terrypower.com.au

I recently had the honour of being an invited guest to the launch of a new DVD put together by the University of Western Australia entitled ‘What kids really need from their dads’. This initiative is inspired by The Fathering Project www.thefatheringproject.org and explores fathering from both a research stand point and from everyday ‘ordinary’ people. One of the most interesting aspects of this project is the perspective of lung specialist, academic and father Dr Bruce Robinson. Sadly, as a lung specialist he regularly sees fathers who do not have long to live and therefore is in a position to find out some of their most profound and final thoughts. He states that fathers always say two things; one that they wished they had spent more time with their children and two, that the wish they had realised much earlier that work was not as important as it seemed. The great news is, most of us do not have to wait till we are dying to come to that realisation, we need to act now. There are many ideas raised by the video but all come back to one basic driver; spend time listening, loving and just being around your kids. Both you and they will be grateful you did.

Make no mistake; buyers are out there!

The challenge though is they are often well protected, well hidden and damn near impossible to track. This is why hunting for sophisticated buyers is an art form tantamount to tracking the proverbial white elephant. When you find one however, it can become extremely worth while.

Out of the jungle and into your client base

Some statements seem so obvious as to be what I call a BFBO a ‘blinding flash of the bleeding obvious’ and this statement ranks up with them – before you can find ‘em you gotta know what they look like. Begs the question; ‘how then do you recognise ‘em?’

Here’s a few pointers to watch for:

Economic buyers are not obsequious; they rarely have to clear their decisions with someone else; they take personal responsibility for the decisions, they rarely take notes in a meeting to have their decisions ratified; they concern themselves with outcomes not ‘inputs’; cost is secondary to ROI; if they want it to happen they make it happen; they focus repute, return and company reward.

In front of your target

Okay, you have them in your cross hairs but move carefully; you’ve generally only got one shot. Economic buyers are by definition interested in economics and very much opposed to having their time wasted. Some key things to remember:

First and foremost treat them like a peer. Push back if need be, ask for evidence. Match them with intellect, dress and language.

Once you’ve found your economic buyer, wooed them and won the contract don’t mount your buyer on a wall, but do treat them with reverence, respect and a willingness to fulfil your side of the contract with passion and vivacious intent. You’ll both be glad you did.