of which can harm your chances of getting client buy-in.
4. Not Focusing on the Benefits to the Client
Your pitch isn’t about you; it’s about what you can do for the client. Clients want to know what’s in it for them and how you can help them better than anyone else. Talking too much about your business can take away from your client’s needs.
Remember that clients are looking for solutions and business outcomes, not just a rundown of your products or services. When you don’t make the benefits to the client immediately obvious, you risk losing their interest (and the sales opportunity).
5. Appealing Overly Pushy or Salesy
A hard sell can be off-putting to clients. Pressure tactics often make a business appear desperate or self-centered rather than on the client’s side.
Rather than prioritizing your need to close the sale, use language that helps the client make an informed decision at their own pace. This can help build trust, demonstrate your patience and ability to guide them, and grow their confidence in your service or product.
How to Recover from a Poor First Impression
Making a good first impression is Business 101. At a minimum, you should present a good physical appearance, know the client’s name, research their business, industry, and customers, and know what you can do for them without using pressure tactics.
Mistakes happen, but that doesn’t mean a mistake has to kill your first impression. If you feel the first client meeting didn’t go well, prioritize a strong follow-up:
- Send a handwritten Thank You note.
- Include a useful gift, such as a basket of snacks (bonus points if it’s relevant to something you know the client likes or something you talked about in your meeting). You can order travel size products in bulk to keep costs low while making a big impact.
- Provide a call-to-action to get in touch or let the client know when they can expect to hear from you again.
Ordering wholesale travel size gifts gives you a ready-made stockpile of useful items that you can tailor to your client’s preferences and send at a moment’s notice. You don’t have to spend a fortune to put a smile on a client’s face — and sway their business your way.
Following up with a new client after the first meeting keeps the conversation active and allows you to retain control of your image. Going the extra mile is never a bad idea.
