Have you checked your own acres of diamonds?

I often trot out the story of Russell H. Conwell’s parable – Acres of Diamonds – to my clients, as a way of encouraging them to properly look in their ‘own back gardens’ (existing clients) before setting out for pasture new in search of their next client.  It is all to easy to ignore the potential riches at your feet on the assumption that there is no possible chance of finding business so easily.
Conwell’s story relates to a farmer who sells his successful farm and leaves it all behind , in search of diamonds in unchartered territories, only to die penniless and hungry.  When his farm was being ploughed over, the new owner found a source of black, glistening rocks, which – you guessed it – turned out to be rough diamonds.  The business moral of the story is quite simple – fully investigate your own clients and contacts for further business opportunities before setting out into the great unknown to try your luck with new prospects who don’t know of you or your products.
Simple, you may say, but how come so few businesses do this thoroughly?
I spend time with my clients giving them tools to use and an approach to help them ensure they are fully leveraging the great work they have done with their customers in order to gain maximum return on their efforts.  After all, it’s hard enough to win business from existing customers, let alone having to establish your credibility with entirely new ones.   Research suggests that on average, we can close a sale with existing clients or referred prospects three times faster than cold ones, so if you want to have a review of your existing approach to business development with your customers and contacts, just give me a call or drop me a mail.
All the best.
Have you checked your own acres of diamonds?