We will not sell or rent your email address. Do you follow up consistently with people you meet and build relationships that are mutually beneficial? To succeed in business, you must build meaningful relationships. You need strong relationships with customers, employees, alliance partners, and community leaders to build a sustainable business. Most relationships start with a simple step: exchanging business cards. The success of any relationship depends on what you do next. Rick Cooper, The PDA Pro, offers six simple steps that will help you build meaningful business relationships after exchanging business cards. 1. Gather information to help you build rapport From the point of first contact, remember details from your conversation and write it down. Pay attention to details about the person’s work, family, and interests. Make note of the names of the person’s spouse and children. This information will become very helpful to establish rapport when you follow up. 2. Enter business cards into your contact management system Schedule time following events to enter contacts into your contact database. You can enter them by hand, delegate the task to an employee or use a business card scanner. The point is that the sooner you enter your contacts, the faster you can follow up. 3. Send a card The most personal way to acknowledge meeting someone new is to send them a greeting card. It’s personal and it’s memorable. Most people don’t take this step, so you will stand out from the crowd. The first card you send a person should be personal and not promotional. 4. Follow up with a phone call The most cost effective and meaningful way to build a relationship is to make a phone call. Cards, letters and email are one-way communication, whereas a phone call creates a two way dialogue. This method is a great way to learn more about a person so you can determine how best to help each other. 5. Add information that will help strengthen the relationship Each time you speak with a person, you have an opportunity to gain additional insights into what motivates them, learn more about their goals and look for a way to help them. Since many other people are simply looking to promote themselves, you will stand out by demonstrating your commitment to building a mutually beneficial relationship. 6. Keep in touch After your initial follow up, it is necessary to continue to make contact on a regular basis. At this point, it is okay to send cards, letters, email messages and make phone calls. Over time, you will understand whether the person will become a customer, a prospective referral, an alliance partner, a resource, or simply a friend. Did you realize that 80% of sales are made on the 5th-12th contact? To be successful in building relationships, you must have a system that allows you to follow through on a consistent basis. Otherwise, other priorities will always take precedence. Your relationship building system should be simple, timely and accountable. There are many tools that can assist you in building relationships. A personal digital assistant (PDA) such as a Palm, Blackberry or Windows Mobile device is a powerful sales productivity tool. You can increase your Productivity if you exercise Discipline and take Action. A PDA also allows quick access to your contacts. What can you do today to improve your ability to build relationships? According to Rick, “Begin by making it a priority to build relationships. Then, look for best practices and create a simple step by step process to follow up,” Rick says. “Finally, build accountability into your process,” Rick advises, in order to be successful in the long run. Rick S. Cooper, MBA, is The Sales Results Expert. Rick is a Business & Technology Coach who specializes in working with professional services entrepreneurs who want to attract their ideal clients. He coaches entrepreneurs to improve their sales skills and increase their sales results. He teaches them how to leverage technology tools and increase their productivity. Rick is Founder and President of The PDA Pro. Receive Rick's complimentary audio "7 Steps to Attract your Ideal Clients" by visiting http://www.ThePDApro.com/freebies.asp. | 
